Debate over the origin of petroleum: A reply to WAN Lan-sheng's paper

Abstract

This paper discusses the Mr. Wang Lansheng's arguments about the origin of petroleum. It is well known that metal elements and their isotopes can be combined with organic compounds to form coordinating ions or complex compounds, which can be applied to petroleum tracing and isotopic dating. The Fischer-Tropsch reaction can synthesize different kinds of hydrocarbons (including crude oils), under different catalysts, higher temperatures and pressures. Daqing's exploration shows that abiogenic gas not only is existent, but also can form big gas reservoirs, such as the Xincheng Gas Pool. In the Tarim Basin, the Silurian bitumen whose reserves are 917.8×108t was generated by inorganic reaction rather than by organic matter. Abiogenic oil and gas were also found in meteorites and in continental scientific drillings. Some other topics related to the origin of petroleum are also discussed. According to the inorganic origin theory of petroleum, some exploration targets are presented in this paper. Key words: inorganic origin, metal isotope, Fischer-Tropsch reaction, exploration target