Course description:
The course covers the genesis of hydrocarbon accumulation and origins of fossil fuels. Application of natural occurring isotopes in the characterization of various hydrocarbons habitats and residence.
Learning outcomes:
By the end of the course, the student should be able:
- To explain the processes that lead to the formation of hydrocarbons.
- To describe the migration and accumulation of hydrocarbons
- To identify the genetic relationships among crude oils and source rocks
Course content:
Introduction: The Development of Petroleum Geochemistry; Carbon and the Origin of Life; Evolution of Biosphere; Chemical Composition of Biomass - Bacteria, Phytoplankton, Zooplankton, and Higher Plants; Petroleum and its Products. Origin and Migration: How Oil Forms – Natural Hydrocarbons, Generated Hydrocarbons; Modelling Petroleum Generation; The origin of Natural Gas. Habitat: The Source Rock; Coals, Oil Shales, and other Terrestrial Source Rocks; Petroleum in the Reservoir. Applications: Seeps and Surface Geochemical Exploration; Crude Oil Correlation; Prospect Evaluation; and Environmental behavior of anthropogenic organic compounds.
Delivery: 45 lecture hours
Assessment: Coursework 40% and Final Examination 60%
Textbooks
- Hunt, J.M. (1996). Petroleum Geochemistry and geology, Freeman San Francisco.
- Tissot, B.P. and Welte, D. H. (1984). Petroleum Formation and Occurrence. 2nd Edition, Springer-Verlag.
- Killops, S.D. and Vanessa, K. (1993). An Introduction to Organic Geochemistry, Longman Scientific & Technical with John Wiley & Sons, Inc. New York.
- Teacher: Mosses Ndayiragije Makoko