Dissociation of gas hydrates by hydrocarbon migration and accumulation-derived slope failures:An example from the South China Sea

• 作者: Zhi-Feng Wan Wei Zhang Chong Ma Jin-Qiang Liang Ang Li Da-Jiang Meng Wei Huang Cheng-Zhi Yang Jin-Feng Zhang Yue-Feng Sun
• 来源期刊: 地学前缘（英文版）
• 年，卷（期）: 2022,（2）
• 所属期刊栏目: Research Paper
• 页码范围: 295-310
• 页数: 16页
• 语种: 英文

摘要

The mechanism of slope failure associated with overpressure that is caused by hydrocarbon migration and accumulation remains unclear.High-resolution seismic data and gas hydrate drilling data collected from the Shenhu gas hydrate field(site SH5)offer a valuable opportunity to study the relations between submarine slope failure and hydrocarbon accumulation and flow that is associated with a～2 km-diameter gas chimney developed beneath site SH5 where none gas hydrates had been recovered by dril-ling and sampling despite the presence of distinct bottom simulating reflectors(BSRs)and favorable gas hydrate indication.The mechanism of submarine slope failure resulted from buoyancy extrusion and seepage-derived deformation which were caused by overpressure from a～1100 m-high gas column in a gas chimney was studied via numerical simulation.The～9.55 MPa overpressure caused by hydrocar-bons that migrated through the gas chimney and then accumulated beneath subsurface gas hydrate-bearing impermeable sediments.This may have resulted in a submarine slope failure,which disequili-brated the gas hydrate-bearing zone and completely decomposed the gas hydrate once precipitated at site SH5.Before the gas hydrate decomposition,the largely impermeable sediments overlying the gas chimney may have undergone a major upward deformation due to the buoyancy extrusion of the over-pressure in the gas chimney,and slope failure was initiated from plastic strain of the sediments and reduced internal strength.Slope failure subsequently resulted in partial gas hydrate decomposition and sediment permeability increase.The pressurized gas in the gas chimney may have diffused into the overlying sediments controlled by seepage-derived deformation,causing an effective stress reduction at the base of the sediments and significant plastic deformation.This may have formed a new cycle of submarine slope failure and finally the total gas hydrate dissociation.The modeling results of buoyancy extrusion and seepage-derived deformation of the overpressure in the gas chimney would provide new understanding in the development of submarine slope failure and the link between slope failure and gas hydrate accumulation and dissociation.