METHANE BUDGET OF A LARGE GAS HYDRATE PROVINCE OFFSHORE GEORGIA, BLACK SEA

The Batumi Seep Area, offshore Georgia, Black Sea, has been intensively cored (gravity cores
and TV-guided multi-cores) to investigate the methane turnover in the surface sediments. The
seep area is characterized by vigorous methane gas bubble emanations. Geochemical analyses
show a microbial origin of the methane and a shallow fluid source. Anaerobic methane oxidation
rapidly consumes the SO4
2- within the top 5-20 cm, but significant upward fluid advection is not
indicated by the porewater profiles. Hence, the Batumi Seep Area must be dominated by methane
gas seepage in order to explain the required CH4 flux from below. 1-D transport-reaction
modelling constrains the methane flux needed to support the observed SO4
2- flux as well as the
rate of near-surface hydrate formation. The model results correlate well with the hydro-acoustic
backscatter intensities recorded and mapped bubble release sites using the sonar of a ROV.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:BVAU.2429/2392
Date07 1900
CreatorsHaeckel, Matthias, Reitz, Anja, Klaucke, Ingo
Source SetsLibrary and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
Typetext
RightsHaeckel, Matthias

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