ABSTRACT
Precise details regarding the twin problems of origin, and migration and accumulation of
petroleum have yet to be fully answered. Recent advances in analytical chemistry and
geochemistry have advanced knowledge and understanding, but issues remain to be resolved.
Therefore, in any text dealing with the science of petroleum, there must, of necessity, be a
section dealing with kerogen. This will help the reader to understand kerogen and its place as
a naturally occurring organic material. It is not the intent of this chapter to replace the
excellent texts already available on the nature of kerogen (Tissot and Welte, 1978; Durand,
1980; Pelet and Durand, 1984; Vandenbroucke, 2003). It is hoped that this chapter will assist
the reader to understand the nature of kerogen as well as understand the role that kerogen
might play in petroleum science. It is anticipated that this chapter will also serve as an
introduction to the more complex constituents of petroleum and aid in an understanding of
the nature of the high molecular weight polar constituents (i.e., the asphaltene constituents
and the resin constituents) of petroleum (see Chapter 8, Chapter 9, and Chapter 11).
