Definition
Asphalt volcanism is a type of hydrocarbon seepage associated with submarine mounds found in the Gulf of Mexico and the Santa Barbara Basin. The term asphalt volcanism was introduced because of the lavalike appearance of the asphalt flows and several other indications, which resemble magmatic eruptions.
Asphalt seepage versus asphalt volcanism
Although asphalt deposits have been described from several places of the ocean floor, the term asphalt volcanism has been introduced as a novel type of hydrocarbon seepage by MacDonald et al. (2004) after an area of approximately 1 km2solidified asphalt was found on top of one of the Campeche Knolls in the southern Gulf of Mexico. The knoll was subsequently named Chapopote which is the Aztec word for tar. Those knolls in the Gulf of Mexico are clearly associated with salt tectonism which controls the development of hydrocarbon reservoirs and faults that allow oil and gas to escape at the seafloor. Guided by satellite data that showed...
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Bibliography
Brüning, M., Sahling, H., MacDonald, I. R., Ding, F., and Bohrmann, G., 2010. Origin, distribution, and alteration of asphalts at the Chapopote Knoll, Southern Gulf of Mexico. Marine and Petroleum Geology, 27(5), 1093–1106, doi:10.1016/j.marpetgeo.2009.09.005.
Hovland, M., MacDonald, I. R., Rueslatten, H., Johnsen, H. K., Naehr, T., and Bohrmann, G., 2005. Chapopote asphalt volcano may have been generated by supercritical water. EOS, Transactions, 86(42), 397–402, doi:10.1029/2005EO420002.
MacDonald, I. R., Bohrmann, G., Escobar, E., Abegg, F., Blanchon, P., Blinova, V. N., Brueckmann, W., Drews, M., Eisenhauer, A., Han, X., Heeschen, K. U., Meier, F., Mortera, C., Naehr, T., Orcutt, B., Bernard, B., Brooks, J., and de Farágo, M., 2004. Asphalt volcanism and chemosynthetic life, Campeche Knolls, Gulf of Mexico. Science, 304(5673), 999–1002, doi:10.1126/science.1097154.
Schubotz, F., Lipp, J. S., Elvert, M., Kasten, S., Mollar, X. P., Zabel, M., Bohrmann, G., and Hinrichs, K. U., 2011. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 75(16), 4377–4398, doi:10.1016/j.gca.2011.05.025.
Valentine, D. L., Reddy, C. M., Farwell, C., Hill, T. M., Pizzarro, O., Yoerger, D. R., Camilli, R., Nelson, R. K., Peacock, E. E., Bagby, S. C., Clarke, B. A., Roman, C. N., and Soloway, M., 2010. Asphalt volcanoes as a potential source of methane to late Pleistocene coastal waters. Nature Geosciences, 3, 345–348, doi:10.1038/NGEO848.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2016 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
About this entry
Cite this entry
Bohrmann, G. (2016). Asphalt Volcanism. In: Harff, J., Meschede, M., Petersen, S., Thiede, J. (eds) Encyclopedia of Marine Geosciences. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6238-1_1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6238-1_1
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-94-007-6237-4
Online ISBN: 978-94-007-6238-1
eBook Packages: Earth and Environmental ScienceReference Module Physical and Materials ScienceReference Module Earth and Environmental Sciences