Yesterday I presented on the topic of Abiogenic Petroleum Origin in my Sustainable Energy class. One of our textbooks is titled “The Bottomless Well”, and while it has nothing to do with abiotic oil, it reminded me of the topic.
The generally accepted model of “fossil fuels” states that oil comes from the fossilized remains of organic matter (plants and animals) sitting within sedimentary layers of rock that have been subjected to geologic forces over millions of years. But the theory of Abiogenic Oil Generation postulates that the creation of petroleum deposits dates back to the formation of the earth itself. The hydrocarbons already existed within the solar system, and instead of vaporizing into space, were subsumed into the earth’s mantle. It’s kind of a “crackpot” theory in most circles, but there is some traction. Much of the science is valid. But it will be a very long time until we can determine its true viability, as the depths at which the abiotic oil deposits are supposed to exist are over 150km deep. The deepest we can currently drill (and only for isolated projects) is about 6km!!