U.S.-Egypt Cooperative Research: Oceanic Anoxic Event and Organic Facies of the Cenomanian-Turonian and Their relation to Oil and Gas Formation in North Western Desert, Egypt

0707183 Oboh-Ikuenobe描述：该项目支持Francisca E. Oboh-Ikuenobe，地质科学和工程系，密苏里州罗拉，密苏里州大学，与埃及亚历山大市亚历山大大学环境科学系Mohamed Ibrahim博士合作。 他们计划研究Cenomanian-Turonian的海洋缺氧事件和有机相及其与埃及西北沙漠油气形成的关系。 智力优势：埃及西北部沙漠的上塞诺曼阶-下土伦阶沉积记录了全球性的海洋缺氧事件（OAE 2），其特征是富含有机质的页岩、泥灰岩和石灰岩的广泛沉积。 这些富含有机物的地层提供了世界上近三分之一的碳氢化合物储量，包括北非。 尽管在埃及进行了数十年的油气勘探，但关于侏罗纪-白垩纪孢粉化石及其在年龄分配、古环境解释和烃源岩确定中的应用的数据很少。 本项目旨在解决这一知识差距。 这项研究的目的是认识到在Cenomanian/Turonian边界（约93 Ma）期间的绿色房子效应，以及由此产生的缺氧海水条件如何导致富含有机物的地层的积累影响海洋和陆地微植物群。 PI将侧重于从西北沙漠的Razzak和Meleiha油田中选择的三口威尔斯井的地下Cenomanian-Turonian Abu Roash地层的孢粉学、孢粉相和地球化学分析。 该研究将有助于确定油气源岩潜力、有机质热成熟度和恢复古环境条件。所用的主要代用指标是孢粉相分析，即孢粉学、沉积学和有机地球化学之间的自然界面。 从岩石中回收的花粉、孢子和甲藻的微植物区系范围数据将用于完善地层的生物地层学，同时也产生古植被、古气候、古环境和/或古地理信息，与孢粉相和地球化学数据相结合。该研究将比较烃源岩潜力和有机质成熟度的对比方法，即干酪根数量（数量）、干酪根质量（类型）和热成熟度（孢子/花粉颜色和总有机碳，TOC）。C/T海洋缺氧事件将通过碳酸盐和有机质d13 C记录的特征正偏移来识别。 本研究的另一个目标是通过将埃及微植物区系数据与来自西非的白垩纪数据相关联，比较当地到区域和大陆尺度的古环境和/或古地理变化。思想、技术和文化的交流将提供重要的国际经验。这一能力建设将继续进行，一名来自埃及的女学生将与罗拉的PI进行为期两个月的访问，并将向埃及合作者提供平行奖励。该项目将帮助PI招募代表性不足的群体和少数民族，并将帮助支持一名本科生。研究结果将通过同行评议出版物和在专业会议上的介绍传播给科学界。这项研究的一个重要社会效益将是有助于对石油生成的一般理解，特别是在有机成熟度和源岩潜力方面。 该项目得到了美国-埃及联合基金方案的支持，该方案向两国的科学家和工程师提供赠款，以开展这些合作活动。

0707183Oboh-IkuenobeDescription: This project supports research by Dr. Francisca E. Oboh-Ikuenobe, Department of Geological Sciences and Engineering, University of Missouri at Rolla, Missouri, in collaboration with Dr. Mohamed Ibrahim, Department of Environmental Sciences, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt. They plan a study on the oceanic anoxic event and organic facies of the Cenomanian-Turonian and their relation to oil and gas formation in North Western (NW) Desert, Egypt. Intellectual Merit: The Upper Cenomanian-Lower Turonian sediments in NW Desert, Egypt record the global Oceanic Anoxic Event (OAE2), which is characterized by widespread deposition of organic-rich shales, marls and limestones. These organic-rich strata have sourced almost one-third of the world''''s hydrocarbon reserves, including North Africa. Despite decades of hydrocarbon exploration in Egypt, little data is available on Jurassic-Cretaceous palynomorphs and their use in age assignment, paleoenvironmental interpretation and determination of the source rocks. This project addresses this knowledge gap. The study will be aimed at recognizing the green house effect during the Cenomanian/Turonian boundary (about 93 Ma), and how the resulting anoxic seawater conditions that led to the accumulation of organic-rich strata affected marine and terrestrial microfloras. The PIs will focus on palynological, palynofacies and geochemical analyses of the subsurface Cenomanian-Turonian Abu Roash Formation in three wells selected from the Razzak and Meleiha oil fields, NW Desert. The study will help determine oil and gas source-rock potential, organic thermal maturity, and reconstruct paleoenvironmental conditions. The main proxy used will be palynofacies analysis, the natural interface between palynology, sedimentology, and organic geochemistry. Microfloral range data for the pollen, spores and dinoflagellates recovered from the rocks will be used to refine the biostratigraphy of the formation, while also yielding paleovegetation, paleoclimatic, paleoenvironmental and/or paleogeographic information when integrated with palynofacies and geochemical data. The study will compare contrasting methods of source-rock potential and organic matter maturity, namely kerogen quantity (amount), kerogen quality (type), and degree of thermal maturation (spore/pollen color and total organic carbon, TOC). The C/T oceanic anoxic event will be identified by the characteristic positive excursion in the d13C record of carbonates and organic matter. An additional objective of this study will be to compare the local to regional and continental-scale changes in paleoenvironment and/or paleogeography by correlating the Egyptian microfloral data with equivalent Cretaceous data from West Africa.Broader Impacts: This project will enable scientists and students from Egypt to work with their U.S. counterparts. The exchange of ideas, technologies, and cultures will provide important international experiences. This capacity building will continue with a female student from Egypt visiting with the PI in Rolla for two months, supported by the parallel award to the Egyptian collaborator. The project will help the PI to recruit underrepresented groups and minorities and will help support one undergraduate student. The research results will be disseminated to the scientific community through peer-review publications and presentations at professional meetings. One important societal benefit of the study will be contribution to the general understanding of petroleum generation, especially with respect to organic maturity and source-rock potential. This project is being supported under the US-Egypt Joint Fund Program, which provides grants to scientists and engineers in both countries to carry out these cooperative activities.