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Seismic evidence and geological distinctiveness related to gas

hydrates in Mexico
FRANCISCO J. ROCHA-LEGORRETA, Instituto Mexicano del Petroleo
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R esearch for determining the existence of natural gas

hydrates in sediments can range from exploring the sea-
oor to detect structures associated with hydrate formation to
special seismic processing and interpretation.
When only seismic data are available, reection anomalies
and direct hydrocarbon indicators can help in the evaluation
of this resource.
Gas hydrates are a manifestation of natural gas that typi-
cally occurs under low temperature and high pressure, either
on land with permanently frozen soils or underwater at depths
greater than 500 m in continental shelves.
Gas hydrates are characterized by a kind of chemical
compound called clathrates, which consist of a network of
unstable molecules, characterized by open cavities. The guest
molecule is trapped by the clathrate, and together they can
form a solid ice-like structure. These structures form dierent
arrangements, one of which is often methane. Decomposi-
tion of 1 m3 of methane hydrate produces 164 m3 of meth-
ane gas and 0.8 m3 of water. Consequently, gas hydrates may
contain enormous amounts of carbon, more than double that
of the worlds combined coal and conventional oil and gas
reserves. This has led several countries, including Mexico, to
conduct research and exploration to understand the behavior
of hydrates, identify accumulations, and develop methods of
exploitation.
This article describes some signicant ndings from gas-
hydrate research on the Mexican side of the Gulf of Mexico.
Prospecting
Seismic surveys can detect gas hydrates via anomalies called
bottom-simulating reectors (BSR). They are characterized
by their large amplitude and reversed polarity compared with
the sea-oor reection. Reected seismic waves are produced
in the layer of gas immediately below the zone of gas-hydrate
deposits. BSRs are roughly parallel to the topography of the
sea oor and produce a similar reection.
BSRs occur several hundred meters below the sea oor
and indicate the limit of the lower boundary of the stability
zone of hydrates; the upper boundary is the sea oor. The
sediments conning the hydrates represented by the BSR are
in eect a seal that prevents part of the gas from escaping to
upper layers. Tomography, AVO, and waveform inversion are
also useful for quantication of deposits of hydrates and as-
sociated gas.
Resistivity anomalies help identify gas hydrates in areas
where seismic data show no indication of their presence. The
presence of hydrates above the BSR increases the resistivity or
the seismic velocity, while a small amount of free gas under
the zone of sediments with hydrates can reduce seismic veloci-
ties considerably.
For the determination of probable accumulations and geo-
Figure 1. Sea-oor topography across the seismic volume in the study
area. Note the main parallel structures (A, B, C, D) and a circular
feature interpreted as an expulsion crater.
physical and geological evidence of gas hydrates, we used 3D
poststack seismic data without postprocessing or any method
that could modify the stacked amplitudes.
Occurrence and distribution in Mexico
Mexicos gas-hydrate research program is composed of two
stages: the rst will identify the occurrence and extent of the
BSR anomalies, and the second will determine the probable
energy resource contained by the hydrates (with consideration
given to the geological hazards associated with deepwater op-
erations). This paper describes advances in the rst phase.
Geologic setting. The study area, in the Gulf of Mexico Ba-
sin, involves a sequence of clastic sediments from the Upper
Pleistocene and Pliocene that covers a long block correspond-
ing to a rollover structure limited by synthetic faults merging
in a deep regional listric system. No more geological informa-
tion is available, and only seismic data are used in this re-
search. The seismic data cover 4100 km2.
The sea oor map extracted from the seismic made it pos-
sible to identify parallel structural highs capable of storing
these resources (Figure 1). We believe this is a possible con-
tinuation of structural elements identied by the USGS in
the northern Gulf of Mexico that could maintain continuity
in these southern latitudes with the same conditions, since
most northern Gulf of Mexico hydrates deposits are in an area
below the 500 m isobaths. The seismic volume is between the
800 and 2000 m isobaths.
Examples of BSR. A BSR is on the seismic lines because of
the contrast in velocity between two materials with dierent
densities, cemented sediments with gas hydrates and storage,
with high acoustic impedance. Velocity is lower below this
area due to water-lled pores in the underlying material that

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of gas hydrates occurred

after the sedimentation
of the rocks that sur-
round it. Note the boost
up on the right, which
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is associated with gas mi-

grated from deeper layers
that deforms this whole
package of rocks and that
also supplies material key
to the formation of gas
hydrates at this perim-
eter.
Blanking. A signi-
cant feature in geom-
etries associated with gas
hydrates is blankinga
marked decrease in seis-
mic amplitudes above a
Figure 2. BSR evidence from reverse polarity of the reectors. The BSR runs across the prole parallel to the BSR. Some authors pro-
sea-oor reector. pose that this decrease
in amplitudes is due to a
reduction in impedance
contrast across sedimen-
tary interfaces due to
presence of hydrates and
cementation of the strata.
The reduction in imped-
ance contrasts causes
acoustic homogeniza-
tion of strata that results
in lesser or weaker reec-
tions.
Figure 4 shows an ex-
ample. The area between
the sea oor reector and
the BSR along most of
the proles in this seismic
volume is clear due to
the change in polarity. A
strong reector indicates
possible hydrate deposits,
and the 250-ms interval
Figure 3. BSR running parallel to the sea oor and crossing the stratication. Note, on the right, chaotic above this reector show
behavior that corresponds to a boost of gas from deeper accumulations (suggesting it is the source for the the typical reduction of
shallow gas) and a possible escape route to the surface.
amplitude, or blanking,
along the proles.
may also contain free gas trapped by the low permeability of Associated gas accumulations. Examination of dierent
the upper gas hydrates. The contrast of acoustic impedances be- segments of the seismic volume reveal geometries associated
tween the two areas produces a very strong reection, generally to possible free gas trapped below the BSR. So far it has not
parallel to the seabed, and consequently identied as a BSR. been possible to calculate the concentration of this accumu-
Compared to the ocean oor, this is a characteristic reverse-po- lation and this is a topic for future research. Figure 5 shows
larity reection due the decrease in seismic velocity (Figure 2). a mound associated with gas migrating from deeper strata
Identifying a BSR is very important because it represents the probably via a vertical fault system. A reection of reverse po-
lower limit of the gas-hydrates stability zone and the upper limit larity below the BSR may represent a gas-water contact that
of a zone of possible trapped gas. Figure 3 shows how this re- limits the free gas accumulation within the hydrate zone. On
ector crosses the stratigraphy, suggesting that the formation the top of the mound is an apparent open conduit where free

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above the BSR, possibly the

result of gas arriving from
lower levels. Figure 4 shows
a possible open conduit
on top of the folded struc-
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ture. This conduit is possi-

bly formed by gas released
through vertical faults.

Conclusions
The examples in this article
have signicant implica-
tions for exploration of gas
Figure 4. Example of reduction in amplitude or blanking between the sea-oor reection and the BSR. hydrates in Mexico. The
3D seismic data volume
provides indirect evidence
of the existence of sedi-
mentary material with gas
hydrates. This evidence is
inferred from BSRs with
well-dened features. Seis-
mic strata show a polarity
reversal of the reection at
the top of the hydrate zone
compared to the top of the
underlying gas zone. The
existence of such struc-
tural elements as blank-
ing, expulsion craters, and
mounds associated with gas
ow conrm the evidence.
Future research is needed
to determine if seismic imag-
ing and pressure/tempera-
ture relations can establish
the gas or mixtures of gases
(methane, ethane, etc.) that
are related to these hydrates.
Key petrophysical pa-
rameters are needed to per-
form estimations of in-place
volume of free gas and hy-
drates. Critical parameters
that need to be estimated
are porosity, gas saturation,
Figure 5. Reection of apparent free gas with gas-water contact, where the reection at the base of the free- and hydrate saturation.
gas interval is opposite polarity to the reection at the top of the free-gas interval.
Suggested reading. Energy
gas may be released. density of deepwater gas hydrate by Hardage (Search and Dis-
Geological structures associated with gas hydrates. Struc- covery article 40241, 2007). Economic Geology of Natural Gas
tures that indicate the occurrence of gas hydrate are craters Hydrate by Max et al. (Springer, 2006). Economic geology of
and mounds, the latter caused by the thrust behind the ow oshore gas hydrate accumulations and provinces by Milkov
of gas into the upper sediments (Figures 1, 5, and 6). Figure and Sassen (Marine and Petroleum Geology, 2001). Practical
6 shows an expulsion crater with a diameter of about 2 km at physical chemistry and empirical predictions of the methane hy-
a depth of about 250 m. A major tectonic event related to a drate stability by Peltzer and Brewer (in Natural Gas Hydrate
fault system appears to be the trigger that released free gas and in Oceanic and Permafrost Environments, Kluwer Academic
formed this expulsion crater. Figure 6 also shows a mound Publishers, 2000). Seaoor reectivityan important seismic

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Figure 6. Massive expulsion crater associated with the BSR to the right. Note the probable gas ow from deeper levels and, above the BSR, where
response from the gas pressure creates more deformation on the sedimentary layers.

property for interpreting uid/gas expulsion geology and the
presence of gas hydrate by Roberts et al. (TLE, 2006). Seis-
mic evidence for widespread possible gas hydrate horizons on
continental slopes and rises by Shipley et al. (AAPG Bulletin,
1979). Clathrate Hydrates of Natural Gases by Sloan and Koh
(CRC Press, 2007). Direct seismic indicators of gas hydrates in
the Walker Ridge and Green Canyon areas, deepwater Gulf of
Mexico by Wei-Huu et al. (TLE, 2007).
Acknowledgments: I thank PEMEX Exploracion y Produccion
for permission to publish this work. I am indebted to Marco
Vazquez-Garcia, geophysics manager, for access to seismic data and
bits of help along the way. Thanks to Bob Hardage (BEG) for his
comments. Support from the Instituto Mexicano Del Petroleo is
gratefully recognized.
Corresponding author: frocha@imp.mx

June 2009 The Leading Edge 717