P-wave Velocity Monitoring during the Dissociation of Methane Hydrate Bearing Sand by using Giant Pressure Cell

As the final goal of visualization of the dissociation front of methane hydrate in the sand layer, we are proceeding with a program of P-wave tomography monitoring. We describe a monitoring of the elastic wave propagation in the methane hydrate-bearing sand artificially formed in a giant pressure cell. First, we conducted a preliminary experiment to check the performance of the measurement system. In the stage of the methane hydrate generation, the P-wave velocity was estimated about 3000 m/s. In the dissociation stage, the travel time delay was not observed, but also the signal decreasing was observed with the dissociation.