A variety of inorganic elemental and isotopic analytical methods in the petroleum-related value-chain  have been developed in our labs using sample preparation methods that involve a Single Reaction Chamber Microwave digestion system. The analysis of samples for 57 trace elements and V, Fe, and S isotopes are conducted using ICP-OES, QQQ-ICP-MS, MC-ICP-MS and Gas Source Mass Spectrometry, respectively, after these microwave sample preparations. Many types of samples important to this value chain have been processed and analyzed. These sample analyses have included applications related to exploration, production, refining, crude oil feedstocks, refinery corrosion, operations, maintenance scheduling, fuel storage, engine wear, environmental regulation, and energy security.  Upstream samples prepared and analyzed have ranged from oils, EOM, kerogen, to bulk source rocks and reservoir rocks for a variety of applications such as oil-oil correlations, oil-source rock correlations, chemostratigraphic correlations, identification of sweet spots for reservoir and completion quality in unconventional reservoirs and oil allocation studies. Downstream samples have been analyzed and include a variety for refined fuel products and other high-purity byproducts of the refining process.  A more complete grouping of the crude oils with respect to their origin can be achieved by the combined use of these inorganic trace element and isotope techniques in tandem with more traditional or non-traditional organic geochemical techniques to provide an even more powerful set of fingerprints. Trace and isotope results can enable more definitive differentiation between different countries of origins, specific oils and oil fields, oil-source rocks correlations, and meter-scale sweet spots within unconventional shale reservoirs.

Single reaction chamber microwave sample preparation for determination of 57 major, minor, trace and ultra-trace elements and V, Fe  and S  stable isotope ratios for unambiguous fingerprints of crude and refined oils, by-products, extractable oganic material, kerogen and source rocks

255th National Meeting (2018)

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