Mathematical models for quantifying eruption velocity in degassing pipes based on exsolution of a single gas and simultaneous exsolution of multiple gases

Abstract

After the limnic eruptions at Nyos and Monoun in the 1980s, degassing pipes were installed to reduce the continuous increase of CO2 at the bottom of these lakes. The degassing system consists of a vertical pipe from the lake bottom to the surface and a small pump located near the top of the pipe, which raises water in the pipe up to a level where it becomes saturated with gas, which in turn leads to volume expansion and eruption. This paper describes two new mathematical models for predicting eruption velocity in degassing pipes based on exsolution of a single gas and the simultaneous exsolution of multiple gases. The models were applied to the degassing system of lakes Nyos and Monoun, which contain two main gases, namely CO2 and CH4. Because the volume proportion of CH4 is significant only in Lake Monoun, the Lake Nyos test case considered the CO2 gas only, while as the Lake Monoun test case considered the simultaneous exsolution of CO2 and CH4. Good agreement between the results of the models and observed data is found for both test cases. The results for the eruption in Lake Monoun considering the two main gases measured in this lake (CO2 and CH4) were found to have a better agreement with the measurements compared to the model results obtained considering the main gas only (CO2).