Persian Gulf Oil

1
Persian Gulf Oil

• BY WILL CAMARDA

ESS 315
2
Location

• The majority of the Persian Gulf Oil Fields are
  located in the Persian Gulf Basin
• Located between Eurasia and Arabian Plates
• The top 5 future oil fields in the world all
  reside in the Middle East

3
Geologic History

• The Persian Gulf is the remains of a once larger
  basin now in filled by sediment from Mesopotamian
  Rivers
• Collision of Arabian and Eurasian plates at the
  Mesozoic/Cenozoic boundary produced the Zagros
  Fold Belt and the large Mesopotamian Foredeep
• Has been an area of consistent deposition during
  the Paleozoic that led to the accumulation of a
  very thick sedimentary lens of carbonate rocks
  and evaporates

4
Formation of Oil (Creation)

• Sediment from land and organics typically from
  marine environments fall to the bottom of the
  basin where they create layers which are subject
  increase pressure and depth as more layers are
  laid down
• Organics then slowly break down and form the an
  organic rich residue (kerogen)
• As more heat and pressure is applied the kerogen
  can change into oil and gas (oil window)

5
Formation (Migration)

• The oil originates in source rock (shales) and
  will eventually migrate up into the reservoir
  rock (sandstone and limestones)
• Folds and faults create traps (zones in which the
  oil becomes trapped)

6
Recovery

• Primary Recovery
• Secondary Recovery
• Steam, CO2, Water/Chemicals

• Technology
• Horizontal Drilling
• Offshore Drilling

7
Reserves

• Reserves represent quantities of crude oil
  estimated to be commercially recoverable with
  current technology

8
Global Consumption

• Although continents such as N. America and Europe
  use the most oil currently, countries such as
  China and India are rapidly growing thus
  increasing their need for oil

9
OPEC

• The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries
  has 12 current member countries
• Created to control the supply and distribution of
  oil on the global market
• Their presence has large effects on society as
  they control the majority of the known petroleum
  in the world

10
Environmental Issues

• The burning of fossil fuels (petroleum) creates
  large amounts of greenhouse gases (SO2, CO2, etc)
• Water pollution through by-products of refining
  and oil spills
• Oil spills have can very adverse affects the
  animals and plant life of the surrounding spill
• During The Persian Gulf War when Iraq fled Kuwait
  it set fire to 721 oil wells, burning millions of
  barrels of oil much of which also poured into the
  Persian Gulf

11
Alternative to Persian Gulf Oil

• Although there are large reserves of oil in and
  around the Persian Gulf, new sources of energy
  are eventually going to be required to replace
  these oil fields
• Renewable energy resources (solar, wind,
  geothermal, nuclear, etc)
• Coal and natural gas

• Use of tars sands, oil shales and other sources
  of hydrocarbons will become more prevalent if the
  cost of oil rises

12
Resources

• http//www.forbes.com/2010/01/20/biggest-oil-field
  s-business-energy-oil-fields_slide_2.html
• http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peak_oil
• https//www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world
  -factbook/rankorder/2178rank.html 
• http//www.persiangulfonline.org/interestgroups/oi
  lfacts.htm 
• http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OPEC 
• http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy_in_the_United_
  States
• http//web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid1hid13
  sidd76a194d-be88-4343-a18c-c8b9b7bc70c940sessio
  nmgr14bdataJnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ3d3ddbgehA
  N2007-036764 
• http//www.scribd.com/doc/17343286/Petroleum-Geolo
  gy-of-the-Persian-Gulf-Basin
• Resources of the Earth by James R. Craig
• Economic Geology Illustrated by Eric Cheney