Estimation of the methane flux from mud volcanoes along Chishan Fault,southwestern Taiwan |
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| Authors: | Hung-Cheng Chang Quo-Cheng Sung Lei Chen |
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| Institution: | (1) Institute of Geophysics, National Central University, No. 300, Jhongda Rd., Jung-Li, Taoyuan, 320, Taiwan, ROC;(2) Institute of Geoinformatics and Disaster Reduction Technology, Ching Yun University, No. 229, Chien-Hsin Rd., Jung-Li, Taoyuan, 320, Taiwan, ROC;(3) Shryeu Junior High School, No. 217, Citang Rd., Rueifang, Taipei, 224, Taiwan, ROC;(4) Institute of Geography, National Kaohsiung Normal University, No. 116, Heping 1st Rd., Lingya District, Kaohsiung City, 802, Taiwan, ROC; |
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| Abstract: | Because of the increasing public awareness of the greenhouse effect, geological emissions of methane (GEM) have gained more
attention. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change included GEM in the natural sources of methane category in the Fourth
Assessment Report in 2007. The methane flux from mud volcanoes (MVs) is the second leading source within GEM. However, given
that gas flux from MVs has been measured directly only in Sicily and Azerbaijan, the global methane estimation is still a
conservative assumption based on limited data. The behavior of MV activities is seldom reported. This study attempts to estimate
annual methane emissions through MVs by using a video recorder to record MV activities along the Chishan Fault and determining
the bubble size and flux rate of each MV. Observation results, after a 1 year observation period, indicate that the annual
emissions of the 19 MVs along the Chishan Fault are 0.1–0.2% of the global methane flux from MVs, highlighting that the methane
emission from these MVs should not be neglected. In addition, the continuous monitoring of a particular MV disclosed periodic
characteristics of MV activities. These results manifest the spatial and temporal variations of MV activities along the Chishan
Fault. The spatial variations are related to the extensional kinematics of the Chishan fault, while the temporal variation
relates to the earth-tide-related MV activities. The estimated annual methane emissions from the study are far more than those
of previous studies and are still considered conservative. Results of this study may provide valuable information for researchers
attempting to estimate the quantity of GEM. |
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