LAUSR

Abstract We summarize the results of our long-term research into the composition of alkyl derivatives of mono-, bi-, and tricyclic aromatic hydrocarbons of 113 crude oils from the Cenozoic (Sakhalin, Pannonian Basin (Serbia), China, and Vietnam), Cretaceous (West Siberia, Mongolia, China, and Saxony), Jurassic (West Siberia and Saxony), and Paleozoic (West Siberia, East Siberia, and Timan-Pechora and Volga-Ural petroliferous provinces) deposits localized at depths from 200 to 4500 m. To identify compositional similarities and differences of crude oils from deposits of different ages, we processed the obtained data on the individual composition of alkanes, alkyl benzenes, alkyl naphthalenes, and alkyl phenanthrenes by principal-component analysis. The analysis has revealed the regularities of changes in the content and composition of alkyl aromatic hydrocarbons in crude oils depending on the age of the enclosing deposits.