Origin, properties, and implications of solid bitumen in source-rock reservoirs: A review

This paper reviews the significance of solid bitumen with emphasis on source-rock reservoirs. We discuss difficulties and discrepancies with terminology, especially those terms related to the origin of solid bitumen and its physical and chemical properties. Various definitions of solid bitumen have their own justifications and can be used provided there is clarity about which defining criteria are being considered. Difficulties in conforming to chemical-, solubility-, or origin-related definitions lead us to suggest adapting the reflectance of solid hydrocarbon as a practical choice for placing the boundary between solid bitumen and pyrobitumen, and 1.50% is proposed as the boundary value. It has to be noted that this boundary may be shifted down to 1.3% for sulfur-rich kerogen. Recently, much progress has been made by combining imaging and physical adsorption techniques in porosity studies, and so the porosity of solid bitumen is given special emphasis. Comparing pore characteristics obtained from SEM versus those generated by gas adsorption, mercury intrusion, or neutron scattering techniques indicates that the SEM pore inventory fails to account for the smallest pores (