Is the Earth still creating oil?

Gringo_Miami · February 24, 2006, 9:38pm

I have tried searching… so forgive me if this has been discussed earlier

According to a study by several apparently credible scientists, Dr. Thomas Gold (founding director of Cornell University Center for Radiophysics and Space Research) and Dr. J.F. Kenney of Gas Resources Corporations, Houston, Texas, the earth may still be creating oil. Link to first article .

If they are correct, we may have a lot more time to go on the natural oil reserves of the planet than some have claimed:

Crude oil forms as a natural inorganic process which occurs between the mantle and the crust, somewhere between 5 and 20 miles deep. The proposed mechanism is as follows:

Methane (CH4) is a common molecule found in quantity throughout our solar system – huge concentrations exist at great depth in the Earth.

At the mantle-crust interface, roughly 20,000 feet beneath the surface, rapidly rising streams of compressed methane-based gasses hit pockets of high temperature causing the condensation of heavier hydrocarbons. The product of this condensation is commonly known as crude oil.

Some compressed methane-based gasses migrate into pockets and reservoirs we extract as “natural gas.”

In the geologically “cooler,” more tectonically stable regions around the globe, the crude oil pools into reservoirs.

In the “hotter,” more volcanic and tectonically active areas, the oil and natural gas continue to condense and eventually to oxidize, producing carbon dioxide and steam, which exits from active volcanoes.

Periodically, depending on variations of geology and Earth movement, oil seeps to the surface in quantity, creating the vast oil-sand deposits of Canada and Venezuela, or the continual seeps found beneath the Gulf of Mexico and Uzbekistan.

Periodically, depending on variations of geology, the vast, deep pools of oil break free and replenish existing known reserves of oil.

There is a much more technical paper here

Am I reading bunk? Or might there be some validity here? I have no axe to grind either way…but it is an intriguing thought.

What_Exit · February 24, 2006, 9:40pm

Looks like you should see this current thread.

Jim

Gringo_Miami · February 24, 2006, 9:47pm

What thread?

Mods… feel free to move my post if there is thread on this.

Shagnasty · February 24, 2006, 9:47pm

It has been mentioned here before by people that seem to know about this stuff. My understanding is that it is an alternate fringe theory but not hopelessly crackpot.

I find it really strange that scientists still can’t agree if oil is created through orhanic or inorganic processes.

What_Exit · February 24, 2006, 9:49pm

I am sorry: This thread

I am not sure what happen the first time.
I previewed and clicked it to make sure.

Jim

Gringo_Miami · February 24, 2006, 9:56pm

What Exit… thank you for the quick reply.

I really need to hone my SDMB search skills.

Mods - feel free to close this thread. It is clearly redundant of previous discussions.

(Gringo goes back to preparing for the weekend).