AGH University of Science and Technology, Faculty of Drilling, Oil and Gas, al. Mickiewicza 30, 30-059 Krakow, Poland.
AGH University of Science and Technology, Faculty of Drilling, Oil and Gas, al. Mickiewicza 30, 30-059 Krakow, Poland.
Sci Total Environ. 2021 Jul 20;779:146385. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.146385. Epub 2021 Mar 10.
Methane observed in soil atmosphere above active and abandoned bituminous coal mines has a thermogenic (coalbed) and/or microbial (produced by anaerobic bacteria or resulted from in situ coal biodegradation) origin or it may be a mixture of gases generated from various sources. Identification of the origin of methane may support or refute the thesis on the uncontrolled migration of mine gases in rock formations followed by their emission to the atmosphere at coal extraction sites. Surface geochemical surveys were carried out in the vicinity of the decommissioned mine shafts at the Murcki-Staszic Coal Mine, located in the Upper Silesian Coal Basin (southern Poland). Over a 3-month period, measurements were carried out cyclically at 2 locations. Totally, 43 fixed geochemical probes were installed in the area of the Murcki II "Stanisław" Shaft, in which measurements were carried out in six sessions. Next 29 probes were installed in the area of the Staszic III Shaft, where measurements were taken twice. Each measurement included concentrations of 5 components (methane, non-methane volatile organic compounds, total hydrocarbons, carbon dioxide and oxygen), which provided a total number of 1405 individual analytical determinations. For measurements, portable EcoProbe 5 instrument was used. The stable carbon isotope composition of methane and carbon dioxide was analyzed in selected 10 samples. The isotopic composition of hydrogen in methane was also measured in one sample. The comparative material consisted of eight samples of soil gases and two samples of mine gases, which were used as reference 'soil' gases. The isotopic analyses were conducted using a mass spectrometry method. Based on the results of our analyses, it is stated that both the Murcki II "Stanisław" and the Staszic III shafts were properly decommissioned. The successful sealing of mine shafts prevented mine gases from migration through the shaft into the atmosphere. However, at a single geochemical probe located more than 100 m from the former shaft center, methane concentration in soil gases reached over 1 vol%. This confirms the general observation that mine gas migrates from coal seams and/or gobs through crushed rocks into the atmosphere. The stable carbon isotope analysis of methane and carbon dioxide as well as stable hydrogen isotope analysis of methane suggest that methane in the soil atmosphere is of thermogenic origin with minor contribution of microbial component.
在活跃和废弃的烟煤矿上方土壤大气中观测到的甲烷具有热成因（煤床）和/或微生物成因（由厌氧菌产生或源于原地煤生物降解），或者可能是来自各种来源的气体混合物。甲烷的起源识别可以支持或反驳关于未经控制的矿山气体在岩石地层中的迁移，然后在煤炭开采地点排放到大气中的论点。
在位于波兰南部上西里西亚煤盆地的 Murcki-Staszic 煤矿废弃的矿井附近进行了地面地球化学调查。在 3 个月的时间里，在两个地点周期性地进行了测量。总共在 Murcki II "Stanisław" 竖井区域安装了 43 个固定地球化学探头，在六个阶段进行了测量。接下来在 Staszic III 竖井区域安装了 29 个探头，进行了两次测量。每次测量都包括 5 种成分（甲烷、非甲烷挥发性有机化合物、总碳氢化合物、二氧化碳和氧气）的浓度，总共进行了 1405 次单独的分析测定。测量使用了便携式 EcoProbe 5 仪器。对选定的 10 个样本中的甲烷和二氧化碳的稳定碳同位素组成进行了分析。还在一个样本中测量了甲烷中的氢同位素组成。比较材料由 8 个土壤气体样本和 2 个矿山气体样本组成，用作参考“土壤”气体。同位素分析使用质谱法进行。
基于我们的分析结果，可以表明 Murcki II "Stanisław" 和 Staszic III 竖井都已被妥善废弃。竖井的成功密封阻止了矿山气体通过竖井迁移到大气中。然而，在距离前竖井中心超过 100 米的单个地球化学探头处，土壤气体中的甲烷浓度达到了 1 以上。这证实了一个普遍的观察结果，即矿山气体从煤层和/或煤块通过碎岩石迁移到大气中。甲烷和二氧化碳的稳定碳同位素分析以及甲烷的稳定氢同位素分析表明，土壤大气中的甲烷具有热成因，微生物成分的贡献较小。
