Winters
William J.
Winters
William J.
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ArticleCharacterization of methane hydrate host sediments using synchrotron-computed microtomography (CMT)(Elsevier B.V., 2006-10-16) Jones, Keith W. ; Feng, Huan ; Tomov, Stanmire ; Winters, William J. ; Prodanovic, Masa ; Mahajan, DevinderThe hydrate–sediment interaction is an important aspect of gas hydrate studies that needs further examination. We describe here the applicability of the computed microtomography (CMT) technique that utilizes an intense X-ray synchrotron source to characterize sediment samples, two at various depths from the Blake Ridge area (a well-known hydrate-prone region) and one from Georges Bank, that once contained methane trapped as hydrates. Detailed results of the tomographic analysis performed on the deepest sample (667 m) from Blake Ridge are presented as 2-D and 3-D images which show several mineral constituents, the internal grain/pore microstructure, and, following segmentation into pore and grain space, a visualization of the connecting pathways through the pore-space of the sediment. Various parameters obtained from the analysis of the CMT data are presented for all three sediment samples. The micro-scale porosity values showed decreasing trend with increasing depth for all three samples that is consistent with the previously reported bulk porosity data. The 3-D morphology, pore-space pathways, porosity, and permeability values are also reported for all three samples. The application of CMT is now being expanded to the laboratory-formed samples of hydrate in sediments as well as field samples of methane hydrate bearing sediments.
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ArticleHydro-bio-geomechanical properties of hydrate-bearing sediments from Nankai Trough(Elsevier, 2015-03-01) Santamarina, J. Carlos ; Dai, Sheng ; Terzariol, Marco ; Jang, J. ; Waite, William F. ; Winters, William J. ; Nagao, Jiro ; Yoneda, Jun ; Konno, Yoshihiro ; Fujii, Tetsuya ; Suzuki, K.Natural hydrate-bearing sediments from the Nankai Trough, offshore Japan, were studied using the Pressure Core Characterization Tools (PCCTs) to obtain geomechanical, hydrological, electrical, and biological properties under in situ pressure, temperature, and restored effective stress conditions. Measurement results, combined with index-property data and analytical physics-based models, provide unique insight into hydrate-bearing sediments in situ. Tested cores contain some silty-sands, but are predominantly sandy- and clayey-silts. Hydrate saturations Sh range from 0.15 to 0.74, with significant concentrations in the silty-sands. Wave velocity and flexible-wall permeameter measurements on never-depressurized pressure-core sediments suggest hydrates in the coarser-grained zones, the silty-sands where Sh exceeds 0.4, contribute to soil-skeletal stability and are load-bearing. In the sandy- and clayey-silts, where Sh < 0.4, the state of effective stress and stress history are significant factors determining sediment stiffness. Controlled depressurization tests show that hydrate dissociation occurs too quickly to maintain thermodynamic equilibrium, and pressure–temperature conditions track the hydrate stability boundary in pure-water, rather than that in seawater, in spite of both the in situ pore water and the water used to maintain specimen pore pressure prior to dissociation being saline. Hydrate dissociation accompanied with fines migration caused up to 2.4% vertical strain contraction. The first-ever direct shear measurements on never-depressurized pressure-core specimens show hydrate-bearing sediments have higher sediment strength and peak friction angle than post-dissociation sediments, but the residual friction angle remains the same in both cases. Permeability measurements made before and after hydrate dissociation demonstrate that water permeability increases after dissociation, but the gain is limited by the transition from hydrate saturation before dissociation to gas saturation after dissociation. In a proof-of-concept study, sediment microbial communities were successfully extracted and stored under high-pressure, anoxic conditions. Depressurized samples of these extractions were incubated in air, where microbes exhibited temperature-dependent growth rates.
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ArticleSimultaneous determination of thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity and specific heat in sI methane hydrate(Blackwell Publishing, 2007-03-11) Waite, William F. ; Stern, Laura A. ; Kirby, S. H. ; Winters, William J. ; Mason, D. H.Thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity and specific heat of sI methane hydrate were measured as functions of temperature and pressure using a needle probe technique. The temperature dependence was measured between −20°C and 17°C at 31.5 MPa. The pressure dependence was measured between 31.5 and 102 MPa at 14.4°C. Only weak temperature and pressure dependencies were observed. Methane hydrate thermal conductivity differs from that of water by less than 10 per cent, too little to provide a sensitive measure of hydrate content in water-saturated systems. Thermal diffusivity of methane hydrate is more than twice that of water, however, and its specific heat is about half that of water. Thus, when drilling into or through hydrate-rich sediment, heat from the borehole can raise the formation temperature more than 20 per cent faster than if the formation's pore space contains only water. Thermal properties of methane hydrate should be considered in safety and economic assessments of hydrate-bearing sediment.
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ArticleDownhole well log and core montages from the Mount Elbert Gas Hydrate Stratigraphic Test Well, Alaska North Slope(Elsevier B.V., 2010-03-27) Collett, Timothy S. ; Lewis, R. E. ; Winters, William J. ; Lee, Myung W. ; Rose, Kelly K. ; Boswell, Ray M.The BPXA-DOE-USGS Mount Elbert Gas Hydrate Stratigraphic Test Well was an integral part of an ongoing project to determine the future energy resource potential of gas hydrates on the Alaska North Slope. As part of this effort, the Mount Elbert well included an advanced downhole geophysical logging program. Because gas hydrate is unstable at ground surface pressure and temperature conditions, a major emphasis was placed on the downhole-logging program to determine the occurrence of gas hydrates and the in-situ physical properties of the sediments. In support of this effort, well-log and core data montages have been compiled which include downhole log and core-data obtained from the gas-hydrate-bearing sedimentary section in the Mount Elbert well. Also shown are numerous reservoir parameters, including gas-hydrate saturation and sediment porosity log traces calculated from available downhole well log and core data.
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ArticleMethane hydrate formation in partially water-saturated Ottawa sand(Mineralogical Society of America, 2004-08) Waite, William F. ; Winters, William J. ; Mason, D. H.Bulk properties of gas hydrate-bearing sediment strongly depend on whether hydrate forms primarily in the pore fluid, becomes a load-bearing member of the sediment matrix, or cements sediment grains. Our compressional wave speed measurements through partially water-saturated, methane hydrate-bearing Ottawa sands suggest hydrate surrounds and cements sediment grains. The three Ottawa sand packs tested in the Gas Hydrate And Sediment Test Laboratory Instrument (GHASTLI) contain 38(1)% porosity, initially with distilled water saturating 58, 31, and 16% of that pore space, respectively. From the volume of methane gas produced during hydrate dissociation, we calculated the hydrate concentration in the pore space to be 70, 37, and 20% respectively. Based on these hydrate concentrations and our measured compressional wave speeds, we used a rock physics model to differentiate between potential pore-space hydrate distributions. Model results suggest methane hydrate cements unconsolidated sediment when forming in systems containing an abundant gas phase.
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ArticlePhysical properties of sediments from Keathley Canyon and Atwater Valley, JIP Gulf of Mexico gas hydrate drilling program(Elsevier B.V., 2008-05-18) Winters, William J. ; Dugan, Brandon ; Collett, Timothy S.Physical property measurements and consolidation behavior are different between sediments from Atwater Valley and Keathley Canyon in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Void ratio and bulk density of Atwater Valley sediment from a seafloor mound (holes ATM1 and ATM2) show little effective stress (or depth) dependence to 27 meters below seafloor (mbsf), perhaps owing to fluidized transport through the mound itself with subsequent settling onto the seafloor or mound flanks. Off-mound sediments (hole AT13-2) have bulk physical properties that are similar to mound sediments above 27 mbsf, but void ratio and porosity decrease below that depth. Properties of shallow (<50 mbsf) Keathley Canyon sediments (KC151-3) change with increasing effective stress (or depth) compared to Atwater Valley, but vary little below that depth. Organic carbon is present in concentrations between typical near-shore and deep-sea sediments. Organic carbon-to-nitrogen ratios suggest that the organic matter contained in Atwater Valley off-mound and mound sites came from somewhat different sources. The difference in organic carbon-to-nitrogen ratios between Atwater Valley and Keathley Canyon is more pronounced. At Keathley Canyon a more terrigenous source of the organic matter is indicated. Grain sizes are typically silty clay or clay within the two basins reflecting similar transport energy. However, the range in most shallow sediment properties is significantly different between the two basins. Bulk density profiles agree with logging results in Atwater Valley and Keathley Canyon. Agreement between lab-derived and logging-derived properties supports using logging data to constrain bulk physical properties where cores were not collected.
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ArticlePhysical property changes in hydrate-bearing sediment due to depressurization and subsequent repressurization(American Geophysical Union, 2008-07-03) Waite, William F. ; Kneafsey, Timothy J. ; Winters, William J. ; Mason, D. H.Physical property measurements of sediment cores containing natural gas hydrate are typically performed on material exposed, at least briefly, to non-in situ conditions during recovery. To examine the effects of a brief excursion from the gas-hydrate stability field, as can occur when pressure cores are transferred to pressurized storage vessels, we measured physical properties on laboratory-formed sand packs containing methane hydrate and methane pore gas. After depressurizing samples to atmospheric pressure, we repressurized them into the methane-hydrate stability field and remeasured their physical properties. Thermal conductivity, shear strength, acoustic compressional and shear wave amplitudes, and speeds of the original and depressurized/repressurized samples are compared. X–ray computed tomography images track how the gas-hydrate distribution changes in the hydrate-cemented sands owing to the depressurizaton/repressurization process. Because depressurization-induced property changes can be substantial and are not easily predicted, particularly in water-saturated, hydrate-bearing sediment, maintaining pressure and temperature conditions throughout the core recovery and measurement process is critical for using laboratory measurements to estimate in situ properties.
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ArticlePhysical properties of hydrate-bearing sediments(American Geophysical Union, 2009-12-31) Waite, William F. ; Santamarina, J. Carlos ; Cortes, Douglas D. ; Dugan, Brandon ; Espinoza, D. N. ; Germaine, J. ; Jang, J. ; Jung, J. W. ; Kneafsey, Timothy J. ; Shin, H. ; Soga, K. ; Winters, William J. ; Yun, Tae SupMethane gas hydrates, crystalline inclusion compounds formed from methane and water, are found in marine continental margin and permafrost sediments worldwide. This article reviews the current understanding of phenomena involved in gas hydrate formation and the physical properties of hydrate-bearing sediments. Formation phenomena include pore-scale habit, solubility, spatial variability, and host sediment aggregate properties. Physical properties include thermal properties, permeability, electrical conductivity and permittivity, small-strain elastic P and S wave velocities, shear strength, and volume changes resulting from hydrate dissociation. The magnitudes and interdependencies of these properties are critically important for predicting and quantifying macroscale responses of hydrate-bearing sediments to changes in mechanical, thermal, or chemical boundary conditions. These predictions are vital for mitigating borehole, local, and regional slope stability hazards; optimizing recovery techniques for extracting methane from hydrate-bearing sediments or sequestering carbon dioxide in gas hydrate; and evaluating the role of gas hydrate in the global carbon cycle.
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ArticleComparison of the physical and geotechnical properties of gas-hydrate-bearing sediments from offshore India and other gas-hydrate-reservoir systems(Elsevier, 2014-09-09) Winters, William J. ; Wilcox-Cline, R. W. ; Long, Philip E. ; Dewri, S. K. ; Kumar, P. ; Stern, Laura A. ; Kerr, Louis M.The sediment characteristics of hydrate-bearing reservoirs profoundly affect the formation, distribution, and morphology of gas hydrate. The presence and type of gas, porewater chemistry, fluid migration, and subbottom temperature may govern the hydrate formation process, but it is the host sediment that commonly dictates final hydrate habit, and whether hydrate may be economically developed. In this paper, the physical properties of hydrate-bearing regions offshore eastern India (Krishna-Godavari and Mahanadi Basins) and the Andaman Islands, determined from Expedition NGHP-01 cores, are compared to each other, well logs, and published results of other hydrate reservoirs. Properties from the hydrate-free Kerala-Konkan basin off the west coast of India are also presented. Coarser-grained reservoirs (permafrost-related and marine) may contain high gas-hydrate-pore saturations, while finer-grained reservoirs may contain low-saturation disseminated or more complex gas-hydrates, including nodules, layers, and high-angle planar and rotational veins. However, even in these fine-grained sediments, gas hydrate preferentially forms in coarser sediment or fractures, when present. The presence of hydrate in conjunction with other geologic processes may be responsible for sediment porosity being nearly uniform for almost 500 m off the Andaman Islands. Properties of individual NGHP-01 wells and regional trends are discussed in detail. However, comparison of marine and permafrost-related Arctic reservoirs provides insight into the inter-relationships and common traits between physical properties and the morphology of gas-hydrate reservoirs regardless of location. Extrapolation of properties from one location to another also enhances our understanding of gas-hydrate reservoir systems. Grain size and porosity effects on permeability are critical, both locally to trap gas and regionally to provide fluid flow to hydrate reservoirs. Index properties corroborate more advanced consolidation and triaxial strength test results and can be used for predicting behavior in other NGHP-01 regions. Pseudo-overconsolidation is present near the seafloor and is underlain by underconsolidation at depth at some NGHP-01 locations.
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PreprintMethane gas hydrate effect on sediment acoustic and strength properties( 2006-04-08) Winters, William J. ; Waite, William F. ; Mason, D. H. ; Gilbert, L. Y. ; Pecher, Ingo A.To improve our understanding of the interaction of methane gas hydrate with host sediment, we studied: (1) the effects of gas hydrate and ice on acoustic velocity in different sediment types, (2) effect of different hydrate formation mechanisms on measured acoustic properties (3) dependence of shear strength on pore space contents, and (4) pore-pressure effects during undrained shear. A wide range in acoustic p-wave velocities (Vp) were measured in coarse-grained sediment for different pore space occupants. Vp ranged from less than 1 km/s for gascharged sediment to 1.77 - 1.94 km/s for water-saturated sediment, 2.91 - 4.00 km/s for sediment with varying degrees of hydrate saturation, and 3.88 - 4.33 km/s for frozen sediment. Vp measured in fine-grained sediment containing gas hydrate was substantially lower (1.97 km/s). Acoustic models based on measured Vp indicate that hydrate which formed in high gas flux environments can cement coarse-grained sediment, whereas hydrate formed from methane dissolved in the pore fluid may not. The presence of gas hydrate and other solid pore-filling material, such as ice, increased the sediment shear strength. The magnitude of that increase is related to the amount of hydrate in the pore space and cementation characteristics between the hydrate and sediment grains. We have found, that for consolidation stresses associated with the upper several hundred meters of subbottom depth, pore pressures decreased during shear in coarse-grained sediment containing gas hydrate, whereas pore pressure in fine-grained sediment typically increased during shear. The presence of free gas in pore spaces damped pore pressure response during shear and reduced the strengthening effect of gas hydrate in sands.
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ArticlePhysical properties of sediment from the Mount Elbert Gas Hydrate Stratigraphic Test Well, Alaska North Slope(Elsevier B.V., 2010-01-18) Winters, William J. ; Walker, Michael ; Hunter, Robert ; Collett, Timothy S. ; Boswell, Ray M. ; Rose, Kelly K. ; Waite, William F. ; Torres, Marta E. ; Patil, Shirish ; Dandekar, AbhijitThis study characterizes cored and logged sedimentary strata from the February 2007 BP Exploration Alaska, Department of Energy, U.S. Geological Survey (BPXA-DOE-USGS) Mount Elbert Gas Hydrate Stratigraphic Test Well on the Alaska North Slope (ANS). The physical-properties program analyzed core samples recovered from the well, and in conjunction with downhole geophysical logs, produced an extensive dataset including grain size, water content, porosity, grain density, bulk density, permeability, X-ray diffraction (XRD) mineralogy, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and petrography. This study documents the physical property interrelationships in the well and demonstrates their correlation with the occurrence of gas hydrate. Gas hydrate (GH) occurs in three unconsolidated, coarse silt to fine sand intervals within the Paleocene and Eocene beds of the Sagavanirktok Formation: Unit D-GH (614.4 m–627.9 m); unit C-GH1 (649.8 m–660.8 m); and unit C-GH2 (663.2 m–666.3 m). These intervals are overlain by fine to coarse silt intervals with greater clay content. A deeper interval (unit B) is similar lithologically to the gas-hydrate-bearing strata; however, it is water-saturated and contains no hydrate. In this system it appears that high sediment permeability (k) is critical to the formation of concentrated hydrate deposits. Intervals D-GH and C-GH1 have average “plug” intrinsic permeability to nitrogen values of 1700 mD and 675 mD, respectively. These values are in strong contrast with those of the overlying, gas-hydrate-free sediments, which have k values of 5.7 mD and 49 mD, respectively, and thus would have provided effective seals to trap free gas. The relation between permeability and porosity critically influences the occurrence of GH. For example, an average increase of 4% in porosity increases permeability by an order of magnitude, but the presence of a second fluid (e.g., methane from dissociating gas hydrate) in the reservoir reduces permeability by more than an order of magnitude.
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PreprintMethane-derived authigenic carbonates from the northern Gulf of Mexico — MD02 Cruise( 2007-05-25) Chen, Yifeng ; Matsumoto, Ryo ; Paull, Charles K. ; Ussler, William ; Lorenson, Thomas D. ; Hart, Patrick E. ; Winters, William J.Authigenic carbonates were sampled in piston cores collected from both the Tunica Mound and the Mississippi Canyon area on the continental slope of the northern Gulf of Mexico during a Marion Dufresne cruise in July 2002. The carbonates are present as hardgrounds, porous crusts, concretions or nodules and shell fragments with or without carbonate cements. Carbonates occurred at gas venting sites which are likely to overlie gas hydrates bearing sediments. Electron microprobe, X-ray diffraction (XRD) and thinsection investigations show that these carbonates are high-Mg calcite (6 - 21 mol % MgCO3), with significant presence of framboidal pyrite. All carbonates are depleted in 13C (δ13C = -61.9 to -31.5 ‰ PDB) indicating that the carbon is derived mainly from anaerobic methane oxidation (AMO). Age estimates based on 14C dating of shell fragments and on regional sedimentation rates indicate that these authigenic carbonates formed within the last 1,000 yr in the Mississippi Canyon and within 5,500 yr at the Tunica Mound. The oxygen isotopic composition of carbonates ranges from +3.4 to +5.9 ‰ PDB. Oxygen isotopic compositions and Mg2+ contents of carbonates, and present in-situ temperatures of bottom seawater/sediments, show that some of these carbonates, especially from a core associated with underlying massive gas hydrates precipitated in or near equilibrium with bottom-water. On the other hand, those carbonates more enriched in 18O are interpreted to have precipitated from 18O-rich fluids which are thought to have been derived from the dissociation of gas hydrates. The dissociation of gas hydrates in the northern Gulf of Mexico within the last 5,500 yr may be caused by nearby salt movement and related brines.
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PreprintExamination of core samples from the Mount Elbert Gas Hydrate Stratigraphic Test Well, Alaska North Slope : effects of retrieval and preservation( 2009-10) Kneafsey, Timothy J. ; Lu, Hailong ; Winters, William J. ; Boswell, Ray M. ; Hunter, Robert ; Collett, Timothy S.Collecting and preserving undamaged core samples containing gas hydrates from depth is difficult because of the pressure and temperature changes encountered upon retrieval. Hydrate-bearing core samples were collected at the BPXA-DOE-USGS Mount Elbert Gas Hydrate Stratigraphic Test Well in February 2007. Coring was performed while using a custom oil-based drilling mud, and the cores were retrieved by a wireline. The samples were characterized and subsampled at the surface under ambient winter arctic conditions. Samples thought to be hydrate bearing were preserved either by immersion in liquid nitrogen (LN), or by storage under methane pressure at ambient arctic conditions, and later depressurized and immersed in LN. Eleven core samples from hydrate-bearing zones were scanned using x-ray computed tomography to examine core structure and homogeneity. Features observed include radial fractures, spalling-type fractures, and reduced density near the periphery. These features were induced during sample collection, handling, and preservation. Isotopic analysis of the methane from hydrate in an initially LN-preserved core and a pressure-preserved core indicate that secondary hydrate formation occurred throughout the pressurized core, whereas none occurred in the LN-preserved core, however no hydrate was found near the periphery of the LN-preserved core. To replicate some aspects of the preservation methods, natural and laboratory-made saturated porous media samples were frozen in a variety of ways, with radial fractures observed in some LN-frozen sands, and needle-like ice crystals forming in slowly frozen clay-rich sediments. Suggestions for hydrate-bearing core preservation are presented.
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ArticleGeologic controls on gas hydrate occurrence in the Mount Elbert prospect, Alaska North Slope(Elsevier B.V., 2009-12-21) Boswell, Ray M. ; Rose, Kelly K. ; Collett, Timothy S. ; Lee, Myung W. ; Winters, William J. ; Lewis, Kristen A. ; Agena, WarrenData acquired at the BPXA-DOE-USGS Mount Elbert Gas Hydrate Stratigraphic Test Well, drilled in the Milne Point area of the Alaska North Slope in February, 2007, indicates two zones of high gas hydrate saturation within the Eocene Sagavanirktok Formation. Gas hydrate is observed in two separate sand reservoirs (the D and C units), in the stratigraphically highest portions of those sands, and is not detected in non-sand lithologies. In the younger D unit, gas hydrate appears to fill much of the available reservoir space at the top of the unit. The degree of vertical fill with the D unit is closely related to the unit reservoir quality. A thick, low-permeability clay-dominated unit serves as an upper seal, whereas a subtle transition to more clay-rich, and interbedded sand, silt, and clay units is associated with the base of gas hydrate occurrence. In the underlying C unit, the reservoir is similarly capped by a clay-dominated section, with gas hydrate filling the relatively lower-quality sands at the top of the unit leaving an underlying thick section of high-reservoir quality sands devoid of gas hydrate. Evaluation of well log, core, and seismic data indicate that the gas hydrate occurs within complex combination stratigraphic/structural traps. Structural trapping is provided by a four-way fold closure augmented by a large western bounding fault. Lithologic variation is also a likely strong control on lateral extent of the reservoirs, particularly in the D unit accumulation, where gas hydrate appears to extend beyond the limits of the structural closure. Porous and permeable zones within the C unit sand are only partially charged due most likely to limited structural trapping in the reservoir lithofacies during the period of primary charging. The occurrence of the gas hydrate within the sands in the upper portions of both the C and D units and along the crest of the fold is consistent with an interpretation that these deposits are converted free gas accumulations formed prior to the imposition of gas hydrate stability conditions.