Underground Methane Gas Invades Sediment (2 of 2) (VIDEO)

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering

Caption

This video shows underground methane gas invading fine-grain sediment (shown in yellow) by creating a fracture. Blue circles represent pore spaces where the gas has invaded. The maroon lines indicate compressive forces between sediment grains. The video shows that the network of compressive forces changes drastically with the evolution of the fracture. The green lines indicate tension between grains, caused by capillary forces that hold the grains together. The network of tension forces also changes with time, as the gas invades the sediment.

Credit

Ruben Juanes, MIT

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