Sources of alkylbenzenes in Lower Cretaceous lacustrine source rocks, West African rift basins

We conducted molecular biomarker and compound-specific carbon isotope analyses of off-line pyrolyzates from lacustrine samples recovered by ONEZ-1 well (the Kissenda Formation) in the Gabon Basin and Well A (the Maculungo Formation) in the Kwanza Basin in West Africa. Pyrolyzates from ONEZ-1 well co...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Pedentchouk, N., Freeman, K., Harris, N., Clifford, D., Grice, Kliti
Format: Journal Article
Published: Elsevier 2004
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/25121
_version_ 1848751619667132416
author Pedentchouk, N.
Freeman, K.
Harris, N.
Clifford, D.
Grice, Kliti
author_facet Pedentchouk, N.
Freeman, K.
Harris, N.
Clifford, D.
Grice, Kliti
author_sort Pedentchouk, N.
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description We conducted molecular biomarker and compound-specific carbon isotope analyses of off-line pyrolyzates from lacustrine samples recovered by ONEZ-1 well (the Kissenda Formation) in the Gabon Basin and Well A (the Maculungo Formation) in the Kwanza Basin in West Africa. Pyrolyzates from ONEZ-1 well contain isotopically depleted 1,2,3,4-tetramethylbenzene (1,2,3,4-TetraMB; 26.1 to 29.4%) and 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene (1,2,4-TriMB; 26.4 to 29.7%), which are isotopically similar to aryl isoprenoids (29.9 and 31.2%) and b-carotane (28.5 to 31.3%) identified in the bitumen fractions. Pyrolyzates from 3 samples in the lower sections of Well A contain isotopicallyenriched 1,2,3,4-TetraMB (ca. 16%) and 1,2,4-TriMB (ca. 14%), consistent with an origin from diagenetic products of isorenieratene/chlorobactene biosynthesized by green sulfur bacteria (Chlorobiaceae). Pyrolyzates from five samples in the upper sections of Well A are characterized by the presence of intermediate carbon-isotope values of 1,2,3,4- TetraMB (20.7 to 22.8%) and 1,2,4-TriMB (19.3 to 21.2%) and isotopically enriched isorenieratane (ca. 14.5%). Off-line pyrolyzates from these lacustrine source rocks represent two distinct end members: 13C-depleted diagenetic products of b-carotene derived from a lacustrine algal source and 13C-enriched diagenetic products of isorenieratene/chlorobactene derived from green sulfur bacteria. Organic matter (OM) from ONEZ-1 well shows a significant proportion of algal biomass with a 13C-depleted composition. The presence of 13C-enriched biomarkers derived from carotenoids of Chlorobiaceae from samples in the lower part of Well A indicates the development of photic zone euxinia and a significant biogeochemical role of sulfur. In the upper section of Well A, the 1,2,3,4-TetraMB and 1,2,4- TriMB have 13C values indicative of contributions from both Chlorobiaceae and algae to the OM.
first_indexed 2025-11-14T07:55:37Z
format Journal Article
id curtin-20.500.11937-25121
institution Curtin University Malaysia
institution_category Local University
last_indexed 2025-11-14T07:55:37Z
publishDate 2004
publisher Elsevier
recordtype eprints
repository_type Digital Repository
spelling curtin-20.500.11937-251212017-09-13T16:07:21Z Sources of alkylbenzenes in Lower Cretaceous lacustrine source rocks, West African rift basins Pedentchouk, N. Freeman, K. Harris, N. Clifford, D. Grice, Kliti We conducted molecular biomarker and compound-specific carbon isotope analyses of off-line pyrolyzates from lacustrine samples recovered by ONEZ-1 well (the Kissenda Formation) in the Gabon Basin and Well A (the Maculungo Formation) in the Kwanza Basin in West Africa. Pyrolyzates from ONEZ-1 well contain isotopically depleted 1,2,3,4-tetramethylbenzene (1,2,3,4-TetraMB; 26.1 to 29.4%) and 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene (1,2,4-TriMB; 26.4 to 29.7%), which are isotopically similar to aryl isoprenoids (29.9 and 31.2%) and b-carotane (28.5 to 31.3%) identified in the bitumen fractions. Pyrolyzates from 3 samples in the lower sections of Well A contain isotopicallyenriched 1,2,3,4-TetraMB (ca. 16%) and 1,2,4-TriMB (ca. 14%), consistent with an origin from diagenetic products of isorenieratene/chlorobactene biosynthesized by green sulfur bacteria (Chlorobiaceae). Pyrolyzates from five samples in the upper sections of Well A are characterized by the presence of intermediate carbon-isotope values of 1,2,3,4- TetraMB (20.7 to 22.8%) and 1,2,4-TriMB (19.3 to 21.2%) and isotopically enriched isorenieratane (ca. 14.5%). Off-line pyrolyzates from these lacustrine source rocks represent two distinct end members: 13C-depleted diagenetic products of b-carotene derived from a lacustrine algal source and 13C-enriched diagenetic products of isorenieratene/chlorobactene derived from green sulfur bacteria. Organic matter (OM) from ONEZ-1 well shows a significant proportion of algal biomass with a 13C-depleted composition. The presence of 13C-enriched biomarkers derived from carotenoids of Chlorobiaceae from samples in the lower part of Well A indicates the development of photic zone euxinia and a significant biogeochemical role of sulfur. In the upper section of Well A, the 1,2,3,4-TetraMB and 1,2,4- TriMB have 13C values indicative of contributions from both Chlorobiaceae and algae to the OM. 2004 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/25121 10.1016/j.orggeochem.2003.04.001 Elsevier restricted
spellingShingle Pedentchouk, N.
Freeman, K.
Harris, N.
Clifford, D.
Grice, Kliti
Sources of alkylbenzenes in Lower Cretaceous lacustrine source rocks, West African rift basins
title Sources of alkylbenzenes in Lower Cretaceous lacustrine source rocks, West African rift basins
title_full Sources of alkylbenzenes in Lower Cretaceous lacustrine source rocks, West African rift basins
title_fullStr Sources of alkylbenzenes in Lower Cretaceous lacustrine source rocks, West African rift basins
title_full_unstemmed Sources of alkylbenzenes in Lower Cretaceous lacustrine source rocks, West African rift basins
title_short Sources of alkylbenzenes in Lower Cretaceous lacustrine source rocks, West African rift basins
title_sort sources of alkylbenzenes in lower cretaceous lacustrine source rocks, west african rift basins
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/25121