Physical property changes in hydrate-bearing sediment due to depressurization and subsequent repressurization
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Abstract
Physical property measurements of sediment cores containing natural gas hydrate are typically performed on material exposed, at least briefly, to non-in situ conditions during recovery. To examine the effects of a brief excursion from the gas-hydrate stability field, as can occur when pressure cores are transferred to pressurized storage vessels, we measured physical properties on laboratory-formed sand packs containing methane hydrate and methane pore gas. After depressurizing samples to atmospheric pressure, we repressurized them into the methane-hydrate stability field and remeasured their physical properties. Thermal conductivity, shear strength, acoustic compressional and shear wave amplitudes, and speeds of the original and depressurized/repressurized samples are compared. X– ray computed tomography images track how the gas-hydrate distribution changes in the hydrate-cemented sands owing to the depressurizaton/repressurization process. Because depressurization-induced property changes can be substantial and are not easily predicted, particularly in water-saturated, hydrate-bearing sediment, maintaining pressure and temperature conditions throughout the core recovery and measurement process is critical for using laboratory measurements to estimate in situ properties.
| Publication type | Article |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | Journal Article |
| Title | Physical property changes in hydrate-bearing sediment due to depressurization and subsequent repressurization |
| Series title | Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth |
| DOI | 10.1029/2007JB005351 |
| Volume | 113 |
| Issue | B7 |
| Year Published | 2008 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Wiley |
| Contributing office(s) | Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center |
| Description | B07102; 12 p. |
| Google Analytic Metrics | Metrics page |