Sustainable development of shale oil and gas: Insights into accumulation mechanisms and green-efficient exploitation technologies
Abstract
Abstract: Shale oil and gas are important components of unconventional energy resources. Ancient environmental conditions, diagenesis, and structural factors jointly influence their enrichment and high productivity. Green and efficient development depends on breakthroughs achieved through technologies such as fluid regulation, reservoir modification, and intelligent evaluation. This paper systematically reviews the entire process mechanism of shale oil and gas from occurrence and enrichment to production, integrates key technologies including supercritical carbon dioxide, ultrasonic excitation, in-situ pyrolysis, and precise in-situ stress characterization, and establishes an integrated development framework that is mechanistically clear, technologically compatible, low-carbon, and efficient. This framework provides theoretical support for the large-scale, efficient development of shale oil and gas and the coordinated advancement of dual carbon goals.
Document Type: Editorial
Cited as: Wu, F., Liu, X., Tan, J. Sustainable development of shale oil and gas: Insights into accumulation mechanisms and green‑efficient exploitation technologies. Advances in Geo‑Energy Research, 2026, 20(3): 294‑297. https://doi.org/10.46690/ager.2026.06.09
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.46690/ager.2026.06.09Keywords:
Black shale, shale oil and gas, resource evaluation, reservoir stimulation, coupling mechanismReferences
Jin, Z., Wang, G., Liu, G., et al. Research progress and key scientific issues of continental shale oil in China. Acta Petrolei Sinica, 2021, 42(7): 821-835. (in Chinese)
Li, C., Jin, Z., Zhang, L., et al. Advancing the application of sub- and supercritical water in the in-situ conversion of immature and low-maturity shale. Fuel, 2024, 359: 129891.
Luo, T., Guo, X., He, Z., et al. Evolution of overpressure in the Wufeng-Longmasi shale reservoirs of the Jiaoshiba area, Sichuan Basin, southwestern China: Implications for shale gas preservation. AAPG Bulletin, 2024, 108(10): 1985-2008.
Lyu, Q., Tan, J., Li, L., et al. The role of supercritical carbon dioxide for recovery of shale gas and sequestration in gas shale reservoirs. Energy & Environmental Science, 2021, 14(8): 4203-4227.
Shen, B., Li, D., He, J., et al. Intelligent prediction method and application of single-well in-situ stress in shale reservoirs driven by multi-source data. Journal of Geomechanics, 2026, 32(1): 227-244. (in Chinese)
Tan, J., Wang, Z., Wang, W., et al. Depositional environment and hydrothermal controls on organic matter enrichment in the lower Cambrian Niutitang shale, southern China. AAPG Bulletin, 2021, 105(7): 1329-1356.
Tian, Y., Zhang, Q., Wang, Y., et al. A novel model for phase equilibrium calculation of CO₂-hydrocarbon fluids under nanopore confinement. Physics of Fluids, 2025, 37(8): 082012.
Wang, Y., Tan, J., Wang, W., et al. The influence of Late Ordovician volcanism on the marine environment based on high-resolution mercury data from South China. GSA Bulletin, 2023, 135(3-4): 787-798.
Wu, J., Tan, J., Xu, J., et al. Challenges to sustainable large-scale shale gas development in China. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2025, 122(18): e2415192122.
Xiong, J., Tao, S., Liu, X., et al. Physical and mechanical properties of shale under ultrasonic excitation. Special Oil & Gas Reservoirs, 2026, 33(1): 112-120. (in Chinese)
Xu, S., Lu, X., Sun, Y., et al. Optimization of temperature parameters for the autothermic pyrolysis in-situ conversion process of oil shale. Energy, 2023, 264: 126309.
Zhang, J., Feng, Y., He, B., et al. Refined characterization of the 3D fracture complexity index based on Well-Seismic Integration. Journal of Geomechanics, 2026, 32(1): 184-244. (in Chinese)
Zou, C., Yang, Z., Cui, J., et al. Formation mechanism, geological characteristics and development strategy of nonmarine shale oil in China. Petroleum Exploration and Development, 2013, 40(1): 14-26.
Downloads
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 wufang wu, Tanjingqiang Tan, Liuxin Liu

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.