摘 要: | Mechanism and stagcs are discussed and a schematic diagram suggested for petroleum evolution based on a preliminsry review of the characteristics of some oil and gas bearing areas in China and a comparison of tbe content and nature of paraffins between shallower sediments .(ineluding recent sediments and organisms)and deed rocks (especially source rocks). During the early stage of petroleum evolution, when biochemical agency in shallower sediments plays the dominant role, most of the primary organic material changes into kerogen, with a certain amount of “dry” gas produced. On the other hand, thermal catalytic degradation contributes significantly to the intermediate and late stages of petroleum generation. The main stage of petroleum genesis in source rocks coincides with the late period of early diagenesis, during which the major mcde of occurrence of oilgenerating source matter is kerogen. The major factors controlling petroleum evolution are temperature, time, and the type of mineral catalytic agents and kerogen.The process of petroleum evolution can be divided into the following stages:(1) Oil and gas forming stage: a) Initial methane gas aubstage--the activity of microorganisms was intensive; formation of kerogen and methane took place. b) Low maturity oil substage. This is the main stage of oil generation.Low-matured oil and wet gas generated via the thermal catalytic degradation of kerogen. (2) Oil and gas maturity stage: a) High maturity oil substage. Both the molecular weight of paraffins and the ratio of oil to gas decrease. b) Final methane gas substage. This is the last period of petroleum evolution, with methane and highly matured bitumens as its final products.
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