PYROLYSIS AND CHARACTERIZATION OF GBETIOKUN OIL SHALE

Abstract

ABSTRACT

In this work, oil shale sample was collected from Gbetiokun, Delta State, Nigeria. Analytical techniques such as Proximate & Ultimate Analysis, Rock-Eval pyrolysis, Total Organic Carbon (TOC), Fixed Bed Pyrolysis, Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectroscopy (GCMS), and Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA) were used to characterize the sample. From the results obtained, the TOC of the Gbetiokun oil shale was 0.51 wt%. The Tmax, Hydrogen Index (HI) and Productive Index (PI), were 414 ℃, 203.92 mgHC/g TOC and 0.05 respectively. The GCMS analysis revealed predominantly paraffinic constituents and a pristane/phytane ratio of 1.21, an indication that the oil shale sample may have been exposed to an oxidizing atmosphere with decreasing salinity. The simulated result of the pyrolysis of Gbetiokun Oil shale using Aspen Plus produced 53.3 % Shale oil, 24.70 % non-condensable gas and 22 % coke. In comparison, the experimental pyrolysis of the oil shale had 50.2 % Shale oil, 25.60 % noncondensable gas and 24.20 % coke. This comparison between the simulated and experimental results showed a good agreement between the two results. Hence, the Gbetiokun oil shale sample has a fair content of organic matter, it is oil and gas prone but thermally immature and primarily composed of kerogen type III.