PROSPECTS FOR EXPLORING NATURAL HYDROGEN DEPOSITS IN NORTHEAST RUSSIA: THE 3-DV REFERENCE PROFILE

The use of hydrogen as an environmentally benign energy carrier is recognized by many countries, including Russia. Consequently, the challenge of exploring for natural hydrogen accumulations, which form through natural processes in the Earth’s subsurface, is both highly relevant and scientifically significant. The current absence of a systematic classification of diagnostic indicators for hydrogen potential, which would account for the specific mechanisms of generation and accumulation in various geological and tectonic settings, highlights the need for novel exploration strategies. These strategies necessitate an integrated approach, combining geological, geophysical, and geochemical methods with advanced data processing techniques. Over the past two decades, such diverse datasets have been acquired along reference geological and geophysical profiles established by the Federal Agency for Subsoil Use. These profiles traverse the heterogeneous terranes of northeastern Eurasia. One such transect is the 3-DV reference profile (from the Skovorodino village to Shelikhov Bay), extending approximately 2,900 km across key structural elements of Central Asian geodynamics: the Eurasian, Amurian, and Okhotsk Sea lithospheric plates. In this study, we analyze the distribution of hydrogen and other deep-seated gases accumulated in the subsoil layer along the southern segment of the 3-DV profile. Our objective is threefold: (1) to delineate zones exhibiting anomalous gas concentrations; (2) to investigate the deep structural features (down to the upper mantle) of these zones; (3) to establish a suite of diagnostic criteria for assessing the hydrogen potential of the territories investigated.