Nanoscale mechanical property of marine and continental organic kerogen in shale

Kerogen is known as an important organic part for absorbing and forming shale gas whose absorption function, especially mechanical and tribological properties, has not been fully revealed. Here, we use Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis to reveal the chemical structure of kerogen. We report the first study of the adhesion and friction behavior of kerogen using atomic force microscope (AFM) Nanoman technology. Our finding reveals the friction of kerogen is decreased at higher pressure while is inhibited at increased temperature, and friction decreases logarithmically as the sliding speed increases. The weakened of Al-O linkage at high temperature have great influence on the decrease of friction forces between kerogen and alumina pellet. This finding lays the mechanism for understanding the dynamic adhesion behavior of kerogen in frictions, therefore attracting increasing interests from scientists, researchers, petroleum engineers and investors.