Evaluation of coal and shale reservoir in Permian coal-bearing strata for development potential: A case study from well LC-1# in the northern Guizhou, China

Indentifying reservoir characteristics of coals and their associated shales is very important in understanding the co-exploration and co-production potential of unconventional gases in Guizhou, China. Accordingly, comprehensive experimental results of 12 core samples from well LC-1# in the northern Guizhou were used and analyzed in this paper to better understand their vertical reservoir study. Coal and coal measured shale, in Longtan Formation, are rich in organic matter, with postmature stage of approximately 3.5% and shales of type III kerogen with dry gas generation. All-scale pore size analysis indicates that the pore size distribution of coal and shale pores is mainly less than 20 nm and 100 nm, respectively. Pore volume and area of coal samples influenced total gas content as well as desorbed gas and lost gas content. Obvious relationships were observed between residual gas and BET specific surface area and BJH total pore volume (determined by nitrogen adsorption). For shale, it is especially clear that the desorbed gas content is negatively correlated with BET specific surface area, BJH total pore volume and clay minerals. However, the relationships between desorbed gas and TOC (total organic carbon) as well as siderite are all well positive. The coals and shales were shown to have similar anoxic conditions with terrestrial organic input, which is beneficial to development of potential source rocks for gas. However, it may be better to use a low gas potential assessment for shales in coal-bearing formation because of their low S 1 +S 2 values and high thermal evolution. Nevertheless, the coalbed methane content is at least 10 times greater than the shale gas content with low desorbed gases, indicating that the main development unconventional natural gas should be coalbed methane, or mainly coalbed methane with supplemented shale gas.