Geochemical Course Offering

Advanced Level Course

Oil Geochemistry for the Geoscientist (OILS)

This course is designed for geoscientists and engineers wishing to become skilled in the evaluation and application of bulk chemical, stable carbon isotope, and biomarker data now routinely available for oils and source-rock extracts. The course is exercise-based, using sample oils from GeoMark’s RFDbase.

Course Content
Examine the interpretative utility of tricyclic and pentacyclic terpane and sterane data Review the compositional attributes of oils derived from sources deposited in distal marine, shale-rich systems, carbonate- and marl-rich environments, coaly-resinitic, paralic, and lacustrine systems; and oils closely associated with hypersaline and evaporitic water bodies

Course Content

Examine the interpretative utility of tricyclic and pentacyclic terpane and sterane data

Review the compositional attributes of oils derived from sources deposited in distal marine, shale-rich systems, carbonate- and marl-rich environments, coaly-resinitic, paralic, and lacustrine systems; and oils closely associated with hypersaline and evaporitic water bodies

Upon completion of the course, participants will be able to: 1) describe the origin and history of individual oils, and 2) be able to use this knowledge to (typically) determine source-rock lithology, depositional environment, geologic age, and thermal maturity of expelled fluids.

We provide tools to enhance knowledge and insight into:

Petroleum Systems in 3 (and perhaps 4) dimensions
Petroleum migration in conventional and unconventional resource plays
Aspects of time-lapse (i.e. reservoir-level) geochemistry

This course will lead participants to better understand: Where did the oil come from, where did it go, and how has it changed through time?

No prior geochemical training is necessary for successful participation in the course.