EARTH & ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES: Methane Hydrate, 'Fire in the Ice': Energy Potential and Environmental Implications

摘要

First found locked in the Siberian ice, methane hydrate has recently emerged as a naturally occurring energy resource of potentially great significance. It is estimated that resources of methane in natural hydrate reservoirs exceed 10 quadrillion m~(3), even by the most conservative estimates, indicating that more carbon is contained in methane hydrate than in all other organic carbon reservoirs on earth combined. Aside from their energy potential, hydrates have also been considered as a medium for gas storage, for transport, for water and gas purification, and as a novel method for sequestering carbon dioxide (CO_(2)). A major challenge in utilizing all the benefits of methane hydrate, of course, will be to consider the environmental implications of its occurrence and extraction.