Authigenic Pyrite Indicates Seafloor Methane Seepage

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  • (1. Key Laboratory of Submarine Geosciences and Prospecting Technology, College of Marine Geosciences, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266100, China; 2.Laboratory for Marine Geology, Qingdao Marine Science and Technology Center, Qingdao 266237, China)
ZHANG Qiying, Master student, research area includes marine sedimentology. E-mail: zhangqiying@stu.ouc.edu.cn

Online published: 2024-06-21

Supported by

Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 42276060); The Natural Science Foundation of Shandong Province (Grant No. ZR2021YQ26).

Abstract

Seafloor methane seepage is an important source of methane and affects the global carbon cycle and extreme environmental biogeochemical cycles. Therefore, it is of great scientific significance to identify modern and ancient seafloor methane seepage. During methane leakage activities, Sulfate-Driven Anaerobic Oxidation of Methane (SD-AOM) is commonly developed, which changes the geochemical characteristics of pore water and leads to the formation of authigenic minerals. Among them, authigenic pyrite is one of the typical authigenic minerals of SD-AOM and can be used as a good indicator for recording methane leakage activities. This paper summarizes the geochemical and morphological characteristics of SD-AOM-derived authigenic pyrite and evaluates its potential for tracing and reconstructing seabed (paleo- ) methane leakage activities. The results show that the sulfur and iron isotopes, as well as in-situ trace elements and isotopes of authigenic pyrite, can effectively identify the SD-AOM process. In addition, there are significant differences in the morphology and content of authigenic pyrite in sediments in methane leakage environments compared with normal marine sediments, highlighting the great potential of authigenic pyrite in tracing and reconstructing seabed (paleo- ) methane leakage events.

Cite this article

ZHANG Qiying, MIAO Xiaoming, CHANG Xin, KONG Fanxing, GU Yu, LIU Xiting . Authigenic Pyrite Indicates Seafloor Methane Seepage[J]. Advances in Earth Science, 0 : 1 . DOI: 10.11867/j.issn.1001-8166.2024.043.

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