Methanogenic pathways of coal-bed gas in the Powder River Basin, United States: The geologic factor

Flores, Romeo M.; Rice, Cynthia A.; Stricker, Gary D.; Warden, Augusta; Ellis, Margaret S.

doi:10.1016/j.coal.2008.02.005

Cited by 242 publications

(138 citation statements)

References 32 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

128

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…2.1). In addition, microbial methane in pore waters and gas hydrates from northern Cascadia margin sediments (Pohlman et al, 2009), and from wells producing from coal seams in the Powder River Basin (Flores et al, 2008;Bates et al, 2011) To confirm these observations from the natural environment, we demonstrated that strong disequilibrium 13 CH 3 D signals are also produced by cultures of methanogenic archaea in the laboratory (Fig. 2.3).…”

Section: Main Textsupporting

confidence: 62%

“…Carbon ( 13 C/ 12 C) and hydrogen (D/H) isotope ratios of methane are widely applied for distinguishing microbial from thermogenic methane in the environment (Welhan and Lupton, 1987;Whiticar, 1990;Sherwood Lollar et al, 2002;Flores et al, 2008;Sherwood Lollar et al, 2008;Pohlman et al, 2009;Baldassare et al, 2014) as well as for apportioning pathways of microbial methane production (Whiticar et al, 1986;Burke et al, 1988;McCalley et al, 2014). This bulk isotope approach, however, is largely based on empirical observations, and different origins of methane often yield overlapping characteristic isotope signals (Schoell, 1988;Whiticar, 1990; Whiticar, 1999;Pohlman et al, 2009;Etiope and Sherwood Lollar, 2013).…”

Section: Main Textmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The geochemistry of methane isotopologues

Wang¹

2017

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This thesis documents the origin, distribution, and fate of methane and several of its isotopic forms on Earth. Using observational, experimental, and theoretical approaches, I illustrate how the relative abundances of 12 CH 4 , 13 CH 4 , 12 CH 3 D, and 13 CH 3 D record the formation, transport, and breakdown of methane in selected settings.Chapter 2 reports precise determinations of 13 CH 3 D, a "clumped" isotopologue of methane, in samples collected from various settings representing many of the major sources and reservoirs of methane on Earth. The results show that the information encoded by the abundance of 13 CH 3 D enables differentiation of methane generated by microbial, thermogenic, and abiogenic processes. A strong correlation between clumped-and hydrogen-isotope signatures in microbial methane is identified and quantitatively linked to the availability of H 2 and the reversibility of microbially-mediated methanogenesis in the environment. Determination of 13 CH 3 D in combination with hydrogen-isotope ratios of methane and water provides a sensitive indicator of the extent of C-H bond equilibration, enables fingerprinting of methane-generating mechanisms, and in some cases, supplies direct constraints for locating the waters from which migrated gases were sourced. Chapter 3 applies this concept to constrain the origin of methane in hydrothermal fluids from sediment-poor vent fields hosted in mafic and ultramafic rocks on slow-and ultraslow-spreading mid-ocean ridges. The data support a hypogene model whereby methane forms abiotically within plutonic rocks of the oceanic crust at temperatures above ca. 300• C during respeciation of magmatic volatiles, and is subsequently extracted during active, convective hydrothermal circulation. Chapter 4 presents the results of culture experiments in which methane is oxidized in the presence of O 2 by the bacterium Methylococcus capsulatus strain Bath. The results show that the clumped isotopologue abundances of partially-oxidized methane can be predicted from knowledge of 13 C/ 12 C and D/H isotope fractionation factors alone.: Shuhei Ono, Ph.D. Acknowledgments I fear that this section will not do justice to the people I have not the space to thank individually. Alas, here goes. To those whose names are not specifically listed here, thank you too. I wish first to thank Shuhei Ono. The work this thesis represents could not have happened without his bold vision and the license to explore and question that working in his lab afforded. His unbridled optimism, breadth of scientific curiosity, personal integrity, and accessibility to his personnel are traits I one day hope to emulate. I thank him for his nonjudgmental yet appropriately measured support of many of my ideas-even those that led nowhere-, for believing in me even when I found it difficult to do so myself, and for teaching me to change pump oil, build vacuum lines, and drink Icelandic vodka.I also wish to thank my thesis committee members Jeff Seewald, Roger Summons, and John Pohlman, for their in...

show abstract

Section: Main Textsupporting

confidence: 62%

Section: Main Textmentioning

confidence: 99%

The geochemistry of methane isotopologues

Wang¹

2017

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…CBM is generally understood to be formed by microbial degradation of coal (biogenic origin) or thermal decomposition of coal (thermogenic origin), which is typically analyzed by such standard geochemical technologies as plotting hydrocarbon gas composition C 1 /(C 2 +C 3 ) (C 1 -C 3 , methane, ethane, propane) versus stable carbon isotope ratios of methane δ 13 C-CH 4 (Bernard et al 1978). Biogenic CBM has been reported to be present in various reservoirs with mixed biogenic and thermogenic CBM or predominantly biogenic CBM, e.g., in the San Juan Basin (Scott et al 1994), in the Illinois Basin (Strapoć et al 2007), and in the Powder River Basin (Flores et al 2008). It is generally accepted that biogenic CBM is the end product of coal biodegradation by methanogenic archaea and syntrophic bacteria inhabiting coal beds.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Methylotrophic methanogenesis governs the biogenic coal bed methane formation in Eastern Ordos Basin, China

Guo

Liu

et al. 2012

Appl Microbiol Biotechnol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

To identify the methanogenic pathways present in a deep coal bed methane (CBM) reservoir associated with Eastern Ordos Basin in China, a series of geochemical and microbiological studies was performed using gas and water samples produced from the Liulin CBM reservoir. The composition and stable isotopic ratios of CBM implied a mixed biogenic and thermogenic origin of the methane. Archaeal 16S rRNA gene analysis revealed the dominance of the methylotrophic methanogen Methanolobus in the water produced. The high potential of methane production by methylotrophic methanogens was found in the enrichments using the water samples amended with methanol and incubated at 25 and 35°C. Methylotrophic methanogens were the dominant archaea in both enrichments as shown by polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE). Bacterial 16S rRNA gene analysis revealed that fermentative, sulfate-reducing, and nitrate-reducing bacteria inhabiting the water produced were a factor in coal biodegradation to fuel methanogens. These results suggested that past and ongoing biodegradation of coal by methylotrophic methanogens and syntrophic bacteria, as well as thermogenic CBM production, contributed to the Liulin CBM reserves associated with the Eastern Ordos Basin.

show abstract

“…3 Stable isotopes are a valuable tool for the identification of CH 4 gas origin and generation pathways (Flores et al, 2008;Hamilton et al, 2014;Kinnon et al, 2010;Strąpoć et al, 2007).…”

Section: Accepted M Manuscriptmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Studies have documented that CO 2 reduction is the dominant pathway in the marine environment, while acetate fermentation is the major pathway in freshwater environments (Schoell, 1980;Whiticar et al, 1986). However, in coalbed environments, it has been recognized that the CO 2 reduction pathway predominates, even when the waters are quite fresh .Stable isotopes are a valuable tool for the identification of CH 4 gas origin and generation pathways (Flores et al, 2008;Hamilton et al, 2014;Kinnon et al, 2010;Strąpoć et al, 2007).The method has been used to evaluate CH 4 dynamics both in ecosystems and laboratory engineered systems. Organic matter degradation by microbial activity in an anoxic environment produces CH 4 depleted in 13 C relative to CH 4 produced thermogenically (Faiz and Hendry, 2006;Golding et al, 2013;Whiticar, 1999).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Carbon and hydrogen isotope fractionation during methanogenesis: A laboratory study using coal and formation water

Susilawati

Golding

Baublys

et al. 2016

International Journal of Coal Geology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Carbon and hydrogen isotope compositions of CH 4 generated via methanogenesis in cultures of South Sumatra Basin (SSB) coalbed methane (CBM) formation waters grown on coal, acetate and H 2 +CO 2 were investigated. CH 4 production and molecular analysis confirmed the presence of active microbial communities that are able to convert coal into CH 4 using both acetoclastic and hydrogenotrophic pathways. The representative bacterial sequences were dominated by Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes and Deltaproteobacteria, while Methanosaeta and Methanosarcina were the most prevalent archaeal methanogens present in the cultures.CH 4 produced in this study's culturing experiments has δ 13 C values in the range of -50 ‰ to -20 ‰, with most values falling outside the current understanding of the carbon isotopic boundaries for biogenic CH 4 (-110 ‰ to -30 ‰). However, the corresponding apparent carbon isotopic α factor (α c = 1.02±0.006), and isotopic effect (ε c = -20.1 ‰ ±15.3) showed that CH 4 in SSB cultures was predominantly produced by acetoclastic methanogenesis, which is consistent with the results of molecular DNA analysis. In addition, the calculated contribution of CO 2 reduction from the δ 13 C values of coaltreated cultures was overall < 50 %, further confirming the high contribution of the acetoclastic pathway to CH 4 production in the SSB cultures. The outcome of this experimental study also suggests that δ 2 H-CH 4 values may not provide a reliable basis for distinguishing methanogenic pathways, while apparent carbon isotopic fractionation factor (α c ) and isotope effect (ε c ) are considered more useful indicators of the methanogenic pathway.The high δ 13 C-CH 4 values (>-30 ‰) and the dominance of Methanosaeta over Methanosarcina indicate that methanogens within the SSB cultures were operating at low substrate concentrations. An unusually positive δ 13 C-CH 4 suggests a substrate depletion effect, which is thought to be related to a decrease in the relative abundance of key bacterial coal degraders with formation water inoculum storage time. Closer observation of δ 13 C-CH 4 values during the growth of cultures within a single experiment also showed a 13 C-enrichment trend over time. At log phase of growth, the CH 4 produced was 13 C-depleted when compared to the stationary phase that also indicates substrate depletion effects. Finally, the δ 13 C-CH 4 values encountered in this study (as high as -20 ‰) highlight the possible positive extension of δ 13 C-CH 4 values of acetoclastic methanogenesis from those currently reported in the literature for natural and experimental samples (as high as -30 ‰).Keywords: Biogenic gas, coal, culture experiment, isotopic composition INTRODUCTIONArchaeal methanogens are the only known microorganisms capable of forming CH 4 . These strictly anaerobic microbes are restricted to utilizing simple compounds that contain no more than two carbon atoms. As such, complex organic compounds in anoxic environments (e.g., marine sediments, rice paddies, subsurface shales and coalbeds) ...

show abstract

Methanogenic pathways of coal-bed gas in the Powder River Basin, United States: The geologic factor

Cited by 242 publications

References 32 publications

The geochemistry of methane isotopologues

The geochemistry of methane isotopologues

Methylotrophic methanogenesis governs the biogenic coal bed methane formation in Eastern Ordos Basin, China

Carbon and hydrogen isotope fractionation during methanogenesis: A laboratory study using coal and formation water

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About