AndreaBozzo/ceres-open-data-index huggingface dataset:
Gas Hydrate Deposits In A Complex Geologic Province (GOM): Linkage To Fluid-Gas Expulsion

The northern Gulf of Mexico continental slope is now covered with overlapping tracks of high quality 3D-seismic data. Analysis of these data by industry, government (MMS), and academic geoscientists underscores the extreme geologic complexity imposed on this province by the interaction of sediments and salt. In this framework, faults concentrated along intraslope basin margins function as conducts for the migration of fluids and gases to the modern seafloor from deep petroleum-generating horizons. Within the gas hydrate stability zone, this vertical flux produces gas hydrate composed largely of thermogenic gases (structure II). Flux rate is linked to hydrate formation in that rapid fluid systems may transfer heat which eliminates the gas hydrate stability zone. In contrast, moderate-to-slow flux results in massive gas hydrate deposits that fill veins and fractions within faulted zones. These faults frequently extend to the seafloor where gas hydrate mounds occur in a spectrum of sizes. Observable gas seeps and larger gas plumes representing the composite effect of many small seeps occur over areas where hydrates are exposed. Such plumes suggest that fault-supplied gas is consistently bypassing the surface and near-surface gas hydrate deposits and entering the water column. This process provides a constant supply of gas for hydrate formation. Results of field experiments show that slight changes in water temperature can cause surface exposures of hydrate to decompose. A constant fault-related supply of subsurface water and gas causes surficial hydrate deposits to regenerate after a thermal decomposition event.

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Resource Characterization and Quantification of Natural Gas-Hydrate and Associated Free-Gas Accumulations in the Prudhoe Bay ? Kuparuk River Area on the North Slope of Alaska

The objectives of this project are to characterize, quantify, and determine the commerciality of in-place and recoverable gas-hydrate and associated free-gas resources in the Prudhoe Bay Unit (PBU) " Kuparuk River Unit (KRU) "Milne Point Unit (MPU) areas on the Alaska North Slope (ANS). The project team will accomplish these goals through integrated academic, industry, and government collaborative research designed to assess the potential for safe, cost competitive, and environmentally responsible production of these possible abundant, strategic, and secure unconventional energy resources.

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Sampling Tools and Downhole Measurements for ODP Leg 204

The Ocean Drilling Program (ODP), which is funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and 21 international partners, is an international marine geoscience research program that has been a leader in studying marine methane hydrate deposits for many years. The flagship of the ODP is the D/V JOIDES Resolution, which is a 471 foot-long, dynamically positioned drillship equipped with a seven-story laboratory complex that serves as a floating university . The vessel has been contracted by ODP since 1985 to conduct  worldwide scientific coring operations. In 1999, the vessel underwent significant modifications and upgrades to various shipboard systems, such as the installation of an active heave compensation (AHC) system to reduce the effects of vertical heave on the drillstring, the installation of a rig instrumentation system (RIS) to capture information about drilling parameters with changes in downhole conditions, and an advanced station keeping (ASK) system to allow more efficient positioning of the ship over a spot on the seafloor. The field activities conducted onboard the D/V JOIDES Resolution allow teams of scientists to perform interdisciplinary basic research studies while at sea on two-month long voyages of discovery, which are known as legs . ODP Leg 204 will drill, core and log through the gas hydrate stability zone along a transect of sites across the southern part of Hydrate Ridge, offshore Oregon from July to September, 2002, and will recover samples of massive methane hydrate at near in situ pressures.

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Gas hydrates on the Oregon continental margin: recent results and plans for ODP drilling

Gas hydrates and free gas, as indicated by the seismic proxy known as the BSR, are widespread on the Oregon continental margin. A number of geological, geochemical and geophysical studies have been conducted here in the past several years in preparation for deep drilling during Leg 204 of the Ocean Drilling Program, scheduled for summer 2002. In this presentation, we first present an overview of the seafloor morphology and reflectivity. We then discuss recent results from samples and measurements made at the seafloor. Finally, we discuss the subsurface plumbing as determined from a recent 3-D seismic survey and objectives of the planned drilling.

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Preliminary Studies of Gas Production From Methane Hydrates in the Eileen Area, Alaska

The objective of this study is the analysis of various gas production scenarios from a permafrost-related methane hydrate accumulation at the Eileen Area, North Slope Alaska. The TOUGH2 general-purpose simulator with the EOSHYDR2 module were used for the analysis. EOSHYDR2 is designed to model the non-isothermal CH4 (methane) release, phase behavior and flow under conditions typical of methane-hydrate deposits by solving the coupled equations of mass and heat balance, and can describe any combination of gas hydrate dissociation mechanisms. Numerical simulations indicated that significant gas hydrate production at the Eileen area was possible by depressurizing the free-gas zone at the base of the hydrate stability field. In this depressurization scenario, the wettability characteristics of the porous medium had a pronounced effect on recovery, the water mass fraction in production stream was very small, and the contribution of the methane from hydrate dissociation to the production stream was very significant. When the hydrate was thermally dissociated, the volume of produced gas was significantly smaller than that produced through depressurization. In this case, gas production was affected significantly by the initial hydrate saturation and temperature, and by the method of heat addition. The largest methane recovery was achieved through a combination of depressurization and thermal stimulation. This production scenario increased the methane volume released from hydrates by about an order of magnitude compared to simple depressurization.

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Chemosynthetic Communities

The mission of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is twofold ?describe and predict changes in the Earth's environment, and steward the nation's coastal and marine resources to enable sustainable economic opportunities. NOAA conducts research to develop new technologies, improve operations, and supply the scientific basis for managing natural resources and solving environmental problems. This mission leads to an interest in understanding the living and non-living resources of the oceans.

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A Sea-floor Monitoring Station In The Northern Gulf Of Mexico

A program is in place to establish a remote, multisensor monitoring station at a selected location within the hydrate stability zone of the northern Gulf of Mexico. It evolved from a project funded by MMS to conceptualize technologies and design systems for studying the sea floor in the deep Gulf of Mexico. The program is now a cooperative effort with support and/or participation from 5 governmental agencies, 15 academic institutions and 6 private companies. The purpose of the program is to provide an observatory for long-term investigations of the hydrocarbon system that operates near the sea floor within the hydrate stability zone. In particular, studies could be carried out to: - develop understanding of sea-floor stability relationships, - model hazardous geologic conditions, - establish a data base useful for future gas hydrates production, - study associated chemosynthetic communities for drug discovery, and - provide environmental data related to global climate change. The monitoring station will comprise a variety of systems operating more-or-less continuously. Data will be transmitted via optic fiber to a production platform and then telemetered to shore. The heart of the monitoring station will be a net of vertical arrays of sensors. The upper 200m of each array will be 16 hydrophones plus positioning devices in the water column for tracking sounds and observing shallow geologic structure. The lower 10m of each will be a sea-floor probe with various sensors including a three-component accelerometer for detecting seismic events. A site will be selected and calibrated physically, chemically and biologically. After determining a 3-D seismoacoustic model of the site, the noise of passing ships will be used to monitor acoustic properties. If the monitoring does not match the model, the site has changed. The site would then be re-calibrated to determine what has changed. Until a site is selected, systems are being tested in Mississippi Canyon Blocks 798/842 where leases have reverted to MMS and the process of obtaining permits is simplified. It is expected that the net of vertical arrays, the heart of the monitoring station, will become operational during 2006. Peripheral systems will come on line when possible.

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The Gulf of Mexico: A Natural Laboratory for studying Gas Hydrate Formation and Dissociation

The numbers of peer-reviewed papers published per year on the topic of gas hydrate in the marine environment have increased exponentially over the last decade; rising from about seven titles in 1990 to at least 109 titles in 2000. The general outcome of this work has been to roughly double magnitude estimates for the global reserves of fossil carbon, with the newly- discovered hydrate carbon occurring in deposits that can cycle in and out of the biosphere over much shorter time-scales than does oil or coal and which may offer very significant resources of producible natural gas. Recently we have seen good evidence for the "blast in the past" (Dickens, 1999) release of clathrate methane at ~55 MYBP and an intriguing proposal that the "clathrate gun" (Kennett and Cannariato, 2000) may be fired at inter-glacial intervals. It is tempting to describe this burgeoning interest as a paradigm shift in the understanding of the carbon cycle and its interaction with climate. One way to test some of the theories that must be proven to support the emerging gas hydrate paradigm is to work with the substance in a setting where it is accessible to direct manipulation and where cycles of formation and dissociation can be observed first hand. The Gulf of Mexico is one of a several continental margins where gas hydrate deposits occur in the upper-most portion of the sediment column. Many shallow deposits of gas hydrate are located there in water depths of 500 to 2000 m. The Gulf hydrates include oil and sediments and are an important substratum for microbial and metazoan life forms. Strikingly, when oil-rich gas hydrate decomposes, a portion of the oil reaches the surface, generating slicks that are visible from space. Variations in bottom water temperature impinge the limits of hydrate stability across much of the Gulf slope over periods of weeks. These circumstances suggest intriguing experiments that could be conducted in a natural laboratory for studying the dynamics of hydrate formation and persistence.

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Hydrates ? Hazards/Safety Issues

The Department of the Interior's Minerals Management Service (MMS) is responsible for ensuring safe, environmentally sound activities associated with offshore oil and gas production. Current MMS research on gas hydrates is focused on seafloor mapping of 3-D seismic data and the use of seismic analysis to differentiate anomalies associated with hydrates, chemosynthetic communities, or carbonate hardgrounds. Core data and submersible observations are then used to verify the success of the mapping program.

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Characterization of Heterogeneities at the Reservoir Scale: Spatial Distribution and Influence on the Fluid Flow

Fractures serve as important conduits for subsurface fluid flow and their presence can transform an otherwise unproductive rock formation into an economic hydrocarbon reservoir. Large through going fracture zones are targeted for wellbore intersection because of their high transmissivity and ability to drain a large volume of reservoir rock. On the other hand, gouge filled faults may serve as permeability barriers that inhibit flow to the wellbore. Thus, fractures represent major heterogeneities within the reservoir. Predicting the spatial distribution and fluid flow properties of fracture systems in the subsurface is an integral component of reservoir characterization, and is the primary goal of our research project. Work to date can be divided into two main efforts: (1) evaluating the effects of mechanical stratigraphy on fracture scaling relations, and (2) spatial analysis of secondary porosity from limestone core. In the first project, we are analyzing veins (mineral-filled fractures) at the microscopic scale from samples taken from an outcrop of the Monterey Formation, California. Samples were collected from various stratigraphic layers, as well as at different structural positions around a small fold. We are also quantifying the fracture-related porosity from digital images of thin sections. This will enable us to map the distribution of porosity and fracture permeability around the fold, thus providing important constraints on fluid flow in subsurface reservoirs. In the microstructural analysis of fracture aperture, fracture length, and fracture related strain, we have analyzed 18 samples by conducting 1770 scanline surveys of digital images. The image processing software we are employing allows for the rapid collection of fracture aperture, length and spacing measurements as well as for their direct transfer into spreadsheets. A total of 15,766 individual measurements have been taken from these samples. The dataset will provide the opportunity to address a wide range of important issues, such as the ability to predict rock properties beyond the scale of observation, factors that lead to breaks in scaling relations, and fluid flow through fractured rock masses. For the second research component, we are characterizing the distribution and geometry of solution-enhanced pores in limestones, an important reservoir rock that is notorious for its irregular production history. Using a GIS (Geographic Information System) software package, we are mapping the density of pores, pore geometry and pore size from a 30 foot section of the Biscayne aquifer. The Biscayne aquifer is a porous limestone that serves as the primary source of water for the rapidly growing population of South Florida. Preliminary results reveal a heterogeneous distribution of pore density, which can be directly related to stratigraphic layering in the limestone. Further analysis will quantify the extent of high-density pore zones, and their contribution to enhanced fluid flow.

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Exploration of a Major Methane Hydrate Province in the Hudson Canyon Region: An Ocean Frontier Adjacent to the New York-New Jersey Metropolitan Area

Methane hydrates extend at least partially beneath the Hudson Canyon region, as indicated by bottom simulating reflectors about 500 meters below the seafloor on seismic reflection profiles of portions of the continental slope and rise (Dillon et al., 1995). Our synthesis of prior multidisciplinary collaborative investigations of this region, and results of our participation in the NOAA Ocean Exploration Program 2001 Deep East Hudson Canyon expedition (Figures 1 and 2), reveal a history of ongoing dynamic processes inferred to result from methane disassociation. These processes include active venting of methane from discrete zones between the outer continental shelf (200 m water depth) and the middle continental rise (3500 m water depth) indicated by geochemical profiles and bottom surveys, and evidence of slope failure on scales from local to regional (Rona et al., 2000). Slope failure occurs in the form of slumping of apparent Eocene chalk from the base of the continental slope onto the upper rise inferred to have been driven by fluid pressure (Dugan and Flemings, 2000), and ongoing gravitational gliding of strata at low seafloor inclinations (~1o) on the rise explained by destabilization of sedimentary strata by fluid pressure (liquid and gas) trapped within the strata (Rona, 1969). The release of methane in the Hudson Canyon region has the usual implications as a contributor to climate change, and as an energy source for the possible presence of chemosynthetic ecosystems. Specific to this region as a hub of trans-Atlantic fiber-optic cables offshore the New York-New Jersey metropolitan area (Figure 3), the trapped fluids and evidence of fresh slumps and glides have implications for the recurrence of mass gravitational movements that could disrupt the nexus of seafloor communications cables.

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IMAGES VIII/PAGE 127 Gas Hydrate and Paleoclimate Cruise on the RV Marion Dufresne in the Gulf of Mexico, 2-18 July 2002: Introduction

The northern Gulf of Mexico contains many documented gas hydrate deposits near the sea floor.  Although gas hydrate often is present in shallow subbottom sediment, the extent of hydrate occurrence deeper than 10 mbsf in basins away from vents and other surface expressions is unknown.

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Pore Water Gradients in Giant Piston Cores from the Northern Gulf of Mexico

Chloride, sulfate and methane concentration data for pore waters from 483 sediment samples obtained at Tunica Mound, Bush Hill, Kane Spur and the Mississippi Canyon areas of the Gulf of Mexico indicate that wide ranges in these geochemical species occur in methane-rich and methane-gas-hydrate-bearing sediments.

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Grain and Pore Structure Imaging of Gas Hydrate From Core MD02-2569 (Mississippi Canyon, Gulf of Mexico): A First Look by SEM

Natural gas hydrate nodules from core MD02-2569, Gulf of Mexico/ Mississippi Site, are imaged by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and compared to similar features observed in lab-synthesized gas hydrates of known composition, grain texture, and pressure-temperature histories.

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Geologic Setting and Context of Cores Taken During the IMAGES VIII /PAGE 127 Cruise of the RV Marion Dufresne in the Northern Gulf of Mexico

The northern Gulf of Mexico contains some of the best documented occurrences of gas hydrates in the world;  gas hydrate samples have been recovered in near sea floor sediments at more than 50 locations associated with active sea floor hydrocarbon seeps (Sassen and others, 2001c).   However, years of geophysical prospecting for hydrocarbons in the northern Gulf of Mexico have failed to reveal the vertical distribution of gas hydrate.

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Methanogenic and Methanotrophic Archaeal Diversity in Northern Gulf of Mexico Sediments

Archael small subunit (SSU) ribosomal RNA (rRNA)  gene diversity was surveyed in sediment samples obtained at 50, 100, 150, 300, 400 and 600 cm depths below the seafloor in core MD02-2571_c2 located above a gas-chimney at a water depth of 647 meters in the West Mississippi Canyon area.

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Cruise Report: Sediment Collection from Orca and Pigmy Basins, Gulf of Mexico, and Analyses for Texture and Trace-Metal Concentrations, July 2002, 127 PAGE Campaign

The Mississippi River system, which drains almost half of the conterminous United States, ranks seventh among rivers worldwide for water discharge and sixth for suspended-sediment discharge.  Together the Mississippi  and Atchafalaya Rivers provide almost all of the freshwater influx to the Gulf of Mexico.

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Methane-Derived Authigenic Carbonates from the IMAGES VIII/PAGE 127 Gas Hydrate and Paleoclimate Cruise on the RV Marion Dufresne in the Gulf of Mexico, 2-18 July 2002

Authigenic carbonates were sampled in piston cores collected from both the Tunica Mound and the Mississippi Canyon areas on the continental slope of the northern Gulf of Mexico during a cruise conducted on the RV Marion Dufrense in July 2002.  Carbonates are present as hardgrounds, porous crusts, concretions or noduled and shell fragments with or without carbonate cements.

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Sedimentiological Analysis of Cores Recovered from the RV Marion Dufrresne Cruise in the Gulf of Mexico

The Gulf of Mexico is a small ocean basin surrounded by land masses.  It is connected to the Atlantic Ocean through the Florida Strait to the east and to the Caribbean Sea through the Yucatan channel.  Numerous topics have been studied in the Gulf of Mexico including: sediment transport, mineralogy, grain size and more recently sea floor sediment distribution.  These studies confirm the major influence of sediment supplied by the Mississippi River on the composition of the Gulf of Mexico sediments.

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Thermal Conductivity of Sediment Recovered from the IMAGES VIII/PAGE 127 Gas Hydrate and Paleoclimate Cruise on the RV Marion Dufresne in the Gulf of Mexico,

A scientific piston-coring cruise, aimed at studying the distribution of shallow gas hydrate deposits was conducted aboard the RV Marion Dufresne in July 2002.  Thermal conductivity, a property related to the rate of heat transport through a medium and which is used  to determine heat flow, was measured on a total of 23 cores.

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Interagency Group ?Zooms In? on Methane Hydrate Pore Structures

One of the challenges of investigating gas hydrates is being able to examine the grain and pore structures, which are guides to the physics and chemistry of hydrate growth and the effects of changes in environmental conditions. Some of the technical hurdles of gas hydrate imaging involve (1) avoiding condensation on samples during cold transfer, (2) coating the samples without introducing heat or damage to the sample surface, (3)  maintaining the sample material at conditions that avoid spontaneous decomposition or significant sublimation under vacuum, and (4) avoiding electron beam damage of the imaging area.

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NORTH HILL CREEK PROJECT 3-D SEISMIC SURVEY

Wind River Resources Corporation entered into an Exploration and Development Agreement and an Option Agreement with the Ute Indian Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation to cover the exploration of approximately thirty-one square miles of Tribal minerals for oil and gas. Wind River also obtained oil and gas leases from the State of Utah covering two additional square miles contiguous with the Tribal lands. These lands are located immediately to the south of the Flat Rock Field, largely in T15S-R20E. The structure on which the Flat Rock Field is developed appeared to cross onto some of the acreage covered by Wind River's agreements with the Ute Indian Tribe. In October of 1999, Wind River Resources, with the Ute Indian Tribe as partner, applied to the Department of Energy for a grant in the amount of $500,000 to be used toward the cost of a 3-D seismic survey to explore for oil and natural gas liquids on Tribal mineral lands. In May of 2000, Wind River was notified that its proposal had been selected for funding. Negotiations for the grant contract and work in support of a categorical exclusion from the requirements of NEPA for the conduct of the seismic survey were concluded during the summer of 2000. The contract was awarded and field work in support of the survey commenced in September of 2000. Field acquisition of the 3-D seismic data began in early October of 2000 and was completed during the first week of December. Data processing and initial interpretation were completed on May 30, 2001. The DOE-supported 3-D seismic survey covers approximately 15 square miles of Tribal minerals. The survey delineated the exact size, shape, orientation, structure and stratigraphy of the suspected Hill Creek Anticline. The Flat Rock Field is located on the north flank of this structure

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