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Biological activity in the deep subsurface and the origin of heavy oil

Author

Listed:
  • Ian M. Head

    (NRG petroleum group, School of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, University of Newcastle upon Tyne)

  • D. Martin Jones

    (NRG petroleum group, School of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, University of Newcastle upon Tyne)

  • Steve R. Larter

    (NRG petroleum group, School of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, University of Newcastle upon Tyne)

Abstract

At temperatures up to about 80 °C, petroleum in subsurface reservoirs is often biologically degraded, over geological timescales, by microorganisms that destroy hydrocarbons and other components to produce altered, denser 'heavy oils'. This temperature threshold for hydrocarbon biodegradation might represent the maximum temperature boundary for life in the deep nutrient-depleted Earth. Most of the world's oil was biodegraded under anaerobic conditions, with methane, a valuable commodity, often being a major by-product, which suggests alternative approaches to recovering the world's vast heavy oil resource that otherwise will remain largely unproduced.

Suggested Citation

  • Ian M. Head & D. Martin Jones & Steve R. Larter, 2003. "Biological activity in the deep subsurface and the origin of heavy oil," Nature, Nature, vol. 426(6964), pages 344-352, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:nature:v:426:y:2003:i:6964:d:10.1038_nature02134
    DOI: 10.1038/nature02134
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    Cited by:

    1. Huang, Haiping & Zhang, Hong & Han, Denglin, 2021. "Ferrocene addition for suppression of hydrogen sulfide formation during thermal recovery of oil sand bitumen," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 230(C).
    2. Tamara Nazina & Diyana Sokolova & Denis Grouzdev & Ekaterina Semenova & Tamara Babich & Salimat Bidzhieva & Dmitriy Serdukov & Dmitriy Volkov & Konstantin Bugaev & Alexey Ershov & Marat Khisametdinov , 2019. "The Potential Application of Microorganisms for Sustainable Petroleum Recovery from Heavy Oil Reservoirs," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(1), pages 1-23, December.
    3. Yuanyuan Shen & Yu Ji & Chunrong Li & Pingping Luo & Wenke Wang & Yuan Zhang & Daniel Nover, 2018. "Effects of Phytoremediation Treatment on Bacterial Community Structure and Diversity in Different Petroleum-Contaminated Soils," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-17, October.
    4. Ma, Lei & Zhou, Lei & Mbadinga, Serge Maurice & Gu, Ji-Dong & Mu, Bo-Zhong, 2018. "Accelerated CO2 reduction to methane for energy by zero valent iron in oil reservoir production waters," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 147(C), pages 663-671.
    5. Marcos Escobar & Gonzalo Márquez & Blanca Guerrero & Patricia Marín & Carlos Boente & Antonio Bernardo-Sánchez & Emilio Romero & Albert Permanyer, 2020. "Origin and Biodegradation of Crude Oils from the Northernmost Fields in the Bolivar Coastal Complex (Zulia State, Venezuela)," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-20, October.
    6. Carlos Boente & Gonzalo Márquez & Patricia Marín & Emilio Romero & Cristina Rodrigues & Marco Antonio Guzmán, 2020. "Classical Biomarker and Quantitative Extended Diamondoid Analysis Fingerprints for Crude Oils from Deepwater Developments in Block 17, Lower Congo Basin, Angola," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(19), pages 1-14, October.
    7. Jahanbani Veshareh, Moein & Thaysen, Eike Marie & Nick, Hamidreza M., 2022. "Feasibility of hydrogen storage in depleted hydrocarbon chalk reservoirs: Assessment of biochemical and chemical effects," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 323(C).
    8. Liyun An & Xinwu Liu & Jianwei Wang & Jinbo Xu & Xiaoli Chen & Xiaonan Liu & Bingxin Hu & Yong Nie & Xiao-Lei Wu, 2024. "Global diversity and ecological functions of viruses inhabiting oil reservoirs," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-16, December.
    9. Armstrong, Claire W. & Foley, Naomi S. & Tinch, Rob & van den Hove, Sybille, 2012. "Services from the deep: Steps towards valuation of deep sea goods and services," Ecosystem Services, Elsevier, vol. 2(C), pages 2-13.
    10. Zhao, Shuai & Pu, Wanfen & Peng, Xiaoqiang & Zhang, Jizhou & Ren, Hao, 2021. "Low-temperature oxidation of heavy crude oil characterized by TG, DSC, GC-MS, and negative ion ESI FT-ICR MS," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 214(C).

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