Abiotic Synthesis Of Methane: New Evidence Supports 19th-Century Idea On Formation Of Oil

Science Daily ^ | 11/2009

[SeekAndFind]

Washington, D.C. are reporting laboratory evidence supporting the possibility that some of Earth's oil and natural gas may have formed in a way much different than the traditional process described in science textbooks.

Their study is scheduled for Nov./Dec. issue of ACS' Energy & Fuels, a bi-monthly publication. Anurag Sharma and colleagues note that the traditional process involves biology: Prehistoric plants died and changed into oil and gas while sandwiched between layers of rock in the hot, high-pressure environment deep below Earth's surface. Some scientists, however, believe that oil and gas originated in other ways, including chemical reactions between carbon dioxide and hydrogen below Earth' surface.

The new study describes a test of that idea, which dates to at least 1877 and famous Russian chemist Dimitri Mendeelev. They combined ingredients for this so-called abiotic synthesis of methane, the main ingredient in natural gas, in a diamond-anvil cell and monitored in-situ the progress of the reaction. The diamond anvils can generate high pressures and temperatures similar to those that occur deep below Earth's surface and allow for in-situ optical spectroscopy at the extreme environments.

The results "strongly suggest" that some methane could form strictly from chemical reactions in a variety of chemical environments. This study further highlights the role of reaction pathways and fluid immiscibility in the extent of hydrocarbon formation at extreme conditions simulating deep subsurface.

[preacher]

Interesting article:

The Mysterious Origin and Supply of Oil

http://www.livescience.com/environment/051011_oil_origins.html

[UCANSEE2]

Where and when did this come from and how is it supported?

Back then, trolls lived underground, and they operated the giant presses (made of rock) and squeezed out the oil and gas from the dead plants and dinosaurs.

After all their work was done, they tunneled to the surface, and now live in small caves.

[The Comedian]

The darkest secret of hidden science: Oil is like geothermal heat: As long as the Earth is tectonically active, we'll have it.

It's free. And effectively eternal.

Frowning takes 68 muscles.
Smiling takes 6.
Pulling this trigger takes 2.
I'm lazy.

[tet68]

And here I thought they all went into politics.

[PUGACHEV]

I recall reading that bacteria and extremeophiles have been discovered living far underground where no one had thought they could be found. It may be, in fact, that there is more life beneath the Earth's surface than above it. This might explain the organic “markers” that are often cited to support the argument that oil is of biotic origin.

[Flavius]

Ahh gives tear to ones eye

Methane co2 water oil one massive green renewable energy cycle

[Mrs. Don-o]

I read somewhere that the Russians drilled wells near Baku (is that right?) that were tapped out in the 1920’s. Filling up with oil again. They think it’s from abiotic sources.

[AFreeBird]

What I would like to know is; if methane and other hydrocarbons are formed from decayed plant and animal matter - how they heck does Saturn’s moon Titan come to have literal oceans of liquified methane? Hell, according to one report I read, it even rains methane!

[abclily]

I’ve read that the same thing has happened here in the U.S.

[anymouse]

I had a discussion with a friend, who is a Geophysisist for Phillips Petroleum, regarding the possibility that petroleum deposits where not organic in origin, thus a much larger and renewable resource. He was open to the possibility, but had not seen enough evidence to support the theory. The context of our discussion was that if petroleum did not have to come from an organic source, could their possibly be petroleum resources on other planets, like Mars. If petroleum deposits could be found, recovered and refined on Mars, it makes Mars a much easier place to colonize, since you don’t have to take all your return trip fuel with you from Earth. Imagine having the gas station franchise there. ;)

[FR_addict]

Thanks for posting.

[muawiyah]

The Grand Canyon used to have 6 mile high mountains on top of it.

Earth's surface does move eh!

[old curmudgeon]

That might explain a few dinosaurs being deep in the earth, but enough of them and plant life all over he entire world to create the world oil supply?

Oil has been found on almost every continent and in every ocean in the world

Not to argue the process, but to ask a question.

[Nuc1]

Oh, come on. Rosie O’Donnell herself will tell you there’s no way carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen can turn into gas and oil.

This from the woman that thinks fire can't melt steel.

[R W Reactionairy]

have heard this before from oilmen, and it makes sense. It never did make sense to me, a non-oilperson and certainly not a chemist or biologist, that all oil came from multi-million-year-old organic matters ‘sandwiched’ between rock.

How could that happen? The rock would have to form, and that would takes thousands of years, and the organic matter didn’t rot away and disappear in those thousands of years?

By the time the rock formed any organic matter would have been long gone.It also means that oil is continually being made, or generated."

Then why didn't coal "rot away"?

I strongly suspect that some of the of the natural gas [methane] produced commercially did result from abiotic processes. It seems less likely with oil, but possible. What is wildly improbable is that there is an abiotic mechanism that is recharging reservoirs fast enough to make a difference to anyone living, their children, grandchildren etc.

There may be some very deep natural gas deposits [more than 30,000 feet.] If they exist, in order to be commercial, they would need extremely large and productive reservoirs and the costs would still be high. Not likely ... but again possible.

Oil OTOH just isn't found much below 15,000 - 17,000 feet [unlike natural gas.] as the normal heat increase with depth [the geothermal gradient] results in oil cooking down to simpler molecules. Go as deep as you like [and they have for natural gas] but it is almost impossible to find oil by going ultra deep.

[EscondidoSurfer]

The biotic oil theory was needed because no one can explain how a flaming ball of fire could cool down and still contain carbon in the form of oil and gas. It is a necessary theory if you do not believe in a created earth. Perhaps God decided to add oil and gas to facilitate plate tectonics. In any case, the fossil fuel theory evokes scarcity. However, proven reserves keep growing the more that they look. Abiotic oil does not need a theory of origin. Only those who cannot believe that God created this earth perfectly formed need such a theory.

[R W Reactionairy]

Not dinosaurs. Algae. Probably growing in very shallow water or at least in the top few feet of water. For what it is worth, the big offshore Brazilian oil discoveries are below a very thick layer of salt which probably got there through evaporation, in 5 to 7,000 feet of water and 15 to 17,000 feet below the seabed. Who says all the easy oil has been found? -- sarcasm off --

Very interesting research on algae. By weight some types can be 40+ percent oil. If there is a very long term future for biofuels for internal combustion engines, bio diesel form algae might be the ticket. Time will tell.

[R W Reactionairy]

"Where and when did this come from and how is it supported? It’s what I grew up hearing but it seems to make little sense."

Shales and other organic rich sedimentary rocks are the source rocks. The "oil shales" found in Wyoming, Colorado and Utah don't contain "oil" but "kerogen", a material that with time and heat can become oil. These deposits are basically the intermediate step on the way to becoming free oil. With enough time and enough heat, suitable reservoir rock, a trap in the reservoir with a good seal there might be oil hell of an oilfield in the making ... but only on a geologic timescale.

[bert]

......Oil Without Dinosaurs ?......

That is a canard. The bio mass from which methane was derived is plant matter. The new thought one does not preclude the old.

[R W Reactionairy]

This could explain why oil is present when old wells are reopened?"It could, but the more likely explanation is illustrated by the USS Arizona. Oil is still bubbling to the surface after 68 years and no new oil is being created there. In an oilfield, only a fraction of the original oil in place is produced as it becomes uneconomic to produce at very low volumes and generally well productivity is highest when the well is brand new.

If you open up an old "cased hole" that was a producer, you will often find the casing is charged up with oil as oil [like the fuel oil in the Arizona] is lighter than water and will work its way upward over time. During the price spike last year and continuing on to the present, it became profitable to skim off this oil from certain cased holes. For a 5,000 foot well, the recovery could be 30 or 50 barrels -- using a rather inexpensive and easily transportable pump designed for this purpose. Been there, done that, but unless the well has additional potential, you would never set a regular down hole pump for that sort of recovery potential.