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Thermal Analysis of Shale from a Mexican Deepwater Gas Field

  • Research Article-Earth Sciences
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Abstract

The increase in global energy demand has stimulated the development of unconventional and deepwater reservoirs such as shale-gas formations, which have become a primary energy source in recent years. Complex technological challenges are involved in the successful exploration and exploitation of shale gas reservoirs. Thermal analysis of shales can provide key knowledge on their mineral composition, reaction mechanisms, kinetic parameters, thermal stability and reactivity, which are very useful to improve the characterization of shale-gas reservoirs. This work presents an investigation about the thermal behavior of a shale sample extracted from a Mexican deepwater gas field. X-ray diffraction (XRD) was used to characterize the shale mineralogy revealing a complex composition of mainly quartz, carbonates, and clays. Non-isothermal pyrolysis tests were performed through simultaneous differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetric (TG) analysis to characterize the shale thermal-behavior in a temperature range from ambient to 900 °C. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to characterize the shale morphology before and after pyrolysis. Iso-conversional methods were used to obtain the kinetic parameters, whereas Coats–Redfern (CR) and master-plot methods were used to find the most probable reaction mechanisms involved in the shale pyrolysis. Reactivity of the shale in presence of saline solutions as shale stabilizers was evaluated by using TG-DSC tests. Results showed that shale pyrolysis is carried out in two stages: a clays dehydroxylation following a three-dimensional diffusion mechanism with an average activation energy of 243.58 kJ/mol, and a carbonates decomposition described through a one-dimensional diffusion mechanism with an average activation energy of 220.43 kJ/mol.

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Acknowledgements

The authors express gratitude to the Instituto Mexicano del Petróleo (IMP) for both providing facilities and granting permission to publish results. This work was supported by the IMP and Sectorial Fund SENER (Secretary of Energy)-CONACyT (National Council of Science and Technology in Mexico)-Hydrocarbons through the “Center of Technology for Deep Water (CTAP)” project. Guerrero-Hernández J. thanks both UNAM and CONACYT for the financial support granted during her Master of Engineering Studies.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Drilling, Completion Fluids and Cementing of Wells, Center of Technologies for Exploration and Production (CTEP®), Instituto Mexicano del Petróleo, Camino de Terracería 800, San José Novillero, 94286, Boca del Río, Veracruz, Mexico

    Luis A. Alcázar-Vara & Ignacio R. Cortés-Monroy

  2. Programa de Maestría y Doctorado en Ingeniería, Exploración y Explotación de Recursos Naturales – Perforación, Circuito escolar, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), Ciudad Universitaria, 04510, Mexico, DF, Mexico

    Jacqueline Guerrero-Hernández

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  1. Luis A. Alcázar-Vara
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Correspondence to Luis A. Alcázar-Vara.

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Alcázar-Vara, L.A., Guerrero-Hernández, J. & Cortés-Monroy, I.R. Thermal Analysis of Shale from a Mexican Deepwater Gas Field. Arab J Sci Eng 47, 7335–7349 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13369-021-06281-4

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