I know they add the smell in propane and such. Is there ANY smell to natural gas staright from the ground? How about making the water taste bad?

 

Depends - some natural as smells and some doesnt. Depends on the composition. Oil and gas is often found with H2S (deadly hydrogen sulfide gas)....which does smell in lower concentrations.

Gas companies also put the "smell" in Natural Gas - the agent that makes it smell is Mercaptin. And NO you dont want to be the guy adding the smell to Natural Gas - trust me on that one.

 

what do you do for a living?

I add the stinky smell to natural gas.

 

I'm gonna guess its automated... Because Mercaptan is dangerous by itself. It can make people violently sick in amounts that are too high.

Believe it or not, Mercaptan is what makes your pee smell after you eat Asparagus. Funny stuff huh?

 

No, I dont do that...


But I used to work for a gas company.

 

Not quite...from Wikipedia:

Certain compounds in asparagus are metabolized giving urine a distinctive smell due to various sulfur-containing degradation products, including various thiols, thioesters, and ammonia.[19]

The volatile organic compounds responsible for the smell are identified as:[20][21]

* methanethiol,
* dimethyl sulfide,
* dimethyl disulfide,
* bis(methylthio)methane,
* dimethyl sulfoxide, and
* dimethyl sulfone.

Subjectively, the first two are the most pungent, while the last two (sulfur-oxidized) give a sweet aroma. A mixture of these compounds form a "reconstituted asparagus urine" odor.

This was first investigated in 1891 by Marceli Nencki, who attributed the smell to methanethiol.[22]

These compounds originate in the asparagus as asparagusic acid and its derivatives, as these are the only sulfur-containing compounds unique to asparagus. As these are more present in young asparagus, this accords with the observation that the smell is more pronounced after eating young asparagus.



mercaptan:

What is Mercaptan?

Natural gas in its native state is colorless and odorless. Mercaptan is the additive that is added to natural gas to make it easier to detect in case of a leak. The most important thing to know about mercaptan is that it stinks. Some people compare it to the smell of rotten eggs.

In a concentrated form, its smell is almost unbearable. And it takes only a few parts per million of mercaptan to give natural gas a smell. That is precisely why we add it to natural gas. If we did not add mercaptan, it would be hard for you to know that unlit natural gas was coming from your stove after you left the valve turned on. And leaks from furnaces and hot water heaters would be nearly impossible to detect without expensive equipment. So mercaptan's smell is a very valuable safety feature.

Mercaptans contain sulfur. That's what makes them smell. The kind we use blends well with natural gas and, in a gaseous state, has much the same properties as natural gas, so it will also rise and dissipate with natural gas.

There are other uses for mercaptans in industry, including jet fuel, pharmaceuticals and livestock feed additives. They are used in many chemical plants. Mercaptans are less corrosive and less toxic than similar sulfur compounds found naturally in rotten eggs, onions, garlic, skunks, and, of course, bad breath. In other word, forms of mercaptan can be found in things that smell.

 

Looks like the How to change a light bulb thread