Natural hydrogen production from serpentinized mantle rocks

Natural hydrogen production from serpentinized mantle rocks | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Natural hydrogen production from serpentinized mantle rocks Rodolfo Christiansen, Mohamed Sobh, Christian Ostertag-Henning, and 6 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7365343/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Mantle rocks undergoing serpentinization at upper-crustal levels can generate significant amounts of natural hydrogen. Although the potential for substantial hydrogen generation during fluid-rock reactions of these rocks is documented by lab experiments and occurrences of hydrogen-rich natural gas seeps, the exact production rates and the factors limiting production remain poorly understood. Here, we demonstrate that in two mantle rock systems with distinct compositions, the fertile lherzolites of the Western Pyrenees and the depleted harzburgites of Northern California, continuous fluid infiltration may sustain hydrogen generation, but only at rates of approximately 500 tonnes per year. Furthermore, by integrating three-dimensional geophysical inversion with a semi-coupled thermo-hydro-chemical model, we show that the main limiting factors controlling hydrogen yield are H₂ saturation in the fluid, porosity evolution at the reaction front, and reaction kinetics. The generation rates determined within the physico-chemical limits suggest that, although natural hydrogen from mantle rock serpentinization is a clean energy source, it may not be renewable on a large scale. Instead, its generation times for substantial accumulations more closely resemble those of fossil-type resources. Earth and environmental sciences/Solid Earth sciences/Geochemistry Earth and environmental sciences/Solid Earth sciences/Geophysics Earth and environmental sciences/Solid Earth sciences/Hydrogeology Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Supplementary Files Supplementary.docx Supplementary information SupplementaryData1Pyrenees.txt Numerical results from Pyrenees SupplementaryData2California.txt Numerical results from California Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7365343","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":502972233,"identity":"b9c494b2-b245-4ea6-ac01-4b2a0e7af6d8","order_by":0,"name":"Rodolfo Christiansen","email":"data:image/png;base64,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","orcid":"","institution":"LIAG Institute for Applied Geophysics","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Rodolfo","middleName":"","lastName":"Christiansen","suffix":""},{"id":502972234,"identity":"2e137815-0714-4698-9687-2a98b4fb4971","order_by":1,"name":"Mohamed Sobh","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"LIAG Institute for Applied Geophysics","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Mohamed","middleName":"","lastName":"Sobh","suffix":""},{"id":502972235,"identity":"bc1f5552-23fc-4106-acb6-ef6651bebb62","order_by":2,"name":"Christian Ostertag-Henning","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR)","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Christian","middleName":"","lastName":"Ostertag-Henning","suffix":""},{"id":502972236,"identity":"bd6e73f9-9756-4635-ada4-052833e39308","order_by":3,"name":"Guido Gianni","email":"","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9036-0621","institution":"German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ)-National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET)","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Guido","middleName":"","lastName":"Gianni","suffix":""},{"id":502972237,"identity":"346adecb-f7be-4036-b2dd-30ce208eff62","order_by":4,"name":"Nicolas Saspiturry","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Géosciences Montpellier, Université de Montpellier","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Nicolas","middleName":"","lastName":"Saspiturry","suffix":""},{"id":502972238,"identity":"bc6e1315-9bb5-4537-b7ee-4da1471e93ab","order_by":5,"name":"Sebastien Chevrot","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Observatoire Midi-Pyrénées","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Sebastien","middleName":"","lastName":"Chevrot","suffix":""},{"id":502972239,"identity":"82b7f6a0-18f0-4e8e-885b-63a597cfb78f","order_by":6,"name":"Victoria Langenheim","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"U.S. Geological Survey","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Victoria","middleName":"","lastName":"Langenheim","suffix":""},{"id":502972240,"identity":"f25be1ee-736b-4f91-80ce-e78fdb1ccca4","order_by":7,"name":"Javier Garcia-Pintado","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"MARUM - Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Javier","middleName":"","lastName":"Garcia-Pintado","suffix":""},{"id":502972241,"identity":"4be2667b-c375-4a72-98f1-b40d5dcbbe0f","order_by":8,"name":"Gerald Gabriel","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"LIAG Institute for Applied Geophysics","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Gerald","middleName":"","lastName":"Gabriel","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-08-13 13:16:17","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7365343/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7365343/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":89550427,"identity":"76f4f9f9-9201-4b88-817f-c933fdf99c3a","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-08-21 08:15:08","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":1579393,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7365343/v1_covered_665486d9-a8bb-479f-b49d-011af247e157.pdf"},{"id":89548365,"identity":"6649d3d4-3654-4ff8-bfeb-f952fed0982f","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-08-21 07:51:06","extension":"docx","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"supplement","size":86948,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"Supplementary information","description":"","filename":"Supplementary.docx","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7365343/v1/71a64cc53644a35c6082c1ef.docx"},{"id":89548366,"identity":"cb4330ae-d66c-45cc-ab6f-e27796a2eb06","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-08-21 07:51:06","extension":"txt","order_by":2,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"supplement","size":42675,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"Numerical results from Pyrenees","description":"","filename":"SupplementaryData1Pyrenees.txt","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7365343/v1/379414d36523b2e78782e99b.txt"},{"id":89548372,"identity":"1600ea04-63d1-413f-8c76-ee2d01d016a5","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-08-21 07:51:06","extension":"txt","order_by":3,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"supplement","size":43905,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"Numerical results from California","description":"","filename":"SupplementaryData2California.txt","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7365343/v1/4839745fa2e5ca21085d7e96.txt"}],"financialInterests":"There is \u003cb\u003eNO\u003c/b\u003e Competing Interest.","formattedTitle":"Natural hydrogen production from serpentinized mantle rocks","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":true,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"nature-portfolio","isNatureJournal":true,"hasQc":false,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"","title":"Nature Portfolio","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":false,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"ejp","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false},"keywords":"","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7365343/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7365343/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eMantle rocks undergoing serpentinization at upper-crustal levels can generate significant amounts of natural hydrogen. Although the potential for substantial hydrogen generation during fluid-rock reactions of these rocks is documented by lab experiments and occurrences of hydrogen-rich natural gas seeps, the exact production rates and the factors limiting production remain poorly understood. Here, we demonstrate that in two mantle rock systems with distinct compositions, the fertile lherzolites of the Western Pyrenees and the depleted harzburgites of Northern California, continuous fluid infiltration may sustain hydrogen generation, but only at rates of approximately 500 tonnes per year. Furthermore, by integrating three-dimensional geophysical inversion with a semi-coupled thermo-hydro-chemical model, we show that the main limiting factors controlling hydrogen yield are H₂ saturation in the fluid, porosity evolution at the reaction front, and reaction kinetics. The generation rates determined within the physico-chemical limits suggest that, although natural hydrogen from mantle rock serpentinization is a clean energy source, it may not be renewable on a large scale. Instead, its generation times for substantial accumulations more closely resemble those of fossil-type resources.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Natural hydrogen production from serpentinized mantle rocks","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-08-21 07:51:02","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7365343/v1","editorialEvents":[],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"nature-communications","isNatureJournal":true,"hasQc":false,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"NCOMMS","sideBox":"Learn more about [Nature Communications](http://www.nature.com/ncomms/)","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"https://mts-ncomms.nature.com/","title":"Nature Communications","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"ejp","reportingPortfolio":"Nature Communications","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"672afd3c-7e0c-4fce-87c2-3a475a4fe38b","owner":[],"postedDate":"August 21st, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"under-review","subjectAreas":[{"id":53430074,"name":"Earth and environmental sciences/Solid Earth sciences/Geochemistry"},{"id":53430075,"name":"Earth and environmental sciences/Solid Earth sciences/Geophysics"},{"id":53430076,"name":"Earth and environmental sciences/Solid Earth sciences/Hydrogeology"}],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-05-08T08:00:19+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2025-08-21 07:51:02","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-7365343","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-7365343","identity":"rs-7365343","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"8U1c8b4HqxoKbykW_rLl7","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}