Abstract
Most methane enclosed in gas hydrates is biotic in origin, formed by microbial degradation of sedimentary organic matter. Increasingly, there is evidence that substantial gas hydrate may also be sourced from thermogenic decomposition of organic matter and subsequent migration of this gas into the gas hydrate stability zone. In addition, there is a third potential source of methane that does not involve organic matter at all— abiotic methane, which can be generated by magmatic processes or gaswater- rock reactions in the crust and upper mantle.
Department
Earth Sciences
Publication Date
1-1-2016
Journal Title
Fire in the Ice, The National Energy Technology Laboratory Methane Hydrate Newsletter
Publisher
U.S. Department of Energy
Document Type
Article
Recommended Citation
Johnson, J.E., Waghorn, K.A., Mienert, J., and Bünz, S., 2016. The Potential for Abiotic Methane in Arctic Gas Hydrates. Fire in the Ice, The National Energy Technology Laboratory Methane Hydrate Newsletter, vol. 16, issue 1, p. 9-12. https://www.netl.doe.gov/research/oil-and-gas/methane-hydrates/fire-in-the-ice
Comments
This is an article published by the U.S. Department of Energy in Fire in the Ice, The National Energy Technology Laboratory Methane Hydrate Newsletter in 2016, available online: https://www.netl.doe.gov/sites/default/files/publication/MHNews_2016_Spring.pdf