RE-EVALUATING THE SIGNIFICANCE OF SEAFLOOR ACCUMULATIONS OF METHANE-DERIVED CARBONATES: SEEPAGE OR EROSION INDICATORS?

• Main Authors: Paull, Charles K., Ussler III, William
• Language: English
• Published: 2008
• Subjects: gas hydrates; methane-derived carbonates; continental margin fluid flow; seafloor erosion; ICGH; International Conference on Gas Hydrates
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/1084

Occurrences of carbonate-cemented nodules and concretions exposed on the seafloor that contain cements with light carbon isotopes, indicating a contribution of methane-derived carbon, are commonly interpreted to be indicators of seafloor fluid venting. Thus, their presence is commonly used as an indicator of the possible occurrence of methane gas hydrate within the near subsurface. While some of these carbonates exhibit facies that require formation on the seafloor, the dominant fine-grained lithology associated with these carbonates indicates they were formed as sedimenthosted nodules within the subsurface and are similar to nodules that are obtained from the subsurface in Deep Sea Drilling Project, Ocean Drilling Project, and Integrated Ocean Drilling Project boreholes. Here we present the hypothesis that the occurrence of these carbonates on the seafloor may instead indicate areas of persistent seafloor erosion.