A variety of hydrocarbons, C, - C,,, have been found in volcanic gases (fumarolic) and in geothermal waters and gases. The hydrocarbons are thought to have come from products of pyrolysis of kerogen in sedimentary rocks or they could be fed into the geothermal system by the recharging waters which may contain dissolved hydrocarbons or hydrocarbons extracted by the waters from the rocks. In the hot geothermal zone, 300?+ C, many of these hydrocarbons are in their critical state. It is thought that they move upwards due to buoyancy and flux up with the upflowing geothermal fluids in the upflow zones together with the magmatic gases. Permeability which could be provided by faults, fissures, mini and micro fractures are thought to provide pathways for the upward flux. A sensitive technique (Petrex) utilizing passive integrative adsorption of the hydrocarbons in soil gas on activated charcoal followed by desorption and analysis of the hydrocarbons by direct introduction mass spectrometry allows mapping of the anomalous areas. Surveys for geothermal resources conducted in Japan and in Indonesia show that the hydrocarbon anomaly occur over known fields and over areas strongly suspected of geothermal potential. The hydrocarbons found and identified were n-paraffins (C,-C,) and aromatics (C7-C8). Detection of permeable, i.e. active or open faults, parts of older faults which have been reactivated, e.g. by younger intersecting faults, and the area surrounding these faulted and permeable region is possible. The mechanism leading to the appearance of the hydrocarbon in the soil gas over upflow zones of the geothermal reservoir is proposed. The paraffins seems to be better pathfinders for the location of upflows than the aromatics. However the aromatics may, under certain circumstances, give better indications of the direction of the outflow of the geothermal system. It is thought that an upflow zone can be defined when conditions exist where the recharging waters containing the hydrocarbons feed into the geothermal kitchen. The existence of open and active faults, fissures, mini and micro fractures allow sufficient permeability for the gases to flux up and express themselves at the surface as hydrocarbon anomaly in the soil gas. When any of the requirements is absent, i.e. in the absence ofthe recharging waters, hydrocarbons, temperature, or permeability, no anomaly can be expected. It assumes a dynamic convective system, i.e. recharging waters, upflow and outflow. The anomalies however can define to a certain extent, regions of geothermal upflow, buoyant transport of gases, and frequently down-gradient of cooling waters.

Press the Back button in your browser, or search again.

Copyright 1996, Stanford Geothermal Program: Readers who download papers from this site should honor the copyright of the original authors and may not copy or distribute the work further without the permission of the original publisher.