Geochemist Dan Jarvie is known for his ongoing work in shale-gas exploration worldwide. Most recently he has been a visiting scientist at the Institut Français de Petrôle in Rueil-Malmaison, France. During the year-long appointment, Jarvie, an analytical and interpretive organic geochemist, has been concentrating on data collection and evaluation of European shale-gas systems.

Jarvie’s geochemical work in North Texas’ Barnett shale established his reputation in unconventional reservoirs. Prior to the emergence of the Barnett play, Jarvie evaluated conventional petroleum systems around the world, using source-rock analysis, kinetic determinations, hydrocarbon fingerprinting analyses and pyrolysis, among other methods. But it was in the Barnett that his geochemical evaluation techniques surged to the forefront.

In 1989, A.V. Jones, a Texas independent, asked Jarvie to investigate the potential for oil production from the Barnett shale on the west flank of the Fort Worth Basin. Along with Lee Lundell, Jarvie began to look at the kinetic parameters of the Barnett shale and the possibility of predicting the transformation of oil and gas within it.

“In 1991, when we gave our first talk on it, the work generated no interest,” Jarvie says with a laugh.

Nevertheless, shortly afterward, Mitchell Energy & Development Corp. called. The Barnett shale pioneer wanted to be able to predict Btu content on its acreage, with an eye to preferentially drilling high-Btu areas. That prompted Jarvie to assemble the first regional geochemical study of the Barnett shale, ushering in a new era in interpretive geochemistry.

A generation of geologists brought up on traditional concepts of source rocks found Jarvie’s methods of source-rock characterization for resource assessments illuminating.

He popularized several reservoir characterization methods for shale-gas reservoirs, including concepts to understand organic porosity development, the role of retained versus expelled hydrocarbons in shales, and maturation-induced changes in kerogen.

Jarvie earned a B.S. from the University of Notre Dame. “I became a geochemist through a back-door approach,” he says. “After college, I got a job with a company that manufactured rock-evaluation instruments, and I was sent out with an instrument to a Monterey shale wellsite in California. I was trained as an organic chemist, but I absolutely fell in love with geochemistry.”

Wallace Dow, a well-known geochemist credited with developing the concept of the petroleum system, became Jarvie’s mentor.

“Wally was outstanding. I learned interpretive geochemistry from him,” says Jarvie. “He was always very busy, but he always had time to help me.” Another key figure in Jarvie’s career was Don Baker, at Rice University in Houston.

Jarvie founded Humble Instruments and Humble Geochemical Services in 1987. The firm grew for 20 years, and he sold it to Weatherford International in 2007. He is currently president of Worldwide Geochemistry LLC, his geochemical consulting firm. Worldwide runs a research lab that specializes in evaluating various aspects of unconventional and conventional petroleum systems.

At the same time, Jarvie is heavily involved in the academic world. He is an adjunct professor at Texas Christian University, a member of the Energy Institute, and an affiliate professor at Oklahoma University. At these institutions, he works on specific research projects with professors and students.

Jarvie has also taken an active role in many professional organizations, from the American Association of Petroleum Geologists to the Society of Petroleum Engineers to the European Association of Organic Geochemists. An engaging lecturer, he has won a number of awards for his papers and presentations. He is widely published, and has chaired and contributed to many professional sessions on unconventional reservoirs in the U.S. and abroad.

Jarvie’s current research interests include developing basin models to understand shale-gas and shale-oil charge, enhancing the understanding of shales as reservoirs, and developing new techniques and approaches to understand shale-oil systems.

“To me, geochemistry is like working a puzzle. That’s what makes it fun.”

Finally, he’s engaged in research on a full thesis on the East Texas/North Louisiana petroleum systems. “This should keep me out of trouble the rest of my life.”