~ Pergamon

Org. Geochem. Vol. 29, No. 1 3, pp. 531-542, 1998

1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved
Printed in Great Britain
PII: S0146-6380(98)00125-9 0146-6380/98/$- see front matter
Pal eoenvi ronments, source rock potenti al and thermal maturi ty o f the
Upper Benue rift basins, Ni geri a: i mpl i cati ons for hydrocarbon
expl orati on
S AMUE L O. AKANDE ' *, OL US OL A J. OJ O ~, B E R ND D. E R DT MANN 2 and
MAGDOL NA HE T E NYI 3
' Department of Geology, University of Ilorin, P.M.B. 1515, Ilorin, Nigeria, qnstitut ftir Geologie und
Pal~ontologie, Technische Universit~t, Berlin, Germany and 3Institute of Mineralogy, Geochemistry
and Petrography, Attila Jozsef University, 6701 Szeged, Hungary
Abstract--The Upper Benue rift comprising the Gongola and Yola Basins in Nigeria consist of the
Aptian-Albian Bima Formation, the Yolde Formation (Cenomanian-Turonian), Gongila/Pindiga/
Dukul Formation (Turonian-Coniacian) and Gombe Formation (Campanian-Maastrichtian). To
evaluate the maturity and source rocks potential, vitrinite reflectance, Rock-Eval pyrolysis and infrared
spectroscopy were carried out on 52 shale samples collected from boreholes, mine quarries and outcrop
sections. In the Gongola Basin, mean random vitrinite reflectance (Rom) values range from 0.45% in
the Gombe Formation to 0.69% in the Pindiga Formation and to 0.82% in the Bima Formation.
Reflectance values in the Yola Basin also increase with stratigraphic age ranging from 0.73% in the
Dukul Formation to 0.94% in the Yolde Formation and up to 1.37% in the Bima Formation. Total
organic carbon (TOC) values in the Pindiga and Gongila Shales are between 0.4 to 2.4% averaging
0.75%. TOC contents from 0.10 to 12.9 averaging 1.2% are contained in the Yolde Formation of the
Yola Basin. Tmax values from the pyrolysis of shales in the Gongola Basin range from 419 to 435C
whereas for shales in the Yola Basin they range from 431 to 442C. Plots of HI vs Tma x for kerogen
classification indicate the prevalence of Type III kerogens in the Gongila and Pindiga Shales although
there are some indications of Type II-111 kerogens in the Yolde Shales of the Yola Basin. Our prelimi-
nary data suggest that Cretaceous successions in the Gongola Basin are thermally immature to margin-
ally mature whereas source rocks in the Yola Basin are thermally mature with respect to hydrocarbon
generation. The predominance of Type III kerogens in the Gongola Basin suggest their potential to
generate gas in the deeply buried sections. The Dukul and Yolde formations with Type I I - I I I kerogens
may have generated some quantities of oil and gas in the deeper non-emergent sections. 1998 Else-
vier Science Ltd. All rights reserved
Ke y w o r d s - - B e n u e Trough, source rocks, kerogen, pyrolysis, infrared spectroscopy, maturity
INTRODUCTION
The Benue ri ft basi n is a sedi ment -fi l l ed nor t heas t
t r endi ng st r uct ur e in Ni ger i a ( Cr at chl ey and Jones,
1965; Bur ke e t a l . , 1970). It is di vi ded geogr aphi -
cal l y i nt o t he l ower, mi ddl e and upper Benue
r egi ons (Fig. 1) and has been a subj ect o f several
publ i cat i ons and di scussi ons (see Ki ng, 1950;
Gr a nt , 1971; Bur ke and Whi t eman, 1973; Ol ade,
1975; Odebode, 1988). Al t hough t he associ at ed
basi ns ar e t hought t o have f or med f r om ext ensi onal
processes, r ecent st udi es by Benkhel i l (1982, 1987,
1989) suggest t he i mpor t ance o f si ni st ral wr enchi ng
as a domi na nt pr ocess f or t he st r uct ur al r eadj ust -
ment and geomet r y of t he di fferent subbasi ns. Two
subbasi ns, t he NNE / S S W t r endi ng Gongol a and
t he E/ W t r endi ng Yol a Basins, ar e del i neat ed in t he
*To whom correspondence should be addressed. Tel.:
+ 234-31-224-788; Fax: + 234-31-224-788.
Up p e r Benue Tr ough (Fi g. 2). I n t he pr esent st udy,
pal eoenvi r onment s o f t he Cr et aceous f or mat i ons
based on t he s edi ment ol ogi cal descr i pt i ons and
pal ynof aci es anal ysi s o f out c r op sect i ons, ar e i nves-
t i gat ed. The sour ce r ock pot ent i al and t her mal
mat ur i t y ar e eval uat ed on t he basi s of t ot al or gani c
car bon, Roc k- Eva l pyrol ysi s, i nf r ar ed spect r oscopy
and vi t r i ni t e refl ect ance meas ur ement s on 52
sampl es f r om shal l ow wat er bor e hol e s , mi ne quar -
ries and out c r op sect i ons.
REGIONALSTRATIGRAPHICSETTING
Cr et aceous successi ons in t he Up p e r Benue
Tr ough ar e f l anked by t he Pr e c a mb r i a n - L.
Pal eozoi c bas ement gneisses and gr ani t e whi ch
occur as i nl i er on occas i on (e.g t he Ka l t ungo i nl i er
Fi g. 2). The Pr e c a mbr i a n bas ement r ocks ar e over -
l ai n by t he Al bi an Bi ma Sands t one as t he ol dest
Cr et aceous sedi ment in t he regi on. Thi s is over l ai n
531
532 Samuel O. Akande et al.
. / . . . . . . " . . . . "7
f ~ - . . . .
I / i
\
( '
/ Chad
i Basin
L
~ . . _._j~4...!::.k,.
\ .
. /
: : ' " . . C H A D B A S I N
: : : : : : : ' . : : . . . . . ( - " , ~ ~
: g ~ " : . : : : : k ~ G o m t '"
. . v i n a ~ 9 . / _ ~ . .. : ' .
. . . . ~ / \ ~l I /
: i i i : ::
: L ' L , , , - - . : : N I G E R : : " ~ \ ~ / / ~
o : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : :
: : F / / _ . k s
"/)- -: : : .. :: : :q.m . . . . . rvllDD I
, , . . . . . . . .
< \ : . . : : : " " . m s \ /
, ' i ' . I .~ i' 'i "i ~ N A M ' B R ~ ' ~ j R f ~-" ~ ( ~ r ' ~ / \ / -
' : : " " : . 1 : . . ; : B A S I N . / / a s ~ 7 _ ~ < ~ ~ -
a r
N I G E R . . o s m g
D E L T A - . :
O L ~ 710 kin.
A t l a n t i c ~ ,
t
I
: k s : ' : j ; : : :
I . . . . . . ; ~ ; . . . .
. . " . ; i : . . . . , - ' ' /
Ter,a,, vo,e0n,cs
S a n d s t o n e I - ~ " \ ~ . '
I 1 S h a l e / L i m e s t o n e
~ C r y s t a l i n e
b a s e m e n t
o f - A m e k l For mat i on (Eocene}
i s - I m o Shale (Poloocene)
c r ~ - Cool measures Ns~kkll~ Ajali= Mamu, Enugu Formations
( Camponlon-Poleocenei
gk - Gombe & Ke r i ' i - - Ke r r l Fi ns . Moost= PaL
kp - pl ndl gol Gongl l o Formotlon (ruroni an - Conloclan )
by- - Bl mo A olde Formotlons ( Al b i o n - T u r o n i o n )
nf - - Nkologu Formotlon ( T u r o n i o n - Co n l o c i o n i
g s - Agbonl Sandstone (Coniocioni
u s - - Agalo Sandstone (Turonlon)
mS--Mokurdl Sandstone (Turonlan)
k l - - Koono Sandstone (Turoplon-Conloclon)
a m - A m o s i r i Sandstone ( Tur onl on)
o r - ASU River Group (Albion)
& Limestone Quarries
( ~ Coal Occurrenses
12 =
IlO i
Fig. 1. Geological map showing the Upper Benue region. Inset shows the position of the Benue Trough
in Nigeria.
by the transitional Yolde Formation (Cenomani an-
Turonian), and succeeded by the marine Turonian
to Coniacian Pindiga Formation, Gongila
Formation in the Gongola Basin and its lateral
equivalents; the Dukul, Jessu and Numanha
formations in the Yola Basin (Fig. 3). These succes-
sions are overlain by the Campanian-Maastrichtian
Gombe Sandstone in the Gongola Basin and the
Lamja Sandstone (lateral equivalents) in the Yola
Basin. The Tertiary Kerri-Kerri Formation capped
the succession west of Gombe in the Gongola
Basin.
Lithostratigraphy and depositional environments
Gombe Sandstone ( Campanian to Maastrichtian).
The Gombe Sandstone [Fig. 4(a)] consists of poorly
to moderately sorted sandstone facies that are inter-
bedded with gray argillaceous beds. Siltstone inter-
beds in this formation are intercalated with oolitic
ironstone. The interbedded dark gray shales and
siltstone increased in thickness towards the lower
part of the boreholes GSN 1504 and 4041. Outcrop
sections of the Gombe Formation were measured in
Gombe town. The presence of terrestrially derived
palynomorphs such as Longiapertites, Echitriporites,
Proteacidites (Lawal and Moulade, 1986) was con-
firmed in the argillaceous units. The lithological fea-
tures and rare marine palynomorphs suggest a
fluvio-lacustrine environment of deposition for this
formation.
Pindiga Jormation (Turonian to Coniacian). This
formation consists of shales intercalated with lime-
stone beds in the Gombe and Kumo areas [Fig. 4(a)
and (b)]. Limestone beds in the Pindiga sections are
highly fossiliferous containing oyster shells, bivalves
and ammonites (Zarboski, 1993). The shales are
light gray to brownish in colour and contain thin
gypsiferous layers at the lower parts. Thickness of
the Pindiga Formation ranges between 80 to 160 m
in outcrops and boreholes investigated in the Gon-
Implications,for hydrocarbon exploration 533
0
. _ ~ ~
. _ = -6 $
o. >- b5 m
BBSI S
- . E~
~~
SBNN
e~
-6 d
,2.1 " ~ e~
~[--.
[--.
E ~ o ~
g ~
. ~ ~
, . ~ . - ' ~
~ g : g
~3 m ~
'~_~
~ g
~ N
N ~
- ~
2=
0 " ~
~ N
. ~ : ~
534 Samuel O. Akande et al.
AGE
MAASTRI CHTI AN
CAMPANI AN
SANTONI AN
CONI ACI AN
TURONI AN
UPPER BEN~JE TROUGH
GONGOLA BASI N Y O L A BASI N
GOMBE L A MJ A
S ANDS T ONE SANDSTONE
CENOMANI AN YOLDE FORMATION
AL BI AN BI MA SANDSTONE BI MA SANDSTONE
YOLDE FORMATION
Fig. 3. Generalized stratigraphic subdivisions in the Upper
Benue Trough.
gola Basin. The Pindiga Shales commonly contain
some marine dinocysts (De[landrea sp. and Hystri-
chosphaerina sp.). The associated marine dinoflagel-
lates suggest that the Pindiga Formation was
deposited in a marginal marine to inner shelf en-
vironment.
Gongila formation (Turonian to Coniacian). The
Gongila Formation exposed in the Ashaka cement
quarry is a lateral equivalent of the Pindiga For-
mation (Fig. 3). It attains a total thickness of 22 m
on outcrop scale consisting of alternating sets of
massive to nodular limestones at the base, marly
bed (about 3 m) and thick shale units, intercalated
with thin limestone beds in the upper part within
the Gongola Basin. The limestone is bioturbated
and highly fossiliferous with abundant ammonites.
The associated calcareous lithologic units and pre-
sence of marine microflora similar to the forms con-
tained in the Pindiga Shales suggest that the
Pindiga and Gongila formations are lateral equiva-
lents.
Dukul formation (Turonian to Coniaeian). The
Dukul Formation consists mainly of gray shales
and thin silty beds [Fig. 4(c)] in the borehole GSN
1612 investigated in the Yola Basin. At Kutari and
Lakun villages near Cham, dark gray shales of this
formation are interbedded with limestone. The
shales are commonly laminated and in places con-
tain some bivalves. The limestone interbeds are
medium to coarse grained and generally gray in col-
our, bioturbated and massive. Both the outcrop and
well samples contain marine palynomorphs includ-
ing, Oligosphaeridium, Florentina sp. and Exoscho-
sphaeridium sp. The palaeontological data and
sedimentologic features support an open marine
depositional environment for this formation.
Yolde .formation (Cenomanian to Turonian). The
Yolde Formation consists of interbeds of shale, silt-
stone, sandstone and calcareous mudstone. About
140 m of these sediments were intersected by the
GSN 1612 well in the Yola Basin [Fig. 4(c)]. The
shale units, are in places laminated and contain
plant remains. Outcrop sections of the Yolde For-
mation measured at Bambam and Cham area con-
sist of sandstone facies ranging from massive,
parallel to cross-stratified units, calcareous sands
and shale facies. The sandstones are lithified, med-
ium to coarse and well sorted although in some
intervals, clasts of shale are common. In places, the
calcareous sandstone unit is bioturbated. The shales
are relatively thin with an average thickness of
0.3 m. The Yolde Formation is interpreted as ran-
ging from a continental to a nearshore marine
regime. Identifiable coarsening upward cycles sup-
port a deltaic system of deposition. The thin silt-
stone and shale layers with plant remains
correspond to swamp sub-facies of deltaic plain, the
sandstone units to a delta front and the basal mud-
stones constitute the prodelta facies (Ojo et al.,
1995).
EXPERI MENTAL
Vitrinite reflectance measurements
Selected samples were crushed to less than 2 mm
and impregnated in epoxy for quantitative reflected
light microscopy. In the samples with sparse organic
constituents, kerogen concentrates were prepared,
mounted and polished. Organic petrology studies
were carried out on a Reichert Jung Polyvar photo-
microscope equipped with halogen and HBO lamps,
a photomultiplier and computer unit at the
"Zentraleinrichtung ffir Elektronenmikroskopie"
(ZELMI) at the Technische Universit~it Berlin,
Germany. Mean random reflectance of vitrinite in
oil (Rom%, cf. Bustin et al., 1983) was calculated
from the reflectance of at least 30 grains of vitrinite
measured in random orientation using monochro-
matic (546 nm) non-polarised light in conjunction
with a x40 oil immersion objective. Calibration of
the microscope photometer was achieved using
standards of known reflectance (1.23 and 3.16%).
Measured Rom values of the reflectance standards
confirmed the photomultiplier to be consistently lin-
ear within the range of the measurements.
Data collection and evaluation were done using
the coal programme by Reichert Jung and macerals
were identified through the use of white light and
blue light excitation at 546 and 460 nm, respect-
ively. The mean reflectance as compared to the me-
dian or modal reflectance appears to be an
adequate measure of thermal maturity in this study
(Tissot and Welte, 1984; Pollastro and Barker,
1986).
Rock-eval pyrolysis
Total organic carbon content (TOC) was
measured on pulverized samples at 1000C under
intense oxygen flow by combusting in Carmograph-
8 equipment. The hydrocarbon generative potential,
the maturity and type of the kerogen and the
hydrogen index were determined by Rock-Eval II
Implications for hydrocarbon exploration 535
: ~ ^ ! :ORG(wt%) I HE SOURCE
~ ~ _ ~ ~OTENTIAL
c~ ~ <g H C / t r o c l
~ ' '3- "3"~ )'050:1 1
= E C '-~--" ' : " ~ ' "~
<1I . . . . . . .
3 2
[ i -
8
0
i~. i '
192- . ' . ' . ' .
( a )
G S N B H I 5 0 4 a t G o m b e
i
~ 9 ( , . .
128-
z . . . . .....1
O.
Z
I"'L
176" l ~1 .
o =
~ - ~ ~ ~ : O R G ( w t % )
h i
~ 16"L- -- -- ~
Z
Y%.I I -
11Z .
I -
G S N B H 4 0 4 1 a t K u m o
LEGEND
- ~Sandstone with
~ - ~ Eioystone ~ i r o n s t o n e p e l [ e i ' s
- - : " i ' : . : [ Sa n d s t o n e
S h o l e ,~" ~'~: " l
- ' - - Silf,j Sh a t e
??~ ' ~ I r o n s f o n e
~ ~ . , ,
~ - i ! ; S i l l ' s t o n e .~Limestone
m B ~ m u d s t o n e j F e r r u g i n i z e d ~ S h o l y l i m e s t o n e
l N o s a m p l e ~ ~ I O y p s i f e r o u s l a y e r
| r e c o v e r y . . . . I
~'~. ] O v e r b u r d e n
3o
d ,
x i
I l l
Z l 3:
o 1
u i
ne I
i .
6~
z 1 3 r d -
O I iycb
i - i
, [ I
= E l B0
O l
O I
112 "
Z l
i , - i
Z l
z l
s = I
O l
Z l
- J <
G S N
,
- . . , ~
. : : .=_
N
md - - - :"~
s t : : . :J
. . . .
~:I~ ."
B
. . . .
. . . . -
176 . ' . . ' . .
19; i i : : ' : i (
. . . . . ' / "
~ : . : . " : " ? . ' l
(c)
B N 1 6 1 2 a t H u m a n
! 0 . O s 0 : 1 1
I
Fig. 4. Lithologic sections and source rock potential of boreholes in Gombe, Kumo and Numan areas;
(a) GSN 1504 borehole at Gombe, (b) GSN 4041 borehole at Kumo and (c) GSN 1612 borehole at
Numan.
pyr oanal yser (Espitali6 et al., 1977). Pyrol ysi s of
30-40 mg of samples at 300C for 4 mi n was fol-
l owed by pr ogr ammed pyrol ysi s at 25C/min to
550C, in an at mospher e of helium. These analyses
were carri ed out at the Depar t ment of Mi ner al ogy,
Geochemi st r y and Pet r ogr aphy, At t i l a Jozsef
Uni versi t y, Szeged, Hungar y.
The residue of the t hermal degr adat i on (uncon-
vert ed kerogen) was charact eri zed by Rock- Eval py-
rolysis and by the CR/ CT rat i o measured accordi ng
to t he ASTM st andar d (Cummi ns and Robi nson,
1972).
I nf r ar e d s pect r os copy
I nf r ar ed spect ra of demi neral i zed kerogen con-
cent rat es were measured between 200- 4000cm -~
usi ng the KBr-pel l et t echni que descri bed in Ganz
(1986) at the Organi c Geochemi cal Labor at or y of
536 S a mu e l O. Ak a n d e et al.
Tabl e 1. Rock-Eval pyrolysis, vi t ri ni t e reflectance and infrared spectroscopy dat a of sampl es from the Kumo (GSN 4041) borehol e
Sampl e TOC
For mat i on No. (wt %) HI* GPI SI** $2"* S1 + $2"** Tmax (C) Rom% A fact or C factor HGP
Gombe KM 3 1.46 65 0.03 0.03 0.96 0.99 433 0.52 0.41 0.4 5.99
Gombe KM 4 1.20 22 0.04 0.01 0.27 0.28 422 0.49 0.38 0.43 4.56
Pi ndi ga KM 9 2.45 76 0.01 0.02 1.88 1.90 435 0.55 0.39 0.38 9.56
Pi ndi ga KM 11 1.63 13 0.05 0.01 0.22 0.23 415 0.44 0.39 0.46 6.36
Pi ndi ga KM 13 1.56 19 0.03 0.01 0.31 0.32 416 0.46 0.47 0.45 6.86
Pi ndi ga KM 16 0.60 15 - - 0.09 0.09 423 0.48 - - -
Pi ndi ga KM 17 0.74 13 0.17 0.02 0.10 0.12 422 0.47 - - -
Pi ndi ga KM 18 0.39 10 0.00 - 0.04 0.04 426 0.41 0.36 0.46 1.4
Pi ndi ga KM 19 0.28 14 0.25 0.01 0.04 0.05 - 0.46 0.24 0.43 0.67
Pi ndi ga KM 21 0.65 13 - - 0.09 0.09 425 0.48 0.35 0.43 t.92
Pi ndi ga KM 23 0.54 9 0.17 0.01 0.05 0.06 419 0.43 - - -
Pi ndi ga KM 25 0.21 - 0.08 0.01 0.11 0.12 - 0.52 0.33 0.39 0.69
*In mg HC/ g TOC.
**In mg HC/ g rock.
***In kg HC/ t on rock.
HGP - A factor x TOC x 10.
A fact or = I ( 2 9 3 0 c m t) + 1(2860cm ~)/1(2930cm i) + 1(2860cm i) + ( 1630cm- i ) and C factor - l(1710cm-a)/l(171Ocm -I) +
I(1630 cm-~), where I is the intensity correspondi ng t o peak heights at their respective wave numbers.
t h e I n s t i t u t f i i r An g e wa n d t e Ge o wi s s e n s c h a f t e n I I ,
T e c h n i s c h e Un i v e r s i t / i t Be r l i n , Ge r ma n y . T h e i n f r a -
r e d s p e c t r a t y p i c a l l y d i s p l a y d i s t i n c t p e a k s a t 2 8 6 0
a n d 2 9 3 0 c m - 1 ( C H2 a n d C H3 a l i p h a t i c g r o u p s ) , a t
1 7 1 0 c m - 1 ( c a r b o x y l a n d c a r b o n y l g r o u p s ) a n d a t
1 6 3 0 c m - 1 ( a r o ma t i c C--=C b o n d s ) Ga n z ( 1 9 8 6 ) . T h e
r a t i o s o f r e l a t i v e i n t e n s i t i e s o f t h e p e a k s c o r r e -
s p o n d i n g t o a l i p h a t i c / a l i p h a t i c + a r o ma t i c b o n d s
( A f a c t o r ) a n d c a r b o x y l - c a r b o n y l / c a r b o x y l - c a r b o -
n y l + a r o ma t i c b o n d s ( C f a c t o r ) c a n b e u s e d f o r
i n t e r p r e t i n g k e r o g e n t y p e s a n d c h a n g e s i n k e r o g e n
c o mp o s i t i o n d u r i n g c o a l i f i c a t i o n . A d i a g r a m s i mi l a r
t o t h e v a n Kr e v e l e n d i a g r a m h a s b e e n i n t r o d u c e d
f o r t h i s p u r p o s e ( Ga n z a n d R o b i n s o n , 1985; Ga n z ,
1986) . Hy d r o c a r b o n g e n e r a t i o n p o t e n t i a l s ( HGP )
p r e s e n t e d i n T a b l e s 1 - 3 a r e e s t i ma t e d f r o m t h e e x -
p r e s s i o n HGP = A f a c t o r x T OC x 10 ( Ga n z a n d
Ka l k r e u t h , 1 9 8 7 ) .
RESULTS AND DI SCUSSI ONS
Or g a n i c g e o c h e m i c a l i n v e s t i g a t i o n s
T h e R o c k - E v a l p y r o l y s i s t e c h n i q u e u s e d i n t h i s
s t u d y i s a f a s t me t h o d wh i c h a l l o ws t h e p r o c e s s i n g
o f a l a r g e n u mb e r o f s a mp l e s a n d p r e p a r a t i o n o f
we l l l o g s ( E s p i t a l i 6 e t al . , 1 9 7 7 ; C l e me n t z e t al . ,
1979) . Ge o c h e mi c a l l o g s o f t h e t h r e e b o r e h o l e s
p e n e t r a t i n g t h e s o u r c e r o c k f a c i e s a r e p r e s e n t e d i n
F i g . 4 s h o wi n g t h e o r g a n i c c a r b o n c o n t e n t a n d t h e
h y d r o c a r b o n g e n e r a t i o n p o t e n t i a l . T h e s o u r c e r o c k s
s h o w a r a n g e o f T OC v a l u e s b e t we e n 0 . 1 0 - 1 2 . 9 %
( T a b l e s 1 - 3 ) . T h e Go mb e , P i n d i g a a n d Yo l d e f o r -
ma t i o n s wi t h a v e r a g e T OC v a l u e s ( 1. 3, 0 . 6 3 a n d
0 . 4 6 %, r e s p e c t i v e l y , e x c e p t t h e o n e wi t h 1 2 . 9 %)
ma y b e c o n s i d e r e d a s g o o d s o u r c e r o c k s i n v i e w o f
t h e c o n c e n t r a t i o n l e v e l o f o r g a n i c ma t t e r r a t i n g
a b o v e t h e mi n i mu m t h r e s h o l d v a l u e o f 0 . 5 % f o r a
Tabl e 2. Rock-Eval pyrolysis, vitrinite reflectance and infrared spectroscopy dat a of samples from the Ashaka quar r y and Gombe (GSN
1504) borehol e
Sample TOC
For mat i on No. (wt %) HI* GPI SI** $2"* SI + $2"** T,,l,,x (C) R,,,,% A factor C factor HGP
Pindiga GB 1 0.57 15 0.10 0.01 0.09 0.10 426 0.52 - - -
Pi ndi ga GB 3 0.60 24 0.17 0.02 0.10 0. [ 2 423 0.46 0.29 0.44 1.19
Pi ndi ga GB 6 0.35 22 - - 0.08 0.08 428 0.49 - - -
Pindiga GB 8 0.46 17 0.30 0.03 0.08 0.11 421 0.44 0.37 0.47 1.70
Pindiga GB 10 0.47 23 0.08 0.0l 0.08 0.12 422 . . . .
Pi ndi ga GB 13 0.49 36 0.10 0.02 0.18 0.20 424 0.49 - - -
Pi ndi ga GB 14 0.45 16 0.12 0.01 0.07 0.08 419 0.43 0.31 0.45 1.33
Pi ndi ga GB 16 0.32 21 0.12 0.01 0.07 0.08 425 0.51 - - -
Pi ndi ga GB 17 0.48 29 0.07 0.01 0.14 0.15 419 0.44 0.35 0.42 1.68
Pi ndi ga GB 19 0.43 16 0.12 0.01 0.07 0.08 419 0.63 0.28 0.34 1.2
Pi ndi ga GB 21 0.42 19 0.20 0.02 0.08 0.10 425 0.47 0.37 0.46 1.55
Pi ndi ga GB 22 0.40 37 - - 0.15 0.15 420 0.48 -
Pi ndi ga GB 26 0.38 39 0.06 0.01 0.15 0.16 423 0.46 0.33 0.45 1.32
Pi ndi ga GB 28 0.46 30 0.12 0.02 0.14 0.16 424 0.48 0.32 0.39 1.47
Pi ndi ga GB 31 0.40 27 0.08 0.01 0.11 0.12 424 0.53 0.33 0.36 1.32
Gongi l a AS 1 0.41 24 - - 0.10 0.10 423 0.49 0.26 0.41 1.07
Gongi l a AS 4 0.26 15 - - 0.04 0.04 431 0.65 0.29 0.42 0.75
*In mg HC/ g TOC.
**In mg HC/ g rock.
***In kg HC/ t on rock.
HGP = A factor x TOC x 10.
Implications for hydrocarbon exploration 537
Tabl e 3. Rock-Eval pyrolysis, vitrinite reflectance and infrared spectroscopy dat a of samples from the Numan ( GSN 1612) borehole
Sample TOC
For mat i on No. (wt %) HI* GPI SI** $2"* S1 + $2"** Tm~,x (C) Rom% A factor C factor HGP
Dukul NA 2 0.25 24 - - 0.06 0.06 - 0.73 0.38 0.26 0.95
Dukul NA 4 0.53 41 0.60 0.33 0.22 0.55 431 0.65 0.39 0.31 2.07
Dukul NA 6 0.33 24 - - 0.08 0.08 442 0.75 0.35 0.25 1.16
Yolde NA 8 0.58 18 0.44 0.08 0.11 0.19 442 0.74 0.35 0.32 2.03
Yolde NA 10 0.56 48 0.12 0.03 0.24 0.27 442 0.71 0.36 0.32 2.06
Yolde NA 12 12.9 171 0.02 4.48 22 26.48 438 0.71 0.52 0.29 67
Yolde NA 17 0.33 27 0.10 0.01 0.09 0.10 437 0.64 0.32 0.34 1.06
Yolde NA 22 0.89 55 0.12 0.06 0.49 0.55 437 0.69 0.6 0.29 3.54
Yolde NA 23 0.58 48 0.07 0.02 0.28 0.30 438 0.77 0.33 0.29 2.03
Yolde NA 25 0.39 55 0.05 0.01 0.20 0. 2l 442 0.76 - - -
Yolde NA 27 0.10 30 0.03 - 0.11 - - 0.74 0.33 0.30 0.33
Yolde NA 29 0.21 42 0.20 0.02 0.09 0.11 - 0.73 0.35 0.28 0.74
*In mg HC/ g TOC.
**In mg HC/ g rock.
***In kg HC/ t on rock.
HGP - A factor x TOC x 10.
pot ent i al source r ock (Hunt , 1979; Ti ssot and
Welte, 1984). The average TOC values of the
Pi ndi ga For mat i on are 0.44 and 0. 9% in Gombe
and Kumo areas, respectively, suggesting t hat the
hydr ocar bon pot ent i al for the Pi ndi ga l i t hofaci es in
the Kumo area is bet t er t han in the Gombe area.
The hi gher organi c mat t er cont ent of the non- mar -
ine swamp facies of the Yol de For mat i on in the
Yol a Basin may be due t o pr oxi mi t y to organi c
source (Bustin, 1988) in this envi ronment . Despi t e
the organi c richness, however, the hydr ogen index
values are generally low rangi ng from 9 t o 76 mg
HC/ g TOC except for t he one of 171mg HC/ g
TOC (Tables 1-3). The average HI value is highest
in t he Yol de Shales (Tabl e 3). The pl ot s of HI vs
TOC (Jackson e t a l . , 1985) i ndi cat e a gas-prone
source r ock for the Gombe, Pi ndi ga and Yol de for-
mat i ons while a poor source is suggested for
Gongi l a and Dukul f or mat i ons (Fig. 5) in the
Gongol a and Yol a Basins. The poor source beds
were pr obabl y deposi t ed in oxic condi t i ons
( Demai son and Moor e, 1980; Ol ugbemi ro e t a l . ,
1997).
The organofaci es of the f or mat i ons show sub-
st ant i al cont r i but i on from t errest ri al sources. This is
i ndi cat ed by the pl ot of HI vs Tmax (Fig. 6), where
all the samples pl ot on t he Type I I I (gas prone)
kerogen field (Espitali6 e t a l . , 1984), except for the
swamp facies of the Yol de For mat i on in the Yol a
Basin wi t h some i ndi cat i ons of Type I I kerogen.
The pr edomi nance of Type I I I kerogen is furt her
suppor t ed by the pl ot of A fact or vs C f act or from
i nfrared dat a (Fig. 7, Tabl es 1-3) which classify the
Gombe, Gongi l a and Pi ndi ga format i ons as having
most l y Type I I I kerogens. The Yol de For mat i on in
the pl ot cont ai ns bot h Type I I and I I I kerogens
(Ganz, 1986; Ganz and Kal kr eut h, 1987). The pl ot s
i ndi cat e t hat the Cret aceous samples have rel at i vel y
higher cont ent s of car boxyl groups and moder at e
al i phat i c values ( Akaegbobi , 1995). Thi s confirms
subst ant i al cont r i but i on of t errest ri al l y deri ved or-
gani c mat t er to the sedi ment s of the Gongol a Basin
as a result of r api d run off i nt o the basi n from the
adj acent l and areas.
Measur ed Tmax values rangi ng from 415 to 442C
and vi t ri ni t e reflectance values of 0.41 to 1.03Rom%
(Tables 1-3) for the Cret aceous sedi ment s show
i mmat ur e t o mat ur e source beds ( Ramanampi s oa
and Radke, 1992; Het enyi , 1992; Pl ummer, 1994).
The Dukul and the Yol de format i ons in t he Yol a
Basin are within the oil generat i ng wi ndow while
the Pi ndi ga and Gongi l a f or mat i ons in the Gongol a
Basin are i mmat ur e t o margi nal l y mat ur e wi t h
respect to oil generat i on (Fig. 7). Est i mat ed vi t ri ni t e
reflectance equi val ent s ( VRE%) (0.4 to 0. 5%) from
the pl ot of A vs C fact ors also suppor t t he i mma-
t uri t y to margi nal l y mat ur e status for the Pi ndi ga
and Gongi l a Shales of t he Gongol a Basin (Fig. 7).
Vi t ri ni t e reflectance equi val ent s ( VRE%) from the
pl ot s (Fig. 7) i ndi cat e mat ur i t y status for the Dukul
and Yol de f or mat i ons in t he Yol a Basin (Price,
1983; Ti ssot and WeRe, 1984).
H y d r o c a r b o n p o t e n t i a l
The convent i onal source-rock i nvest i gat i on using
TOC, Rock- Eval pyrol ysi s and i nfrared dat a of
selected source r ock i nt erval s of the Cret aceous suc-
cession in the upper Benue Tr ough i ndi cat e a gener-
ally low to moder at e amount of organi c mat t er
(Fig. 4). I n the regi onal cont ext , the amount of or-
ganic mat t er bar el y meets the mi ni mum pre-requi -
site for pet r ol eum source beds. Thus t hey can be
r at ed as poor to fair oil source rocks. Source r ock
hori zons of the Pi ndi ga For mat i on in t he Kumo
ar ea ( Gongol a Basin, Fi g. 2) have rel at i vel y hi gher
cont ent s of organi c mat t er. The higher TOC val ue
in Kumo area may be due t o its ori gi nal l y hi gher
organi c input. I t is observed t hat di spersed organi c
mat t er in the source r ock facies is composed mai nl y
of Type I I I (gas prone) kerogen. This indicates a
pr edomi nant l y t errest ri al source for the organi c
mat t er constituents. However, a cert ai n i nt erval of
the del t ai c pl ai n (swamp subfacies) of the Yol de
For mat i on in the Numan ar ea cont ai ns Type I I
538 Samuel O. Akande e t al .
K U M O
I0000
I 0 0 0 -
/
-r
POOR / /
.~_ B A R R E N r ~ . 7
S O U R C E / . r _ _ / ~ G A S S O U R C E
G A S
1 o I I s . . . " ,
t i
0,1 1,0 1 0
(o) T O C ( % )
G O M B E
10000
/ . / _ ~ y o , , . /
g t o o / ~ /
B A R R E N ~ , ~ G A S S O U R C E
S O U R C E Z /
/ . . . .
o ~ . = I o A s
0,1 1,0 10
( b ) T O C 1 % 1
N U M A N
I 0 000 ~ 0 x'v
1ooo- / . , * * " / o , > , " .
" ~ l o o i P O O R / I ~ ' / ~ /
BARREN O r ' /
- ~ I S O U R C E I / G A S S O U R C E
= l - . ' t - ' "
l o l X x { ,
0,1 110 1 0
( c ) TOC { % )
P i n d i g a F o r m a t i o n
G o m b e F o r m a t i o n
P i n d i g a F o r m a t i o n
0 G o n g i l o F o r m a t i o n
x D u k u [ F o r m a t i o n
Y o l d e F o r m a t i o n
Fig. 5. Source richness plot of samples from (a) Kumo
(GSN 4041) borehole, (b) Ashaka quarry (Gongila
Formation only) and Gombe (GSN 1504) borehole and
(c) Numan (GSN 1612) borehole.
kerogen. This same interval has a distinctly high
TOC value of 12.9 wt % [Fig. 4(c)]. The pr edomi -
nant Type l l I kerogen in the t wo basins i ndi cat es
t hat source beds in the region are generally gas
pr one and can onl y be expected t o provi de l ow
yields of hydr ocar bons from this kerogen t ype
(Espitali6 e t a l . , 1985). The rel at i vel y higher abun-
dance of car boxyl groups and moder at e al i phat i c
values ( Akaegbobi , 1995) also suggest gaseous hy-
dr ocar bon pot ent i al . General l y, the genetic pot en-
tial ($1 +$2) of the source rocks is low, less t han
1. 0kg HC/ t on rock except for the organi c-ri ch
swamp facies of the Yol de For mat i on with a gen-
etic pot ent i al of about 26.5 kg HC/ t on rock (Fig. 4).
The low Sl values of less t han 0.4 mg HC/ g r ock in-
dicate barel y free hydr ocar bons in the pot ent i al
source rocks. Thus, i mpr egnat i on with mi grat ed oil
is unl i kel y ( Ramanampi s oa and Radke, 1992).
Powell e t a l . (1991) report ed t hat Rock-Eval pyrol -
ysis may not fully define the oil proneness of a
source r ock domi nat ed by t errest ri al l y sourced or-
ganic mat t er. Our st udy suggests t hat the distri-
but i on and t ypes of organi c mat t er in the Upper
Benue rift basi ns are largely cont rol l ed by the basi n
mor phol ogy and pal eogeogr aphy despite the devel-
opment of an extensive regi onal anoxic mari ne en-
vi ronment suggested for the Upper Cenomani an to
Sant oni an times in the Benue Tr ough (Petters and
Ekweozor, 1982). The source-rock intervals of the
Gombe, Pi ndi ga, Gongi l a, Dukul and Yol de for-
mat i ons i nvest i gat ed are poor in organic mat t er of
mari ne origin but domi nat ed by t errest ri al l y derived
types. This i ndi cat es t hat the predi ct ed anoxic en-
vi ronment t hr oughout the mi d-Cret aceous was not
sustained and t here is a preval ence of an oxic
deposi t i onal envi ronment .
Thermal mat ur at i on from Tm~ and vitrinite
reflectance dat a indicate t hat the organi c mat t er in
the Gongol a Basin is i mmat ur e to margi nal l y
mature. Indeed, the Tur oni an- Coni aci an Pi ndi ga
For mat i on in the Gongol a Basin is in the diagenetic
stage of mat ur i t y. In the Yol a Basin, the Tur oni a n-
Coni aci an Dukul For mat i on and the Cenomani an-
Tur oni an Yol de For mat i on are within the oil gener-
at i ng window. This suggests t hat geot hermal heat
associ at ed with volcanic events in the Yol a Basin is
significant in causi ng addi t i onal reheating of the
Cret aceous sediments t hereby enhanci ng mat uri t y.
It is also possi bl e t hat higher rat es of sedi ment at i on
and mor e r api d burial existed in the Yol a Basin.
These possibilities are being tested in our future
wor k in the prospect i vi t y of t he Yol a Basin.
S U MMA R Y A N D C O N C L U S I O N
The samples described in this study are rep-
resentative of t he Gombe, Pindiga, Gongi l a, Dukul ,
and Yol de format i ons. These cont ai n most of
the possi bl e source rocks in Gongol a and Yol a
Basins of the Upper Benue rift. The Cret aceous
sediments were deposi t ed in a wide range of
envi ronment s wi t h the Al bi an Bima Sandst one
in a cont i nent al condi t i on domi nat ed by a fluvial
system. The Cenomani an- Tur oni an Yol de For m-
at i on is i nt er pr et ed as shorel i ne mari ne deposi t
while the Tur oni an Coni aci an Pi ndi ga, Gongi l a,
Dukul f or mat i ons were pr obabl y deposi t ed in an
Implications for hydrocarbon exploration 539
KUMO
~ , o e ' ~ ~'~'
+ 0 1
~ + 1 I X I
I
' ~ 45oJ l k I Pmdiga F . . . . t i o n
+ ! + +, / I + ~ ' + . . . .
- 1 i t , t ,
~,+o 1 ~ , , ~ , + o
o )t~ 0 0 4 ~ 0 z.~ o l , ; 0 4B 0 s b 0 I S 2 0 T m a x ( ' C )
( ) D i a g e n e s i s C a t o g e n e s i s M e t o g e n e s i s i
GOMBE <@o
6 0 0 1 / ~ ~ e P in d ig a F o r m a t i o n
~1 I \ 1 o Gongi l a F . . . . t i on
z,00 420 I t . ~ 0 t,l~o 4 ; 0 SO)0 [ 5;~0 T m a x(*C }
I
I (b) D i a g e n e s i s C a t a g e n e s i s M e t a g e n e s i s
NUMAN
+ j , \ , / +
O~ Y o td e F o rm a tio n
+ l 's
i
4 2 0 ] 4 ;.0 4 ; 0 t,8 0 5 ; 0 510 T m ax(*C )
( c ) D i a g e n e s i s C a t a g e n e s i s M e t a g e n e s i s J
Fig. 6. Composite HI-Tmax diagram for the interpretation of kerogen type and maturity of (a) data
from Kumo (GSN 4041) borehole, (b) data from Ashaka quarry (Gongila Formation only) and Gombe
(GSN 1504) borehole and (c) data from Numan (GSN1612) borehole.
i nner shel f mar i ne envi r onment . The Ca mp a n i a n
Maas t r i cht i an Go mb e Sands t one is t hought t o be a
f l uvi o- l acust r i ne deposi t .
Sour ce r ock faci es in t hese successi ons cont ai n
l ow t o fai r concent r at i ons of or gani c mat t er . They
ar e consi der ed t o be a poor t o fai r oil and gas
5 4 0
Samuel O. Akande et al.
x
. . . . . . . . _ ~ ~ x * _ ~ _
( . , )
- o o o , 5 6 6 6 & o
&,.,
, ~ ~ x & " = o =
o 41
- - \ ~ . - -" -" / / " , , < _ / / . ' > r ~ . . - .
~ / ? ' ~ ' . x / ~ , , ~ ' , / ' i l :
/ # I I o I | 1 v
. ~ - m o . . . - , . . , . .
. . 0
6 o o 6 & o & o
(L_LU 3 0 1 ~ 9 l ) ( l L U 3 0 9 8 Z i ] ' + ( I _ U J 3 0 6 Z ) _ f / ( I_LU 3 0 9 8 Z } ] ' , ' ( I_UJOOI~6Z}] = J013O=l V
o,~
, 5
6 t j
o
- - b
'.4
o
o ~ ~ '
a
N F-- Z -
:" o o ~
EL ~
O ' ~
O r . ~
a F -
& ~ . ~ . ~
,, ~
_. a " ~ # -
~ ~
L L 0 ~
a
o so=
, . - ' ~
o~ ~ ~ o :
,TE o ~
& o ' =
u_ . ~
c J i . ~
n-1
- - . . . o c
0
%X. - " - ~ ~ " . / . ' / % . C ' L ' . h ' ~
~ 1 I I I . / / / I I I I I I ' " ~
- G 6 6 o o & o o
( L u a : ~ 0 E g l } + ( L w 3 0 9 8 2 ) [ + [ L_uJ00 [ 6 Z } 1 / ~ ( b u u 0 0 9 8 2 ) ] + ( l ~ 0 ~ : s Z ) i = J 0 ~ D . 4
Implications for hydrocarbon exploration 541
sour ce rock. Gener al l y, t he genet i c pot ent i al of t he
sour ce- r ocks is l ow and free hydr oc a r bons ar e
bar el y present . The hi ghest TOC and HI val ues
occur in t he upper del t ai c pl ai n ( swamp) sedi ment s
of t he Yol de Fo r ma t i o n in t he Yol a Basin. The
general l y l ower HI < 50 (rag HC/ g TOC) in t he
Pi ndi ga and Dukul f or mat i ons suggests di l ut i on of
a ut oc ht onous or gani c mat t er and pr obabl y an oxi c
condi t i on in a shal l ow mar i ne set t i ng. Sour ce- r ock
facies are domi na t e d by t errest ri al l y der i ved or gani c
ma t t e r ( Type I I I ker ogen) and t her ef or e ma y have
gas pot ent i al . The Pi ndi ga Shal es ar e i mmat ur e.
However , t he sour ce r ocks of t he Dukul and Yol de
f or mat i ons in t he Yol a Basi n ar e wi t hi n t he oil gen-
er at i ng level o f mat ur i t y. Si nce t he pr esent dat a ar e
t o be consi der ed pr el i mi nar y, t he sour ce capabi l i t i es
and t her mal mat ur i t y especi al l y of t he Bi ma f or -
ma t i on will be t est ed in f ut ur e r esear ch when deeper
bor ehol es become avai l abl e f r om t he pr opos ed dri l -
l i ng pr ogr a mme of t he oi l and gas expl or at i on com-
pani es.
Acknowledgements--Special acknowledgement is made to
the Director of the Geological Survey of Nigeria, Kaduna,
for assistance during sample collection from the available
boreholes. The staff of the organic geochemical labora-
tories, Institut ffir Angewandte Geowissenschaften II and
"Zentraleinrichtung fiir Elektronenmikroskopie" (ZELM1)
in the Technische Universitfit Berlin and the Department
of Mineralogy Geochemistry and Petrography Attila
Jozsef University Szeged, Hungary, are acknowledged for
their assistance. This contribution includes work that has
been carried out within the scope of the research project
"Thermal and Burial History of Cretaceous and Tertiary
sediments in the Benue Trough Nigeria" with the financial
support of the German Volkswagen Foundation and the
Senate Research Grant of the University of Ilorin,
Nigeria. This paper benefitted from the thorough and criti-
cal reviews by Dr L. R. Ramanampisoa, Petroleum
Geology Consultant, Antananarivo (Madagascar) and
Professor Shi Jiyang, Guangzhou Institute of
Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences (P.R. China).
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