The Eopaleozoic shale in South China is assessed as the preferred target for shale gas exploration and development in China

and the research on its organic matters is imperative.Some shale samples are taken from the Eopaleozoic such as the Lower Cambrian

Upper Ordovician and Lower Silurian in Anhui

Guizhou and Sichuan provinces in South China.The naturally fractured surfaces(perpendicular to or parallel to the beddings)and the argon ion milled surface are prepared from these shale samples.Under the scanning electron microscope(SEM)with field emission

the maceral

che-mical composition

occurrences of the organic matters and pore types are systematically observed and studied.The results show that the organic maceral types are dominated by bituminite and bacteria and algae body with strong potential of hydrocarbon generation.The bituminite is composed of spherulites with several to dozens of nanometers in diameter with stripped

interstitial

thin films and amorphous occurrences.The bacteria and algae body has obvious characteristics of biological morphology

mainly in clastic form and dozens of micrometers in diameter.On the basis of identification of maceral

the genetic types of the organic pores are classified into biological pore

vesicular pore

bitum-spherulite pore and molded pore.And both the vesicular pore and bitum-spherulite pore occur in the interior of bituminite and their diameters are of nanometer-scale

which are the direct evidences of hydrocarbon generation from organic matters.Therefore

the development degree of these pores is viewed as one of the indexes for hydrocarbon generation potential assessment of the source rocks.