A three-component model of kerogen kinetics on the example of the Menilite Beds

This paper presents the concept of constructing three-component kinetic models of kerogen. The method was developed based on the kinetic mass model constructed from Rock-Eval pyrolysis and Py-GC analysis results. The parameters of the discrete function describing the distribution of activation energy (Ea) and the constant values of the reaction rate (A) for the mass model were optimized based on the results of Rock-Eval pyrolysis in the Kinetics15 program. With the aid of multistage isothermal pyrolysis of Py-GC performed for the same duration at different temperatures, the percentages of each hydrocarbon fraction obtained during the successive stages of pyrolysis were determined. The determined fractions were assigned an appropriate (resulting from the mass model) value of activation energy.The multi-component kinetic model of kerogen constructed in this way enabled the calculation of the shares of individual hydrocarbon fractions generated at different stages of thermal transformation of the source rocks. Simulations of the composition of generated hydrocarbons for the developed model were carried out in the Petro-Mod Kinetic Editor. The results of the simulation justified the creation of multi-component kinetic models for each of the potential source formations located in the study area. Their implementation into the petroleum system model makes it possible to not only forecast the total amount of generated hydrocarbons but also the dynamics of the generation process and the shares of the generated fractions at various stages of thermal transformation of the source rocks.The research material consisted of Menilite source rocks samples, which are considered to be the main source of hydrocarbon accumulations in the Outer Carpathians.