New Potential Gas Hydrate Sources by Analyzing its Suitability with the Criteria of Gas Hydrate Formation

Fossil fuels as the main energy resource will diminish if there is no discovery of energy alternatives. This challenges scientists and engineers to find new energy sources, which is known as unconventional energy. Gas hydrate, one of the unconventional energy which has good prospects, is like ice crystals consisting of water molecules. This research has been done to affirm that gas can be formed in several conditions such as in thermodynamically suitable environment, the presence of gas molecule source which fills the cavity in gas hydrates, and the presence of water molecules in the gas hydrate stability zone. There are several factors that prevent the formation of gas hydrates: methane or other hydrocarbon gases which dissolve in seawater, seawater salinity (high salinity causes gas hydrate to be more biodegradable), hot seawater eddies which can disrupt the stability zone of gas hydrate formation temperature, and the reduction of sulfate in gas hydrates that reduce the possibilities of its formation. Certain data sources like the regional geology and literature have been used in this research. The result based on geology data shows that South Sumatra basin has great potential of containing gas hydrates.