TY - JOUR
T1 - Microstructures of Early Jurassic (Toarcian) shales of Northern Europe
AU - Houben, M. E.
AU - Barnhoorn, Auke
AU - Wasch, L.
AU - Trabucho-Alexandre, J.
AU - Peach, C. J.
AU - Drury, M. R.
PY - 2016/8/1
Y1 - 2016/8/1
N2 - The Toarcian (Early Jurassic) Posidonia Shale Formation is a possible unconventional gas source in Northern Europe and occurs within the Cleveland Basin (United Kingdom), the Anglo-Paris Basin (France), the Lower Saxony Basin and the Southwest Germany Basin (Germany), and the Roer Valley Graben, the West Netherlands Basin, Broad Fourteens Basin, the Central Netherlands Basin and the Dutch Central Graben in The Netherlands. Outcrops can be found in the United Kingdom and Germany. Since the Posidonia Shale Formation does not outcrop in the Netherlands, sample material suitable for experimental studies is not easily available. Here we have investigated lateral equivalent shale samples from six different locations across Northern Europe (Germany, The Netherlands, The North sea and United Kingdom) to compare the microstructure and composition of Toarcian shales. The objective is to determine how homogeneous or heterogeneous the shale deposits are across the basins, using a combination of Ion Beam polishing, Scanning Electron Microscopy and X-ray diffraction. The work presented here shows that the Toarcian shales of Northern Europe display considerable homogeneity in mineralogy and microstructure in the different investigated samples and formations, where the largest variability is the carbonate content ranging from almost zero up to 80%. We conclude that the outcrop locations in Germany and the United Kingdom are suitable analogues with respect to their mineralogy and microstructure for experimental studies on the Posidonia Shale in the Dutch subsurface.
AB - The Toarcian (Early Jurassic) Posidonia Shale Formation is a possible unconventional gas source in Northern Europe and occurs within the Cleveland Basin (United Kingdom), the Anglo-Paris Basin (France), the Lower Saxony Basin and the Southwest Germany Basin (Germany), and the Roer Valley Graben, the West Netherlands Basin, Broad Fourteens Basin, the Central Netherlands Basin and the Dutch Central Graben in The Netherlands. Outcrops can be found in the United Kingdom and Germany. Since the Posidonia Shale Formation does not outcrop in the Netherlands, sample material suitable for experimental studies is not easily available. Here we have investigated lateral equivalent shale samples from six different locations across Northern Europe (Germany, The Netherlands, The North sea and United Kingdom) to compare the microstructure and composition of Toarcian shales. The objective is to determine how homogeneous or heterogeneous the shale deposits are across the basins, using a combination of Ion Beam polishing, Scanning Electron Microscopy and X-ray diffraction. The work presented here shows that the Toarcian shales of Northern Europe display considerable homogeneity in mineralogy and microstructure in the different investigated samples and formations, where the largest variability is the carbonate content ranging from almost zero up to 80%. We conclude that the outcrop locations in Germany and the United Kingdom are suitable analogues with respect to their mineralogy and microstructure for experimental studies on the Posidonia Shale in the Dutch subsurface.
KW - Clay microstructure
KW - Ion-beam polishing
KW - Posidonia Shale
KW - Scanning Electron Microscopy
KW - Whitby Mudstone
KW - X-ray diffraction
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84981500013&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.coal.2016.08.003
DO - 10.1016/j.coal.2016.08.003
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84981500013
SN - 0166-5162
VL - 165
SP - 76
EP - 89
JO - International Journal of Coal Geology
JF - International Journal of Coal Geology
ER -