Mining Publication: Geology and Gas Content of Coalbeds in Vicinity of Bureau of Mines, Bruceton, Pa.

• Coal
• Gases
• Pennsylvania
• U.S. Bureau of Mines

Two degasification test boreholes were drilled to depths of 1,238 and 1,212 feet on Bureau of Mines property at Bruceton, Pennsylvania, as part of the Bureau of Mines long-range coal degasification program. The holes provided detailed geologic information and geologic sections, which were correlated with regional stratigraphic cross sections prepared by the Pennsylvania geological survey. Gas content determinations and coal analyses were made on the Upper Freeport, Middle Kittanning, Clarion, Brookville, and Mercer coalbeds; gas content of the coalbeds ranged from 53 to 165 cubic feet per ton. Formation pressure and gas flow tests were conducted on selected coalbed intervals in borehole 1; formation pressures ranged from 292 to 473 psig. The middle Kittanning coalbed was hydraulically stimulated using very heavy gelled water, but gas production remained low because gel residue and formation water inhibited the flow of gas. Gas contents in the Clarion, Upper Brookville, and Mercer coalbeds were anomalously low owing to the proximity of porous sandstones which act as reservoirs for gas migrating from coalbeds.