ASSESSING THE SHALE GAS POTENTIAL OF THE NORTHWEST CARBONIFEROUS BASIN OF IRELAND

Abstract

The success of shale gas in the US has ignited companies to explore the unproven shale gas potential European basins hold. Past exploration in the Northwest Carboniferous Basin of Ireland confirms the presence of gas shows concentrated in thick source rocks with high thermal maturities, but its shale gas potential is yet to be understood. This research has assessed the shale gas potential of the Bundoran, Benbulben, Carraun and Dergvone Shales aiming to understand the variability in source rock potential, generation and adsorption history, and mudstone lithofacies. To achieve this a comprehensive integrated study of outcrop and subsurface exploration data has been undertaken. Outcrop data comprises sedimentary logging, sample collection and a spectral gamma ray survey, as well as thin section and TOC analysis. Subsurface exploration data comprises geochemical data and well logs.Shale gas potential is encouraging in the Bundoran Shale in which it is the primary target, while the Benbulben Shale is a secondary target where deep enough. The Carraun and Dergvone Shales are high risk as occur at maximum depths of

Date of Award	31 Dec 2012
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	The University of Manchester
Supervisor	Jonathan Redfern (Supervisor) & Kevin Taylor (Supervisor)