Oceanic gas hydrates have been measured near the seafloor for the first time using a seagoing Raman spectrometer at Hydrate Ridge, Oregon, where extensive layers of hydrates have been found to occur near the seafloor. All of the hydrates analyzed were liberated from the upper meter of the sediment column near active gas venting sites in water depths of 770– 780 m. Hydrate properties, such as st...

In this article, the effect of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) as an anionic surfactant on the thermodynamics, formation rate, formation kinetic, critical micellar concentration (CMC) and stability of methane hydrate was studied. A CMC of SDS and water solution for methane hydrate formation conditions in a batch process was measured at 450 ppm, where CMC was determined by hydrate induction time. I...

We present an experimental study on the formation and dissociation characteristics of carbon dioxide (CO2) gas hydrates using Raman spectroscopy. The CO2 hydrates were formed from sodium chloride/water solutions with salinities of 0-10 wt %, which were pressurized with liquid CO2 in a stirred vessel at 6 MPa and a subcooling of 9.5 K. The formation of the CO2 hydrate resulted in a hydrate gel w...

Seismic analyses of methane hydrate data from the Blake Outer Ridge indicate high Pwave velocity and anomalously low S-wave velocity in sediments containing methane hydrates. In an attempt to explain this observed P-wave and S-wave velocity structure at the transition from gas to hydrates, the effect of different hydrate models on elastic moduli and velocities are explored. After construction o...

Long offsets and subsea tie-backs are becoming attractive scenarios for exploration and production of offshore hydrocarbon resources. Flow assurance associated with these field development scenarios is critical. As offshore oil and gas production pushes into deeper water, the risk of hydrate plugging of pipelines and flowlines continues to grow, as does the cost of remediating any such plugs. C...

A number of laboratory experiments have investigated the rates and mechanisms of hydrate formation in coarse-grain porous media. They have shown the importance of initial water saturation and salinity on forming methane hydrates in mostly excess gas systems. Many of these experiments were conducted in a sample holder fitted within a MRI instrument that allowed for a unique method of monitoring ...

Direct measurements of the dissociation behaviors of pure methane and ethane hydrates trapped in sintered tetrahydrofuran hydrate through a temperature ramping method showed that the tetrahydrofuran hydrate controls dissociation of the gas hydrates under thermodynamic instability at temperatures above the melting point of ice.

Gas clathrate hydrates were first identified in 1810 by Sir Humphrey Davy. However, it is believed that other scientists, including Priestley, may have observed their existence before this date. They are solid crystalline inclusion compounds consisting of polyhedral water cavities which enclathrate small gas molecules. Natural gas hydrates are important industrially because the occurrence of th...