Duan, Shuangmin, Hölz, Sebastian , Dannowski, Anke , Schwalenberg, Katrin and Jegen, Marion (2021) Study on gas hydrate targets in the Danube Paleo-Delta with a dual polarization controlled-source electromagnetic system. Marine and Petroleum Geology, 134 . Art.Nr. 105330. DOI 10.1016/j.marpetgeo.2021.105330.

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Abstract

Highlights

• Marine CSEM data was collected in the Danube Paleo-delta, Black Sea for gas hydrate targets investigation.
• The receivers and the novel transmitter “Sputnik” developed at GEOMAR (Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel) were used.
• Inversions in terms of rotational invariants are conducted.
• Two potential gas hydrate layers are derived.
• Gas hydrate saturation is estimated using Archie's Law.

Abstract

The Black Sea is known to have extensive direct and indirect indicators of methane hydrates. Since the resistivity of the seafloor increases significantly in the presence of gas hydrates or free gas, marine controlled-source electromagnetics (CSEM) is a suitable method for the investigation of hydrates. We have collected CSEM data in a channel-levee system of the Danube paleo-delta (Bulgarian sector) at water depths of about 1500 m. The working area is within the gas hydrates stability zone and seismics suggests the presence of gas hydrates. The CSEM data were acquired with stationary receivers and a novel mobile, dual polarization transmitter system, and interpreted in terms of rotational invariants by means of 1-D inversions at common midpoints (CMP) to generate pseudo 2D resistivity sections. The inversion results reveal two resistive layers at shallow depths of 60–120 mbsf and greater depths of 270–400 mbsf. A comparison with seismics shows a good correlation of the shallow layer with high amplitude reflections and a velocity anomaly. The deeper layer can be tied to the current bottom simulating reflector (BSR). The comparison to a second CSEM experiment, which was conducted by the BGR (Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources, Germany) shows a good agreement of the derived sections down to a depth of about 350 m. Based on salinity and porosity models derived from boreholes in the Black Sea, we apply Archie's law to estimate potential gas hydrate saturations of up to 23% for the shallow resistor and up to 7% for the deeper layer. Differences are evident at depths greater than 450 m, where we see a conductive layer not evident in the BGR section. This deeper conductor could be evidence for increasing salinities of pore fluids at greater depths, which were previously found in DSDP drilling cores.

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