Assessing the maturity of oil trapped in fluid inclusions using molecular geochemistry data and visually-determined fluorescence colours

The thermal maturity of oils extracted from inclusions and the fluorescence colours of oil-bearing fluid inclusions have been measured in 36 sandstone samples from Australasian oil fields. The inclusion oils were analysed using an off-line crushing technique followed by GC–MS. A maturity assessment was made for each inclusion oil using 25 molecular maturity ratios, including a newly defined dimethyldibenzothiophene ratio (DMDR). Each inclusion oil was placed in one of 4 maturity brackets, approximately equivalent to early, mid, peak and post oil generation windows. The fluorescence colours of oil inclusions were visually-discriminated into “blue”, “white” and “yellow plus orange” and their proportions estimated using point counting techniques. Sixteen samples have >85% of oil inclusions with blue fluorescence, whilst other samples have more variable fluorescence colours. One sample has 100% of oil inclusions with yellow plus orange fluorescence. The results show that samples containing mainly blue-fluorescing oil inclusions have thermal maturities anywhere within the oil window. In particular, the molecular geochemical data strongly suggests that oil inclusions with blue fluorescence can have relatively low maturities (calculated reflectance