1. Cory Lader
Advisor: Dr. Rudy Slingerland
Appalachian Basin Black Shale Group
Department of Geosciences
The Pennsylvania State University
Distribution of Organic Carbon
in the early Late Devonian
Burket Member of the Harrell
Formation in Pennsylvania

2. Introduction
- The Marcellus Currently Produces
roughly 66.5 Bcf/d
- Lower Union Spring Mbr.
- Several thousand feet above
Marcellus lies another black shale-
the Burket Mbr.
- Potential to become the next
hot spot for oil and gas
production

3. Question
– Is the Burket Mbr. in PA of sufficient organic richness and
thickness to warrant production?
Approach
– Define the Total Organic Carbon (TOC) within the Burket Mbr. in
one core
– Develop a function relating %TOC to total gamma ray count
measured in API units
– Use the API values from 446 well logs, located throughout
Pennsylvania, to generate a map of the distribution of TOC and
thickness of the potential pay zone
Research Objectives

4. http://www.marcellus.psu.edu/resources/PDFs/DCNR.pdf
Geologic Settings

5. http://eg.geoscienceworld.org/content/18/4/21
7/F5.large.jpg
Stratigraphic Relationships
- Early Late Devonian Black Shale
- Underlain by the Tully Limestone
- Black Shale Member of the Harrell
Fm.
- Overlain by the Brallier Fm.
- Thickest in NE Pa, thins to the SW
- Interfingering with the Harrell Fm.

6. Smith Core
Location:
41°12'36.02"N
77°12'18.35"W
Methods

7. Tully Limestome
Tully Limestone – Burket Member Contact
Burket Member
Burket Member – Brallier Formation
Contact
Brallier
Formation
The Smith Core and its
inferred lithological features
Methods

8. • Samples taken every foot starting at 125.1 ft and
ending at 307.1 ft
• Sampling interval includes all of the Burket member
and some of the Tully Limestone and Brallier
Formation
• Interval includes a variety of TOC values to produce
accurate results
Methods

9. • All samples were powdered using a silica nitride vial in a Spex 8000 Ball
Mill/Mixer and passed through stainless steel sieve
• Powdered samples were decarbonated by reacting the powdered samples
with 10% Hydrochloric Acid (HCl) for 48 hours
• Following decarbonation, they were analyzed for TOC using an UIC, Inc.
5014 CO2 Coulometer with a 5200 Autosampler
Methods

10. Well Location MapMethods

11. Results
125
145
165
185
205
225
245
265
285
305
0.0 1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0
Depth(ft)
%TOC
Depth Vs %TOC

12. Results

13. Results

14. Results

15. Results
Thickness

16. Conclusions
• %TOC values of Burket Mbr. Hot spot are greater then 1% (1%=
economic)
• Highest %TOC concentrations reside in Tioga, Potter, and Bradford
County
• Potential production hot spots range in thickness from 45ft to 85ft
• %TOC decreases in the Smith Core due to clastic dilution

17. Acknowledgements
• Dr. Rudy Slingerland
• The Undergraduate Research Fund
• Anna Wendt
• Courtney Swanson