1. Methane Hydrates Zack Fink

2. The Methane Hydrate: What is it?

3. Molecular Structure A Methane Hydrate is a crystalline solid
Gas molecule surrounded by a cage of water molecules.
Thus it is similar to ice, except that the crystalline structure is stabilized by the guest gas molecule within the cage of water molecules
1 part gas molecule and 9 parts water
The size of the gas molecular size of the gas molecule determines what types of hydrates can form, methane CH4 is by far most common

4. Formation and Function
Concentrates methane gas, x more
Form in pore spaces of sediment
Causes cementation of sediment
Cemented sediment often acts as a cap on pure gas deposits
Form in high pressure / low temperature environments, in ocean this translates to seafloor depths of 500+ meters. Also found on land in permafrost.
Other limiting factors are methane and sediment. Most methane comes from bacterial breakdown of organic detritus in aneorbic conditions. So, hydrate typically forms in areas with abundance of organic material and sediment to cover and protect from oxidation

5. Known Areas of High Hydrate Concentration
Blake ridge, carolina trough

6. Thermal gradient of crust

7. Methane Hydrates: …So What?

9. Conservative estimates

10. Hydrate Issues
Good
Immense potential for use as a relatively environmentally friendly energy source
Bad
Greenhouse effect /global warming /sea level rise
Submarine Slumping
Oil pipeline interference
Talk about pipeline interference

11. Global Climate Change Real Problem is the chain reaction-
Methane is a particularly nasty green house gas
10x more effective than CO2
Continually seeps into atmosphere
There is clearly a lot, the potential for serious environmental impacts is great
Real Problem is the chain reaction-
Hydrate is a frozen solid, so the hotter the world gets, the more methane disassociates out of the hydrate, making the world even hotter

12. Submarine Landslides
Side effect of the hydrates cementing seafloor sediment
Local changes in water temp or pressure can result in disassociation, causing weakening of sediment.
These landslides can produce tsunamis (scotland) and the amount of potential methane gas released could be catastrophic to global warming

13. Efforts at Exploitation
Proposed Plans
Mining existing hydrate and transporting in pipes
Growing Hydrates from methane seeps
Transportation by submarine towing bladders
Chemical additives making hydrates stable at lower pressures and higher temperatures
Currently, economic extraction is not feasible
Research on large scale extraction is in its infancy
No obvious best method of extraction has been agreed upon
Problems- unstable continental slopes 4 pipelines
Temp and pressure issues

14. Yes or No?
Methane Hydrates could turn out to be a tremendous natural resource
Or they could prove too cumbersome to exploit…
Either way, research is not an option
Methane hydrates are far from completely understood, but one thing is certain, they are incredibly important
Through research there exists a possibility to turn a potentially leading cause of global warming into a valued extension of the fossil fuel economy