Special Issue for Advances in Geo-Energy Research (AGER)

Call for Papers for a Special Issue: Shale Thermal Maturity Issues and Modelling

Various thermal-maturity-related topics will be covered, including the influence kerogen types and their geochemistry on the prospectivity of organic-rich shales

1. Objectives and relevance of thermal-maturity-related topics

The evaluation, exploration and exploitation of shale resources is gaining pace around the world, but many complex technical issues remain poorly defined. The variable mineralogical, chemical, pore-geometry and thermal maturity characteristics of organic-rich shales means that there is a huge diversity of potentially prospective shale formations, many of which lack detail study and understanding. Being able to measure clarify and predict more clearly the evolution of thermal maturity and its impact on the timing and extent of oil and gas generation is essential.

Obtaining and interpreting accurate and reliable measures of thermal maturity (vitrinite reflectance, geochemical biomarkers, pyrolysis/Rock-Eval metrics) is typically time consuming and costly, and the data they provide often involve some ambiguities.  Moreover, the models currently used, and the reaction-rate kinetics applied to the kerogens making up the organic matter in shales frequently involve crucial assumptions that have huge impacts on the timing of generation, migration, and potential productivity that thermal maturity models derive.

Consequently, there is an ongoing need to improve our understanding of the factors influencing the timing of peak oil and gas generation in different types of shale, and how that relates to changes in geomechanical rock properties and the potential oil and gas production sweet spots.

This special issue will consider for inclusion technical papers the various topics which fall within its broad scope, including, but not limited to, the various issues related to the thermal maturity of organic-rich shales that impact the potential production of oil and gas from those resources.

1. Keywords: Thermal maturity; shale gas / oil productivity; maturity modelling; kerogen types, vitrinite reflectance; geochemical thermal maturity indices; pyrolysis data analysis; Rock-Eval data; kerogen conversion rates; well-log indices of thermal maturity; micro-and nano-scale characterization.

1. Contributions being sought

We invite prospective authors, colleagues, research groups and industry practitioners working in the related fields of shale gas and oil thermal maturity and productivity to contribute to this special volume on “Shale Thermal Maturity Issues and Modelling” with original, full-length research articles, experimental studies, review articles, case studies and discussions. Potential topics include, but are not limited to:

  (1) Kerogen types and their different kinetic behaviours

  (2) Thermal maturity modelling and petroleum conversion rate prediction

  (3) Geochemical and other thermal maturity indicators providing insight to the level of maturity reach across the main oil and gas generation windows and into post-maturity

  (4) Interactions of geochemical and geodynamic criteria related to organic-rich shales

  (5) Regional case studies from shale provinces relating thermal maturity data to a wide range of shale characteristics and properties

  (6) Wireline and other log analysis and the prediction of thermal maturity and kerogen type.

1. Schedule for this special issue

The following schedule summarizes the submission, review, and publication deadlines for articles to be included in this special volume:

Note: Papers will be published online as soon as accepted and edited and will be assigned a DOI number.

1. Submission Guidelines

Paper submissions should be up to 10,000 words for comprehensive reviews, up to 8,000 words for theoretical papers with broad technical studies and up to 5,500 words for case studies.

All papers should be developed, formatted, and submitted online based upon the editorial guidelines provided in the instructions for authors for “Advances in Geo-Energy Research”, which can be accessed from

http://www.astp-agr.com

Please mention that your manuscript is for the thermal maturity special issue when you submit it.

Upon receipt of the completed documents, a minimum of two or three independent reviewers will be selected to provide peer reviews for each document. If papers for the volume are accepted for publication after peer review, they will be published in the online edition of the journal within approximately 3 weeks of acceptance. At that time, they become part of the citable literature with a DOI number? The actual collation of the collection of papers as a special volume will follow later. Thus, submitted manuscripts do not wait on the last paper of the volume to be accepted and are thus immediately available to the community after acceptance.

There are no fees payable to submit or publish articles in this journal.

1. Editorial Team

Managing Editor:

Dr. David Wood

Principal Consultant, DWA Energy Limited, London, UK

Email: dw@dwasolutions.com

Proposed Guest Editorial Team:

Prof. Jingqiang Tan

Central South University

Changsha, China

E-mail: tanjingqiang@aliyun.com

Dr. Bodhisatwa Hazra

Coal Petrology Section,

CSIR-Central Institute of Mining and Fuel Research,

Digwadih Campus, Dhanbad, India

E-mail: bodhisatwa.hazra@gmail.com