Exxonmobil Technology and Engineering Company

David T Wang

Michael J Formolo

Cara L Davis

Clifford C Walters

Yitian Xiao

Sarah E Gelman

Michael Lawson

Muhammad Asif

Methods for identifying hydrocarbon contamination sources may include fingerprinting hydrocarbons using isotopocule analyses for BTEX compounds. For example, methods for identifying hydrocarbon contamination sources may comprise: extracting BTEX compounds from a sample; measuring the isotopocule composition of the BTEX compounds; and determining a characteristic of the sample based on the isotopocule composition. Such characteristics may include, but are not limited to, the characteristic of the sample comprises one or more selected from the group consisting of: a source of the sample, a condition at which the sample formed or was last equilibrated, a migration time from a source to a sample location, weathering of the sample, and degree to which the sample is anthropogenic and naturally-occurring.

Isotopocule analysis of hydrocarbon contamination

A quantitative simulation process for producing quantitative model predictions of hydrocarbon composition. The quantitative simulation may include measuring a chemical and isotopic composition of a hydrocarbon sample from a hydrocarbon reservoir. The quantitative simulation may further include measuring geochemical data, geophysical data, and/or geological data for the hydrocarbon reservoir and/or source rock; deriving temperature versus time relationships from a basin model for the hydrocarbon reservoir and/or source rock based on the geochemical data, geophysical data, and/or geological data; generating estimated source-rock maturity parameters based on the temperature versus time relationships; generating an estimated compositional yield for hydrocarbon fractions based on the temperature versus time relationships and the chemical composition of the hydrocarbon sample; and generating, using a mass-conserving isotopic fraction (MCIF) simulator, an estimated isotopic composition of the hydrocarbon fractions based on the estimated compositional yield and the isotopic composition of the hydrocarbon sample.

Systems and methods for predicting the composition of petroleum hydrocarbons

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Witchita Falls, TX, United States of America

David T Wang