Evaluating Devonian Gas-Shales from the Appalachian Basin, U.S.A.

Oil & Natural Gas / Gas Shales / Exploration

Date posted: 08/27/09

Desorbed core gas quantities, kerogen and methane carbon isotopes, total organic carbon (TOC), pyrolysis parameters, and detailed mineralogy were determined for approximately 200 Devonian shale core samples in the Appalachian Basin from New York, Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and Ohio. The data from core samples indicate varying levels of thermal maturity, total organic carbon (TOC) content, mineralogy, and gas content. TOC content for the shales ranges from < 0.1% to more than 10.0%, with gas content increasing with an increase in TOC. Thermal maturity and mineralogy also appear to influence gas content.