Methane Reservoir

Methane reservoirs on Earth are mainly found in^[1]

Oil and gas reservoirs as natural gas
Coalbeds
the seabed and the Arctic and other permafrost regions as methane clathrate
the atmosphere
decaying organic material^[2]

with the exact distribution so far determined by the methane cycle/carbon cycle.

Methane as the main ingredient of natural gas and as an extractable fossil fuel-energy resource has limited if significant reserves. Russia , Iran, and Qatar are topping the list with together 105.6 trillion cubic metres (3.73×10^¹⁵ cu ft), nearly half the world's proven reserves. Methane from gas fields is an important factor in the world energy production and consumption. Methane clathrate is a potential future energy source, if it doesn't escape to the atmosphere before extraction because of global warming. In the atmosphere, it is not only unusable, but also a potent greenhouse gas, further accelerating the current climate change.^[3] But even conventional reservoirs are leaking methane (together with other gases like carbon dioxide) especially downstream the processing line.^[4]

References

↑ "Global methane reservoirs, fluxes, and turnover times". https://www.ess.uci.edu/~reeburgh/fig9.html.
↑ Keane, Rose (2016-09-08). "Bubbling Up: Methane from Reservoirs Presents Climate Change Challenge". https://blog.epa.gov/2016/09/08/bubbling-up-methane-from-reservoirs-presents-climate-change-challenge/.
↑ "Climate change and methane hydrates « World Ocean Review". https://worldoceanreview.com/en/wor-1/ocean-chemistry/climate-change-and-methane-hydrates/.
↑ "Reservoir Emissions". https://www.internationalrivers.org/campaigns/reservoir-emissions.

Methane Reservoir

References

See also