Formation of Hydrocarbon Deposits in the North African Basins

This book reveals the main trends of the formation of petroleum pools in major parts of North African basins. It deals with the regional geology of this important oil- and gas-producing area. Emphasis is laid on paleoenvironmental and provenance reconstructions, trap formation, diagenesis, compaction-decompaction equilibria in petroleum-bearing reservoirs and related fluid geodynamics and oil and gas generation and entrapment. Organic and mineral interaction is shown to be the main process in enhancing reservoir entrapment and filtration properties. This involves a close association of the source and trap formations in time and space. The computer program for basin modeling simulates the burial and thermal histories and petroleum potential in sedimentary basins. Several new concepts and alternative methods are proposed in petroleum geology.