Raman spectroscopic measurements of synthetic gas hydrates in the ocean

A Raman spectrometer extensively modified for deep ocean use was used to measure synthetic hydrates formed in an ocean environment. This was the first time hydrates formed in the ocean have been measured in situ using Raman spectroscopy. Gas hydrates were formed in situ in the Monterey Bay by pressurizing a Pyrex cell with various gas mixtures. Raman spectra were obtained for sI methane hydrate and sII methane + ethane hydrate. Gas occlusion resulting from rapid gas growth of methane hydrate was measured immediately after formation. The Raman shift for methane free gas was coincident with that of methane in the small 5¹² hydrate cage. The methane Raman peak widths were used to discriminate between methane in the free gas and hydrate phase. Methane + ethane sII hydrate was formed for 43 days on the seafloor. In this case, gas occlusion was not measured when the gas hydrates were allowed to form over an extended time period. Equivalent Raman spectra were obtained for the in situ and laboratory-formed sII methane + ethane hydrates, under similar p, T, and x conditions. With the Raman spectrometer operating in the ocean, seawater contributes to the Raman spectra obtained. Both the Raman bands for the sulfate ion and water were used to qualitatively determine the distribution of water phases measured (hydrate, seawater) in the Raman spectra.     

Seismic expression of gas and gas hydrates across the western Black Sea

This study is a synthesis of gas-related features in recent sediments across the western Black Sea basin. The investigation is based on an extensive seismic dataset, and integrates published information from previous local studies. Our data reveal widespread occurrences of seismic facies indicating free gas in sediments and gas escape in the water column. The presence of gas hydrates is inferred from bottom-simulating reflections (BSRs). The distribution of the gas facies shows (1) major gas accumulations close to the seafloor in the coastal area and along the shelfbreak, (2) ubiquitous gas migration from the deeper subsurface on the shelf and (3) gas hydrate occurrences on the lower slope (below 750 m water depth). The coastal and shelfbreak shallow gas areas correspond to the highstand and lowstand depocentres, respectively. Gas in these areas most likely results from in situ degradation of biogenic methane, probably with a contribution of deep gas in the shelfbreak accumulation. On the western shelf, vertical gas migration appears to originate from a source of Eocene age or older and, in some cases, it is clearly related to known deep oil and gas fields. Gas release at the seafloor is abundant at water depths shallower than 725 m, which corresponds to the minimum theoretical depth for methane hydrate stability, but occurs only exceptionally at water depths where hydrates can form. As such, gas entering the hydrate stability field appears to form hydrates, acting as a buffer for gas migration towards the seafloor and subsequent escape.     

声学地层剖面深水探测研究与开发

深水浅部地层精细探测是深海地质勘探与资源开发的重要调查内容。与浅水海域声学地层剖面探测相比,深水地层剖面探测会遇到严重的能量衰减、大数据量长时间反射序列采样、纵向地层分辨率降低以及横向空间覆盖率偏稀等问题,为解决这些问题,国外仪器商采用了不同的方法。采取重采样减少数据量会严重影响纵向分辨率;采取MultiPing技术可以很好解决横向空间覆盖率问题,但多Ping接收采用海底追踪变深度范围采集会造成反射同相轴跳跃突变,或采用短时间间隔采集会造成回波数据无法准确计算海底深度。为了解决这些技术问题,作者研究开发了相关的技术处理方法,解决MultiPing技术反射同相轴拼接改正处理和海底深度记录延迟处理,这些问题的解决为深水浅部地层精细探测提供了技术保障。     

Dynamic Analysis of the Seafloor Pilot Miner Based on Single-Body Vehicle Model and Discretized Track-Terrain Interaction Model

In order to achieve the complex dynamic analysis of the self-propelled seafloor pilot miner moving on the seafloor of extremely cohesive soft soil and further to make it possible to integrate the miner system with some subsystems to form the complete integrated deep ocean mining pilot system and perform dynamic analysis,a new method for the dynamic modeling and analysis of the miner is proposed and developed in this paper,resulting in a simplified 3D single-body vehicle model with three translational and three rotational degrees of freedom,while the track-terrain interaction model is built by partitioning the track-terrain interface into discrete elements with parameterized force elements built on the theory of terramechanics acting on each discrete element.To evaluate and verify the correctness and effectiveness of this new modeling and analysis method,typical comparative studies with regard to computational efficiency and solution accuracy are carried out between the traditional modeling method of building the tracked vehicle as a multi-body model and the new modeling method.In full consideration of the particular structure design of the pilot miner,the special characteristics of the seafloor soil and the hydrodynamic force of near-seafloor current,the dynamic simulation analysis of the miner is performed and discussed,which can provide useful guidance and reference for the practical miner system in design and operation.This new method can not only realize the rapid dynamic simulation analysis of the miner but also make possible the integration and rapid dynamic analysis of the complete integrated deep ocean mining pilot system in further researches.     

Dynamic Analysis of the Seafloor Pilot Miner Based on Single-Body Vehicle Model and Discretized Track-Terrain Interaction Model

In order to achieve the complex dynamic analysis of the self-propelled seafloor pilot miner moving on the seafloor of extremely cohesive soft soil and further to make it possible to integrate the miner system with some subsystems to form the complete integrated deep ocean mining pilot system and perform dynamic analysis, a new method for the dynamic modeling and analysis of the miner is proposed and developed in this paper, resulting in a simplified 3D single-body vehicle model with three translational and three rotational degrees of freedom, while the track-terrain interaction model is built by partitioning the track-terrain interface into discrete elements with parameterized force elements built on the theory of terramechanics acting on each discrete element. To evaluate and verify the correctness and effectiveness of this new modeling and analysis method, typical comparative studies with regard to computational efficiency and solution accuracy are carried out between the traditional modeling method of building the tracked vehicle as a multi-body model and the new modeling method. In full consideration of the particular structure design of the pilot miner, the special characteristics of the seafloor soil and the hydrodynamic force of near-seafloor current, the dynamic simulation analysis of the miner is performed and discussed, which can provide useful guidance and reference for the practical miner system in design and operation. This new method can not only realize the rapid dynamic simulation analysis of the miner but also make possible the integration and rapid dynamic analysis of the complete integrated deep ocean mining pilot system in further researches.     

海底观测网深水设备精准定点布放方法研究

海底观测网因其实时、长期、连续、高精度时钟同步及原位等优势而逐渐成为人类研究海洋的新型平台,建设规模和应用水深都在不断扩大。海底观测网系统建设中,深水设备的精准定点布放及湿插拔作业是施工的难点。针对国内海底观测网精准定位布放作业存在的困难和问题,结合国内现有施工条件,提出一种大深度海底设备精准定点布放安装方法,实现南海深海海底观测网试验系统深水设备精准定位布放与ROV湿插拔作业,对未来大规模海底观测网及其它深水工程中设备的精准定点布放和安装,具有参考和借鉴意义。     

Communication, control, and data acquisition systems on the ISHTE lander

A lander is being designed to perform a year-long in situ Heat Transfer Experiment (ISHTE) on the deep seafloor. This paper describes the acoustic-communication, electrical-control, data-acquisition, and mechanical-control systems developed and tested for use on the ISHTE lander. The lander's functions include implanting a heat source in the deep ocean clay, monitoring the thermal field, supporting geotechnical and geochemical experiments, and recovering undisturbed sediment core samples. Once the lander is deployed, the acoustic-communication link is the only connection between it and a surface ship. The acoustic-communication link is used to track and send commands to the lander and to transmit experiment data and lander status to a surface ship.     

A Data Management Method for Remote and Long-Term Seafloor Observation System

Abstract

The deep seafloor is closest to the Earth’s interior and there are complicated interactions in the physical and biological processes of the seafloor. Oceanographic parameters such as temperature, salinity, and ocean current can provide support for climate prediction. Therefore, the long-term observation of the deep seafloor is critical to the study of global climate change and the biodiversity in complex environments. For the requirements of long-term observation and remote data transmission in the deep sea of the South China Sea, a seafloor observation prototype system is designed in this paper as a stand-alone observation platform. We then proposed a date management method based on Controller Area Network to ensure the data quality. Distributed data management can be performed through system layering, and strict data transmission standards are established between each layer. At the same time, aiming at the difficulty of seafloor video data transmission in real-time, a new solution based on satellite communication technology, object detection technology, and high-efficiency compression coding technology of video images is proposed to provide support for seafloor biodiversity research. The observation data from the experiment are given, and these results show that the system can meet the requirements of long-term observation and remote real-time data transmission, and the reliability of the system is verified.     

Raman spectroscopic and calorimetric observations on natural gas hydrates with cubic structures I and II obtained from Lake Baikal

This study reports measurements of the Raman spectra of Lake Baikal gas hydrates and estimations of the hydration number of methane-rich samples. The hydration number of gas hydrates retrieved from the southern Baikal Basin (crystallographic structure I) was approx. 6.1. Consistent with previous results, the Raman spectra of gas hydrates retrieved from the Kukuy K-2 mud volcano in the central Baikal Basin indicated the existence of crystallographic structures I and II. Measurements of the dissociation heat of Lake Baikal gas hydrates by calorimetry (from the decomposition of gas hydrates to gas and water), employing the hydration number, revealed values of 53.7–55.5?kJ?mol^–1 for the southern basin samples (structure I), and of 54.3–55.5?kJ?mol^–1 for the structure I hydrates and 62.8–64.2?kJ?mol^–1 for the structure II hydrates from the Kukuy K-2 mud volcano.     

An experiment demonstrating that marine slumping is a mechanism to transfer methane from seafloor gas-hydrate deposits into the upper ocean and atmosphere

The scientific community is engaged in a lively debate over whether and how venting from the gas-hydrate reservoir and the Earth’s climate is connected. The various scenarios which have been proposed are based on the following assumptions: the inventory of methane gas-hydrate deposits is locally enormous, the stability of marine gas-hydrate deposits can easily be perturbed by temperature and pressure changes, enough methane can be released from these deposits to contribute adequate volumes of this isotopically distinct greenhouse gas to alter the composition of oceanic or atmospheric methane reservoirs, and the mechanisms exist for the transfer of methane from deeper geologic reservoirs to the ocean and/or atmosphere. However, some potential transfer mechanisms have been difficult to evaluate. Here, we consider the possibility of marine slumping as a mechanism to transfer methane carbon from gas hydrates within the seafloor into the ocean and atmosphere. Our analyses and field experiments indicate that large slumps could release volumetrically significant quantities of solid gas hydrates which would float upwards in the water column. Large pieces of gas hydrate would reach the upper layers of the ocean before decomposing, and some of the methane would be directly injected into the atmosphere.     

The status of geological dredging techniques

Scientific sea-floor dredging is currently used in marine geology primarily by the hard-rock community interested in the recovery of basement rock samples from the unsedimented deep ocean floor. The technique has generally been eclipsed by ocean drilling for recovery of sedimentary rocks, because of perceived uncertainties in the location of sampling and in the representativeness of recovered material. This contribution reviews dredging equipment currently in use by marine geological institutions and refers to pinger attachments that allow precise information on the behaviour of the dredge to be telemetered back to the ship. We argue that improvements in ship navigation and transponder navigation at the seafloor, when used in conjunction with surface and/or deeply towed sidescan and swathemapping surveys, now allow for considerably less uncertainty on the location of dredge sampling. Refined sorting criteria for dredge hauls are now also available. Recent comparisons of regional sample recovery by ocean drilling and by dredge sampling indicate that the dredge hauls can usefully supplement the drilling data in the construction of sedimentary and tectonic histories of seafloor areas.     

A global barotropic ocean model driven by synoptic atmospheric disturbances for detecting seafloor vertical displacements from in situ ocean bottom pressure measurements

A global barotropic ocean model forced by atmospheric disturbances is developed for the detection of seafloor vertical displacements from in situ ocean bottom pressure (OBP) data. The model accuracy is validated by deep-sea OBP data at more than 100 sites obtained over the global ocean. Parameters and boundary conditions including the horizontal resolution incorporated in the ocean model are tested in order to accurately simulate the nontidal (>2 days) OBP variations. The horizontal resolution is found to the factor that most significantly affects the simulated result. The finer the horizontal resolution applied, the smaller the model variability is. The model accuracy is highest when the horizontal resolution is 1/12°, but deteriorates when the horizontal resolution is finer than 1/12°. This may indicate a failure of the energy dissipation parameterization in the barotropic ocean model. Using the developed 1/12° model, the root-mean-square of the observed nontidal OBP component can be reduced by 18 % as an average of all the OBP data used. It is found that the 1/12° model is useful for the detection of a slow seafloor vertical displacement of centimeters related to the 2011 Tohoku-Oki earthquake from in situ OBP records near the hypocenter of the earthquake.     

Petrographic evidence of the past occurrence of gas hydrates in the Tertiary Piedmont Basin (NW Italy)

Methane-derived rocks in Monferrato and the Tertiary Piedmont Basin (NW Italy) consist of seep carbonates, formed by gas seepage at the seafloor, and macroconcretions resulting from the cementation of buried sediments crossed by gas-rich fluids. These rocks are characterized by both negative δ¹³C values and a marked enrichment in δ¹⁸O. Petrographic features not commonly described and that point to enigmatic depositional and diagenetic conditions have been observed in both types of rocks: inhomogeneous distribution of cements within cavities; dolomite crystals floating within cavity-filling calcite spar; non-gravitational fabrics of internal sediments plastering cavity walls; open framework within microbial crusts. These features suggest the former presence of gas hydrates in sediments. During their dissociation, new space was formed and filled with authigenic carbonates or injected sediments. Analogous mechanisms of clathrate freeze-and-thaw processes have been inferred for the genesis of zebra and stromatactis structures and particular kinds of carbonate breccias. The term melt-seal structure is proposed for this kind of diagenetic structure. The fabrics of gas hydrates and the geochemical conditions of sediments, in turn depending on the relative rates of supply of methane-rich fluids and normal seawater, conditioned the final aspect of the rocks.     

Subsurface gas hydrates in the northern Gulf of Mexico

The northern Gulf of Mexico (GoM) has long been a focus area for the study of gas hydrates. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, work focused on massive gas hydrates deposits that were found to form at and near the seafloor in association with hydrocarbon seeps. However, as global scientific and industrial interest in assessment of the drilling hazards and resource implications of gas hydrate accelerated, focus shifted to understanding the nature and abundance of “buried” gas hydrates. Through 2005, despite the drilling of more than 1200 oil and gas industry wells through the gas hydrate stability zone, published evidence of significant sub-seafloor gas hydrate in the GoM was lacking. A 2005 drilling program by the GoM Gas Hydrate Joint Industry Project (the JIP) provided an initial confirmation of the occurrence of gas hydrates below the GoM seafloor. In 2006, release of data from a 2003 industry well in Alaminos Canyon 818 provided initial documentation of gas hydrate occurrence at high concentrations in sand reservoirs in the GoM. From 2006 to 2008, the JIP facilitated the integration of geophysical and geological data to identify sites prospective for gas hydrate-bearing sands, culminating in the recommendation of numerous drilling targets within four sites spanning a range of typical deepwater settings. Concurrent with, but independent of, the JIP prospecting effort, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) conducted a preliminary assessment of the GoM gas hydrate petroleum system, resulting in an estimate of 607 trillion cubic meters (21,444 trillion cubic feet) gas-in-place of which roughly one-third occurs at expected high concentrations in sand reservoirs. In 2009, the JIP drilled seven wells at three sites, discovering gas hydrate at high saturation in sand reservoirs in four wells and suspected gas hydrate at low to moderate saturations in two other wells. These results provide an initial confirmation of the complex nature and occurrence of gas hydrate-bearing sands in the GoM, the efficacy of the integrated geological/geophysical prospecting approach used to identify the JIP drilling sites, and the relevance of the 2008 BOEM assessment.     

海底热液活动与海洋科学研究

本文简要介绍了海底热液活动的研究历史 ,以及目前研究的几个主要问题。指出海底热液活动是海洋中永远存在的自然现象。热液区主要分布在大洋中脊、弧后盆地和热点区。在这些区域由于地质构造的不稳定性 ,造成冷海水通过隙缝下渗 ,并在岩浆房作用下形成高温热水。热水在上升通道中与围岩作用 ,并发生复杂的岩 -水反应 ,从而改变了海水的化学成分。流出的热液可以形成多种矿物沉积 ,其中最有价值的是 Zn,Cu,Fe,Pb的硫化物。岩 -水反应可以产生可观的元素通量 ,因此 ,对海水元素恒定性的解释需要重新审视。利用 3 He/热比值可以计算海洋的热通量。热液活动为耐温生物的研究提出了新的课题     

Seismic attribute study for gas hydrates in the Andaman Offshore India

Seismic data from the Andaman offshore region has been examined to investigate for the presence of gas hydrates. The seismic data displays reflection characteristics such as blanking, enhanced reflection patterns, shadows in instantaneous frequency, and increase in amplitude with the offset, which are indicative of gas hydrates and underlying free gas. A prominent bottom-simulating reflection, BSR, coupled with reverse polarity is observed around 650–700 ms. Seismic attributes such as the reflection strength and instantaneous frequency are computed along this reflector in order to probe for the presence of gas hydrates or free gas in this region. The reflection plot shows a strong reflector paralleling the seafloor. In addition, attenuation of the high frequency signal is noticed, indicating the presence of free gas below the BSR.     

深海近底三分量磁力仪设计

提出了一种新的深海海底三分量磁力仪设计思路,用于高灵敏度地磁测量调查海底矿体分布,其磁力测量探头基于各向异性磁阻传感器。详细分析了磁阻传感器的误差模型,提出用Broyden算法实现误差校正,并给出了在个人电脑上的实现结果。描述了水下系统中传感测量电路以及通信、存储功能的基本设计思路。最后给出目前的实验与测试数据,并提出了后续工作思路。     

二氧化碳海洋倾废的研究进展

简要回顾了二氧化碳深海倾废设想提出的背景及其理论依据,阐述了实施二氧化碳深海倾废的可行性,着重讨论了CO2在深海的水合化过程以及最新的现场实验结果。分析了CO2海洋倾废对深海环境和生态系统的潜在影响。在与其他二氧化碳倾废方式进行比较的基础上,对今后的发展进行了展望。     

Occurrence and exploration of gas hydrate in the marginal seas and continental margin of the Asia and Oceania region

Supplies of conventional natural gas and oil are declining fast worldwide, and therefore new, unconventional forms of energy resources are needed to meet the ever-increasing demand. Amongst the many different unconventional natural resources are gas hydrates, a solid, ice-like crystalline compound of methane and water formed under specific low temperature and high pressure conditions. Gas hydrates are believed to exist in large quantities worldwide in oceanic regions of continental margins, as well as associated with permafrost regions in the Arctic. Some studies to estimate the global abundance of gas hydrate suggest that the total volume of natural gas locked up in form of gas hydrates may exceed all known conventional natural gas reserves, although large uncertainties exist in these assessments. Gas hydrates have been intensively studied in the last two decades also due to connections between climate forcing (natural and/or anthropogenic) and the potential large volumes of methane trapped in gas hydrate accumulations. The presence of gas hydrate within unconsolidated sediments of the upper few hundred meters below seafloor may also pose a geo-hazard to conventional oil and gas production. Additionally, climate variability and associated changes in pressure-temperature regimes and thus shifts in the gas hydrate stability zone may cause the occurrence of submarine slope failures.Several large-scale national gas hydrate programs exist especially in countries such as Japan, Korea, Taiwan, China, India, and New Zealand, where large demands of energy cannot be met by domestic supplies from natural resources. The past five years have seen several dedicated deep drilling expeditions and other scientific studies conducted throughout Asia and Oceania to understand gas hydrates off India, China, and Korea. This thematic set of publications is dedicated to summarize the most recent findings and results of geo-scientific studies of gas hydrates in the marginal seas and continental margin of the Asia, and Oceania region.     

A predictive numerical model for potential mapping of the gas hydrate stability zone in the Gulf of Cadiz

This paper presents a computational model for mapping the regional 3D distribution in which seafloor gas hydrates would be stable, that is carried out in a Geographical Information System (GIS) environment. The construction of the model is comprised of three primary steps, namely: (1) the construction of surfaces for the various variables based on available 3D data (seafloor temperature, geothermal gradient and depth-pressure); (2) the calculation of the gas function equilibrium functions for the various hydrocarbon compositions reported from hydrate and sediment samples; and (3) the calculation of the thickness of the hydrate stability zone. The solution is based on a transcendental function, which is solved iteratively in a GIS environment.The model has been applied in the northernmost continental slope of the Gulf of Cadiz, an area where an abundant supply for hydrate formation, such as extensive hydrocarbon seeps, diapirs and fault structures, is combined with deep undercurrents and a complex seafloor morphology. In the Gulf of Cadiz, the model depicts the distribution of the base of the gas hydrate stability zone for both biogenic and thermogenic gas compositions, and explains the geometry and distribution of geological structures derived from gas venting in the Tasyo Field (Gulf of Cadiz) and the generation of BSR levels on the upper continental slope.