A type of authigenic pyrites that fully fill or semi-fill the rock fractures of drillholes with gas hydrate anomalies are found in the Qilian Mountain permafrost; this type of pyrite is known as "fracture-filling" pyrite. The occurrence of "fracture-filling" pyrite has a certain similarity with that of the hydrate found in this region, and the pyrite is generally concentrated in the lower part of the hydrate layer or the hydrate anomaly layer. The morphology, trace elements, rare earth elements, and sulfur isotope analyses of samples from drillhole DK-6 indicate that the "fracture-filling" pyrites are dominated by cubic ones mainly aligned in a step-like fashion along the surfaces of rock fractures and are associated with a circular structure, lower Co/Ni and Sr/Ba, lower ?REE, higher LREE, significant Eu negative anomalies, and ? 34 SCDT positive bias. In terms of the pyrites' unique crystal morphology and geochemical characteristics and their relationship with the hydrate layers or abnormal layers, they are closely related with the accumulation system of the gas hydrate in the Qilian Mountain permafrost. As climate change is an important factor in affecting the stability of the gas hydrate, formation of fracture-filling pyrites is most likely closely related to the secondary change of the metastable gas hydrate under the regional climate warming. The distribution intensity of these pyrites indicates that when the gas hydrate stability zone(GHSZ) is narrowing, the hydrate decomposition at the bottom of the GHSZ is stronger than that at the top of the GHSZ, whereas the hydrate decomposition within the GHSZ is relatively weak. Thus, the zone between the shallowest and the deepest distribution of the fracture-filling pyrite recorded the largest possible original GHSZ.
The Shenhu gas hydrate drilling area is located in the central Baiyun sag, Zhu Ⅱ depression, Pearl River Mouth basin, northern South China Sea. The gas compositions contained in the hydrate-bearing zones is dominated by methane with content up to 99.89% and 99.91%. The carbon isotope of the methane (δ13C1 ) are 56.7‰ and 60.9‰, and its hydrogen isotope (δD) are 199‰ and 180‰, respectively, indicating the methane from the microbial reduction of CO2 . Based on the data of measured seafloor temperature and geothermal gradient, the gas formed hydrate reservoirs are from depths 24-1699 m below the seafloor, and main gas-generation zone is present at the depth interval of 416-1165 m. Gas-bearing zones include the Hanjiang Formation, Yuehai Formation, Wanshan Formation and Quaternary sediments. We infer that the microbial gas migrated laterally or vertically along faults (especially interlayer faults), slump structures, small-scale diapiric structures, regional sand beds and sedimentary boundaries to the hydrate stability zone, and formed natural gas hydrates in the upper Yuehai Formation and lower Wanshan Formation, probably with contribution of a little thermogenic gas from the deep sedments during this process.
