Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses Graduate School 1992 Organic-Rich Lower Tertiary Shales, South Louisiana: Implications for Petroleum Source Rock Deposition. Elizabeth Wyatt chinn cdM ade Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses Recommended Citation Mcdade, Elizabeth Wyatt chinn, Or" ganic-Rich Lower Tertiary Shales, South Louisiana: Implications for Petroleum Source Rock Deposition." (1992). LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses. 5452. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses/5452 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses by an authorized administrator of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the qualify of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand corner and continuing from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. Each original is also photographed in one exposure and is included in reduced form at the back of the book. Photographs included in the original manuscript have been reproduced xerographically in this copy. Higher quality 6" x 9" black and white photographic prints are available for any photographs or illustrations appearing in this copy for an additional charge. Contact UMI directly to order. University Microfilms International A Bell & Howell Information Company 300 North Zeeb Road. Ann Arbor. Ml 48106-1346 USA 313/761-4700 800/521-0600 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Order Number 9316984 Organic-rich lower Tertiary shales, south Louisiana: Implications for petroleum source rock deposition McDade, Elizabeth Wyatt Chinn, Ph.D. The Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical CoL, 1992 UMI 300 N. Zeeb Rd. Ann Aibor, MI 48106 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ORGANIC-RICH LOWER TERTIARY SHALES, SOUTH LOUISIANA: IMPLICATIONS FOR PETROLEUM SOURCE ROCK DEPOSITION A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in The Department of Geology and Geophysics by Elizabeth Wyatt Chinn McDade B.S., Newcomb College, Tulane University, 1980 M.S., Louisiana State University, 1986 December, 1992 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I am grateful to the many institutions, oil companies, and individuals who contributed to this study. My appreciation is extended to members of my committee, including Roger Sassen, Arnold Bouma, and JefFHanor who contributed in many ways to this work’s completion. Thought-provoking discussions with Mark Pasley, Bill Gregory, Lloyd Wenger, Gary Cole, and Mike Gibbons were essential to my understanding of the subject. Considerable financial and analytical support was provided by the Basin Research Institute, Louisiana State University; BP Exploration; Mobil Research; and Exxon Production Research. This work was also supported by grants from the Gulf Coast Association of Geological Societies and the Gus Archie-Shell Scholarship Fund of the Society of Professional Well Log Analysts. Many rock samples were available in the Basin Research Institute's core facility, which includes contributions from several oil companies. In addition, BP Exploration and Amoco Production Company generously donated additional rock samples. I am grateful for drafting assistance from Leslie Priest and Sue Green of Texaco. This work could never have been completed without the love and support of my family, and my husband, Robert McDade. This dissertation is dedicated to my father, Robert Carson Chinn. ii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.............................................................................................ii LIST OF TABLES.............................................................................................................v LIST OF FIGURES.........................................................................................................iv ABSTRACT..................................................................................................................... ix INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................. 1 PREVIOUS WORK..........................................................................................................5 Petroleum Source Rocks and Geochemical Analysis ..................................... 5 Controls on Source Rock Deposition .....................................................................12 South Louisiana Oil Source Rocks and Crude Oil Geochemistry ....................16 Migration Routes and Pathways .............................................................................20 GEOLOGIC SETTING.................................................................................................. 21 Overview—Midway and Wilcox Groups .....................................................26 Overview—Lower Claiborne .................................................................................32 EXPERIMENTAL METHODS...................................................................................... 36 Rock Samples ......................................................................................................... 36 Analytical Techniques.............................................................................................40 Programmed Pyrolysis ........................................................................ 41 Pyrolysis Gas Chromatography ................................................................44 Visual Kerogen Assessment and Vitrinite Reflectance .............................46 Gas Chromatography-Bulk Geochemistry ............................................... 50 Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry-"Biomarkers" ........................52 Carbon Isotope Analysis of Kerogen and EOM .......................................56 RESULTS OF GEOCHEMICAL ANALYSIS...............................................................58 Programmed Pyrolysis .................................................................................... 58 Beauregard Parish—Upper Cretaceous to Upper Wilcox ........................58 Allen Parish—Lower Wilcox to Lower Claiborne ............................ 62 Northern St. Landry Parish—Midway to Lower Claiborne .....................68 Southern Pointe Coupee and St. Landry Parishes—Lower Wilcox to Lower Claiborne ............................................................................... 73 West Baton Rouge Parish—Upper Wilcox .......................................83 Livingston Parish—Upper Cretaceous to Lower Wilcox .........................83 Pyrolysis-Gas Chromatography ............................................................................ 91 Wilcox Group and Midway Group ............................................................91 Lower Claiborne Group ............................................................................ 95 Kerogen Assessment.............................................................................................. 96 Allen Parish—Lower Wilcox to Upper Wilcox ........................................ 99 Northern St. Landry Parish—Lower W ilcox ......................................... 100 Southern Pointe Coupee and St. Landry Parishes—Lower Wilcox to Lower Claiborne ..............................................................................100 West Baton Rouge Parish—Upper Wilcox ..................................... 101 Livingston Parish—Upper and Lower Wilcox ................................ 102 iii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Vitrinite Reflectance—Summary..................................................... 102 Bulk Geochemistry of EOM .......................................................................104 Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectroscopy "Biomarkers" .................................. 112 Carbon Isotopes of Kerogen and EOM ...............................................................121