Structure Analyses of Artificial Methane Hydrate Sediments by Microfocus X-ray Computed Tomography

Abstract

The structure of natural gas hydrate sediments was characterized by microfocus X-ray computed tomography (CT). The obtained two-dimensional (2-D) and three-dimensional (3-D) images clearly showed the spatial distribution of the free-gas spaces, sand particles, and hydrates or ices. The estimated porosity from the X-ray CT data was consistent with the value that was obtained from the sample mass and volume. These results indicate that microfocus X-ray CT can be very useful for researching natural samples of hydrate sediments.