Are Laboratory-Formed Hydrate-Bearing Systems Analogous to Those in Nature?

Abstract

The intensive study of hydrate-bearing sandy sediments, a possible source of fossil energy for future generations, leads to an accumulation of information from field studies, laboratory studies, and modeling. This information is used to create conceptual models for hydrate deposit genesis helping to assess the value of laboratory experimental studies on artificially formed hydrate-bearing sediments. We present an experimental example on the simulation of hydrate formation from methane dissolved in water, which is assumed to be the most likely natural process for the genesis of highly concentrated hydrate in sandy sediments. Measurements of the concentration of dissolved methane, temperature, and electrical resistivity tomography are used to describe and characterize the hydrate formation process. It could be shown that the way in which hydrate forms in this laboratory experiment corresponds to the procedure assumed for natural scenarios. The main difference to nature is probably the high crystal growth rate which seems to result in an increased water–hydrate interface and a subsequent “aging” or recrystallization process affecting certain physical properties.