Experimental studies on generation kinetics of n-alkanes in petroleum

Conclusions  

(1)	Based on strict kinetics of chemical reactions, MCT-GC method can provide detailed information for generation of organic components. Through computer, we can obtain the yield of the total hydrocarbon or individual component for any geological period under given gmlogical conditions by combining MCT-GC data with geological perameters, and apply them to basin modeling, petroleum prediction, and so on.
(2)	n-Alkanes with high molecular weights were generated very early due to their low activation energies, e. g. fig. 3 shows that almost 98% of C24 has been generated within 20 Ma, while only 1% of C12 was generated.
(3)	Because equipment condition was limited, kinetics of methane, which is one of the most important component in petroleum exploration, is not discussed in this note. Our further work will focus on kinetics of methane through a modified MCT-GC set.