Backgrounder: UVic Researchers Find Canyon Full of Methane Hydrates
Methane has gained ground against other sources of energy such as coal,
hydroelectric power and nuclear energy. It stands out as a readily available
and cheap fuel, and its characteristics could make it the energy source
of the future.
Methane hydrates are an untapped resource of methane gas to some, and an environmental concern to others. The ice-like formations are formed on the ocean floor during subduction, when a plate of the earth’s crust dives beneath another. This causes fluids, containing gas, to rush to the surface. When the gas is at greater depths it’s warm, and as it moves vertically up the sediment column, it freezes as a hydrate. The result is a crystalline solid that consists of methane molecules, which are individually surrounded by a cage of water molecules.
Since methane hydrates form under conditions of high pressure and low temperature, they begin to decompose into gas and water as soon as they are removed from the ocean floor. Despite this dilemma, methane hydrates are considered a potential energy source. They are estimated to be twice as numerous as the world’s known oil, coal and natural gas deposits. Hundreds of deposit sites have been identified off the coasts of Japan, India and Costa Rica, among others, and countries like Japan have invested millions of dollars researching extraction methods.
However, there are concerns that methane hydrates may contribute to a rise in global warming. Hydrates that decompose because of changes in water temperature would seep increased amounts of methane—a greenhouse gas 20 times more powerful than carbon dioxide—into the atmosphere.
Researching methane hydrates may also provide valuable insight into the Earth’s past. Some organisms living on the ocean floor that use the hydrates for food resemble life forms that populated the Earth billions of years ago.
< Back to ReleaseMethane hydrates are an untapped resource of methane gas to some, and an environmental concern to others. The ice-like formations are formed on the ocean floor during subduction, when a plate of the earth’s crust dives beneath another. This causes fluids, containing gas, to rush to the surface. When the gas is at greater depths it’s warm, and as it moves vertically up the sediment column, it freezes as a hydrate. The result is a crystalline solid that consists of methane molecules, which are individually surrounded by a cage of water molecules.
Since methane hydrates form under conditions of high pressure and low temperature, they begin to decompose into gas and water as soon as they are removed from the ocean floor. Despite this dilemma, methane hydrates are considered a potential energy source. They are estimated to be twice as numerous as the world’s known oil, coal and natural gas deposits. Hundreds of deposit sites have been identified off the coasts of Japan, India and Costa Rica, among others, and countries like Japan have invested millions of dollars researching extraction methods.
However, there are concerns that methane hydrates may contribute to a rise in global warming. Hydrates that decompose because of changes in water temperature would seep increased amounts of methane—a greenhouse gas 20 times more powerful than carbon dioxide—into the atmosphere.
Researching methane hydrates may also provide valuable insight into the Earth’s past. Some organisms living on the ocean floor that use the hydrates for food resemble life forms that populated the Earth billions of years ago.