Exploration of White Hydrogen: Drawing Global Analogy to Unveil the Potential of the Andaman Basin's Sea Floor Spreading Center

Abstract

Hydrogen is increasingly recognized as a critical element in the global energy transition, offering a path to decarbonize power generation, industry, and transportation. While green and blue hydrogen dominate current production strategies, natural hydrogen—commonly termed white hydrogen—remains largely underexplored despite its potential as a continuous, low-cost, and carbon-neutral energy resource. White hydrogen forms endogenously through geological processes, including serpentinization of ultramafic rocks, mantle-derived reactions, radiolysis, and organic matter decomposition. Global occurrences in cratonic shields, ophiolites, intracratonic basins, and mid-ocean ridges demonstrate the widespread yet underutilized nature of this resource. This study investigates the Andaman Basin, a tectonically active seafloor spreading center, as a prospective frontier for white hydrogen exploration. Integrating geological and seismic observations with the hydrogen system model, I evaluate the mechanisms controlling hydrogen generation, migration, and accumulation. Seismic data reveal structural and stratigraphic features conducive to serpentinization-driven hydrogen generation, fault-controlled migration pathways, and potential entrapment beneath marine shales. The study further identifies complementary targets in the western Andaman subduction zone. A strategic exploration framework combining play- and prospect-level investigations—including geophysical surveys, soil gas sampling, exploratory drilling, and laboratory analyses—is proposed to systematically delineate potential accumulations. The findings underline the scientific and economic promise of white hydrogen in the Andaman Basin, offering insights for sustainable energy development and informing global analogs in hydrogen exploration.