Methane In The Ocean

MORGAN DEVEAU & SALMON CROSS

 Methane

Has the chemical formula of CH4

Principle component of natural gas
Relatively potent greenhouse gas
Affects the degradation of the ozone layer
Methane levels are increasing in the world’s oceans
due to human activities such as agriculture
 Methanogenesis

Is the formation of methane by microbes known as

methanogens
Methanogens only belong to the group Archaea
Form of microbial metabolism & anaerobic
respiration
Final step in the decay of organic matter
The methane within methane clathrates are
dominantly created by these methanogenic Archaea
 Methane Clathrates

Also known as methane hydrate

Composed of large amounts of methane trapped within
a crystal structure of water
Methane rich ice on the seafloor just off continental
shelves
It was first thought to only occur in the outer regions of
the Solar System but it’s been found on the ocean floor
Believed to form by migration of gas from depths along
geological faults and when organic matter decays at
great depths
 Methane Clathrates

Phase state of methane clathrates are dependent on

pressure and temperature
 Methane Clathrates

The overlying water must be at least 300 meters

deep and cold (approx 2 degrees Celsius)
Clathrates are of a lattice structure
Has two distinct types of oceanic deposit
1. Structure I Clathrate
 Most common (>99%) form
 Consists of 46 water molecules
2. Structure II Clathrate
 Very uncommon
 Consists of 136 water molecules
 Methane Clathrates (Structure I)

Carbon from this type of clathrate is isotopically

lighter
Formed by microbial reduction of CO2
Usually found deep in ocean sediment
 Methane Clathrates (Structure II)

Carbon from this type of clathrate is isotopically

heavier
Migrates upwards from deep sediments, where
methane was formed by thermal decomposition
of organic matter
 This type of deposit has been found in the Gulf of
Mexico and the Caspian Sea
Methane Clathrates
Methane Clathrates
 Methane Seeps

Also known as a Cold Seep

Area in the ocean floor where hydrogen sulfide and
methane seepage occurs
They are caused by tectonic activity
Methane released from these seeps forms the basis
of a cold seep ecosystem
Organisms that live in methane seep ecosystems are
known as extremophiles
 Methane & Global Warming

Global Warming Potential (GWP): the relative measure

of how much heat a greenhouse gas traps in the
atmosphere
Methane has a high global warming potential when
compared to carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide has a GWP of 1 (the basis of the scale)
and methane has a GWP of 56
This means that if the same weights of methane and
carbon dioxide were introduced into the atmosphere,
methane would trap 56 times more heat than carbon
dioxide
Methane & Global Warming
 References

Kump, L., Kasting, J., and Crane, R. (2010). The

Earth System Third Edition. Pearson Education, Inc.