Influence of gravitational potential on the thermodynamic stability of pure and mixed clathrate hydrates

Clathrate hydrates are an ice-like material consisting of gas molecules confined within cavities in a crystalline water lattice. Phase equilibria of clathrate hydrates systems was described using the statistical mechanical theory of van der Waals and Platteeuw. This theory makes use of the fractional occupancy of cavities within the clathrate hydrate lattice in the determination of chemical equilibria. Classical density functional theory with intermolecular interactions restricted to the first hydration shell was employed to determine the fractional occupancy. In addition to the external field describing the gas-water interactions, the effect of a gravitational field was introduced. The results of the calculations show that although the gravitational potential term may be orders of magnitude smaller than the thermal kinetic energy of the gas species or the hydrogen-bond energy holding the clathrate lattice together, it can nevertheless influence the phase equilibrium of the clathrate hydrate system to some degree. The effect of the magnitudes of both the gravitational potential and the local gravitational field are considered too.     

Raman Spectroscopy of Nitrogen Clathrate Hydrates

在253 K和16 MPa的压力下,于实验室内合成了氮气水合物,用显微共焦拉曼光谱对其N-N和O-H键伸缩振动的光谱特征进行了研究．结果表明,氮气水合物中的N-N和O-H键的拉曼峰分别为2322.4和3092.1 cm^-1,与天然的空气水合物中的数据十分接近．另外,还测定了液氮和溶解于水中的氮分子中N-N键的拉曼峰值,分别为2326.6和2325.0 cm^-1．氮气笼型水合物分解的拉曼谱图表明,氮分子同时进入水合物的大笼和小笼中,但由于氮分子在大、小笼中的环境氛围十分接近,其拉曼位移相差不大,故拉曼谱图只能显示N-N键伸缩振动一个峰．     

水合物研制、结构与性能及其在能源环境中的应用

天然气水合物是与能源和环境相关的物质,可以进行甲烷等能源气体的存储和提取,也可以用于对二氧化碳等废气的封存.天然气水合物主要分为三种结构:sI, sII和sH,在本文中对其稳定性、水笼类型和大小以及可俘获气体进行了论述.中子衍射技术是研究水合物的重要手段之一,有着独特的优势.如中子的穿透性可以研究在高压状态下压力腔体内的大块样品;中子对于轻元素的敏感性可以很好地确定水合物当中的碳、氢、氧元素.通过中子衍射和非弹散射可以得到水合物中H/D原子的位置、各向异性振动因子、不同温度压力下的客体分子的水笼占据率、客体分子在水笼中的无序分布、原子核密度分布(通过最大熵方法);通过时间分辨中子,可以检测水合物形成及分解过程的热力学和动力学过程.而利用非弹中子可以得到气体分子平移和旋转振动模式以及分子的量子态转变.通过二氧化碳气体注入对天然气水合物的开采可以实现能源气体甲烷的开采和废气二氧化碳的水合物封存,在减小地质灾害和开采成本上有着独特的优势.     

Energy landscape of clathrate hydrates

Clathrate hydrates are nanoporous crystalline materials made of a network of hydrogen-bonded water molecules (forming host cages) that is stabilized by the presence of foreign (generally hydrophobic) guest molecules. The natural existence of large quantities of hydrocarbon hydrates in deep oceans and permafrost is certainly at the origin of numerous applications in the broad areas of energy and environmental sciences and technologies (e.g. gas storage). At a fundamental level, their nanostructuration confers on these materials specific properties (e.g. their ??glass-like?? thermal conductivity) for which the host-guest interactions play a key role. These interactions occur on broad timescale and thus require the use of multi-technique approach in which neutron scattering brings unvaluable information. This work reviews the dynamical properties of clathrate hydrates, ranging from intramolecular vibrations to Brownian relaxations; it illustrates the contribution of neutron scattering in the understanding of the underlying factors governing chemical-physics properties specific to these nanoporous systems.     

Tensile properties of structural I clathrate hydrates: Role of guest–host hydrogen bonding ability

Clathrate hydrates (CHs) are one of the most promising molecular structures in applications of gas capture and storage, and gas separations. Fundamental knowledge of mechanical characteristics of CHs is of crucial importance for assessing gas storage and separations at cold conditions, as well as understanding their stability and formation mechanisms. Here, the tensile mechanical properties of structural I CHs encapsulating a variety of guest species (CH₄, NH₃, H₂S, CH₂O, CH₃OH, and CH₃SH) that have different abilities to form hydrogen (H-) bonds with water molecule are explored by classical molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. All investigated CHs are structurally stable clathrate structures. Basic mechanical properties of CHs including tensile limit and Young’s modulus are dominated by the H-bonding ability of host–guest molecules and the guest molecular polarity. CHs containing small CH₄, CH₂O and H₂S guest molecules that possess weak H-bonding ability are mechanically robust clathrate structures and mechanically destabilized via brittle failure on the (1 0 1) plane. However, those entrapping CH₃SH, CH₃OH, and NH₃ that have strong H-bonding ability are mechanically weak molecular structures and mechanically destabilized through ductile failure as a result of gradual global dissociation of clathrate cages.     

Using clathrate hydrates for gas storage and gas-mixture separations: experimental and computational studies at multiple length scales

ABSTRACT

Clathrate hydrates have characteristic properties that render them attractive for a number of industrial applications. Of particular interest are the following two cases: (i) the incorporation of large amounts of gas molecules into the solid structure has resulted in considering hydrates as possible material for the storage/transportation of energy or environmental gases, and (ii) the selective incorporation of guest molecules into the solid structure has resulted in considering hydrates for gas-mixture separations. For the proper design of such industrial applications, it is essential to know accurately a number of thermodynamic, structural and transport properties. Such properties can either be measured experimentally or calculated at different scales that span the molecular scale-up to the continuum scale. By using clathrate hydrates as a particular case study, we demonstrate that performing studies at multiple length scales can be utilised in order to obtain properties that are essential to process design.     

Theoretical investigation of structures and compositions of double neon-methane clathrate hydrates,depending on gas phase composition and pressure

The region of existence of neon clathrate hydrates is an actual problem of hydrate chemistry. The current work presents theoretical study of the equilibrium formation conditions of pure neon clathrate hydrates and double clathrate hydrates of neon-methane mixture. The structures and properties of double clathrate hydrates were described within the scope of the previously developed molecular clathrate hydrate model that takes into account the influence of guest molecules on the host lattice, interaction of guest molecules between themselves, and the possibility of multiple filling of host lattice cages by guest molecules. The model makes it possible to find an equilibrium state and thermodynamic properties of clathrate hydrates at given values of p and T. In the present work, we considered the properties of double clathrate hydrates in the range of pressures from 0 to 4 kbar at 250 K. The results of modeling have shown that the mass fraction of neon in double clathrate hydrate of Ne and CH₄ mixture of cubic structure I (sI) can reach 26%, and 22.5% in double hydrate of cubic structure II (sII) even at a low methane concentration (1%) in gas phase, at high pressure. It is shown that in double clathrate hydrates of the Ne and CH₄ mixture at high pressures, phase transition sII-sI can occur.     

显微激光拉曼光谱测定甲烷水合物的水合指数

甲烷水合物是由甲烷气体分子与水分子在低温高压下形成的一种笼型结构化合物,广泛存在于海底陆架区和陆地冻土区,被认为是一种潜在的能源资源。在水合物的晶格中,水分子在氢键的作用下形成大小不同的笼子,甲烷分子可分别进入大笼(51262)和小笼(512)中。在自行研制的实验装置上,分别合成了一系列不同体系下的甲烷水合物,包括十二烷基硫酸钠(SDS)水溶液-甲烷体系、冰粉-甲烷体系以及冰粉-不同粒度砂-甲烷体系。对这些甲烷水合物样品进行了激光拉曼光谱分析,测定了其水合指数,笼占有率等结构参数。结果表明,这些甲烷水合物都为Ⅰ型结构,其水合指数和笼占有率基本不受沉积物粒径大小的影响。在3种体系中生成的水合物,大笼中甲烷分子基本占满,占有率大于97%;小笼中甲烷分子占有率为80%～86%,测得的水合指数为6.05～6.15。     

甲烷水合物的固体核磁共振碳谱与激光拉曼光谱研究

甲烷水合物（CH₄·nH₂O）是主要由甲烷和水分子构成的冰状笼型化合物,在自然界储量巨大．固体核磁共振（NMR）波谱和激光拉曼光谱是在分子水平分析甲烷水合物的重要手段．该文利用低温固体核磁共振碳谱（¹³C NMR）对合成的甲烷水合物结构进行了研究,分别使用¹³C交叉极化（¹³C CP）和高功率质子去偶（¹H HPDEC）2种脉冲程序采集甲烷水合物的¹³C NMR谱图,结合实验结果分析及理论推导可知,使用¹H HPDEC方法得到的¹³C NMR谱图信号更强,更利于定量分析;甲烷气体与冰粉合成的甲烷水合物为I型,其大笼和小笼占有率分别为0.988和0.824,水合数为6.07;甲烷气体与SH2站位沉积物和冰粉合成的甲烷水合物也为I型,其大笼和小笼占有率分别为0.987和0.887,水合数为5.98;SH2站位沉积物使合成的甲烷水合物的小笼占有率提高、水合数降低、水合物饱和度提高．激光拉曼光谱结果证实了上述结果的准确性．该文为甲烷水合物测试提供了重要的方法参考．     

显微激光拉曼光谱原位观测甲烷水合物生成与分解的微观过程

采用显微激光拉曼光谱技术对高压透明毛细管中甲烷水合物的生成与分解的微观过程进行了原位观测,初步探讨了甲烷水合物笼型结构的变化规律.结果表明,甲烷水合物在生成过程中,甲烷分子的拉曼峰(2 917 cm-1)逐渐分裂为两个峰(2 905和2 915 cm-1),表明溶解态甲烷分子从单一的化学环境进入了两个有差异的化学环境中...     

Guest-host coupling and anharmonicity in clathrate hydrates

We present a review of our work on the dynamics of clathrate hydrates (gas hydrates). The experimental results obtained with inelastic neutron scattering are compared with molecular-dynamics calculations. The vibrations of the guest molecules and their coupling to the cages is found to depend critically on the size, shape and electrostatic properties of the encaged guest. Atoms like xenon, that are large enough to fill the cages, show close-to-harmonic behaviour and couple strongly to the cage vibrations. Small atoms and molecules fully explore the anharmonicities of the potential within the cage, in particular at low frequencies and low temperatures. Their dynamic response is broad in energy and they couple weakly to the cage vibrations. The relevance of the microscopic dynamics for cage stability and the glass-like thermal conductivity is discussed. We equally place the observed dynamic peculiarities into the broader context of vibrations in disordered systems. Raman spectroscopic results on internal guest vibrations at high frequencies reflect also the influence of guest-host interactions and are discussed in the framework of the loose-cage tight-cage model.Received: 1 January 2003, Published online: 30 October 2003PACS: 82.75.-z Molecular sieves, zeolites, clathrates, and other complex solids - 61.46. + w Nanoscale materials: clusters, nanoparticles, nanotubes, and nanocrystals - 63.20.-e Phonons in crystal lattices     

氮气水合物储氢的激光拉曼光谱研究

近年来,笼型水合物储氢已成为储氢研究的热点之一。采用激光拉曼光谱开展了以氮气水合物为载体的储氢实验研究。在较为温和的条件下(15 MPa, -18 ℃),使合成的氮气水合物与氢气发生反应,对反应产物的拉曼光谱分析结果显示,氢气分子进入到水合物的笼型结构中,并且呈现出多分子的笼占有状态;氮气水合物与氢气的反应时间是影响储氢效果的重要因素。研究结果表明,氮气水合物有希望成为一种有效的储氢介质。     

Novel results on structural investigations of natural minerals of clathrate hydrates

High-resolution powder X-ray diffraction measurements were carried out on gas hydrates in the angle-dispersive mode using a synchrotron radiation source. In contrast to the structural studies of laboratory-grown gas hydrates, this study has been performed on naturally grown clathrate hydrates obtained from the sea floor at different geographic locations. While the hydrate samples of the Cascadia Margin exhibit a preponderance of structure I, those from the Gulf of Mexico consist of mixed structures, namely structure II, structure I and structure H. Ice in structure Ih is inherently present in all the clathrate hydrate samples. PACS 61.10.Nz; 61.50.Ah; 61.66.Fn; 91.50.-r     

天然流体包裹体中甲烷水合物生成条件原位变温拉曼光谱研究

准确获取流体包裹体中气体水合物的生成条件一直是传统包裹体分析方法面临的一个难题。文章采用原位拉曼光谱技术分析了天然流体包裹体中甲烷水合物的生成条件。并由常温拉曼光谱分析表明,研究流体包裹体的流体组成为CH4-H2O体系。通过三种方法控制实验温度的变化,在第三种方法实验条件下获得了-170 ℃时甲烷水合物与冰的拉曼光谱,逐渐升温原位观测甲烷水合物的消失温度。原位拉曼光谱检测结果表明,研究包裹体中甲烷水合物的生成温度为7.5 ℃。结合CH4-H2O体系水合物形成条件相平衡计算,得到包裹体中甲烷水合物生成时的压力为5.587 3 MPa。研究结果表明,原位拉曼光谱技术是准确获取流体包裹体种气体水合物生成条件的一种有效方法。     

Methane combustion in hydrate systems: Water-methane and water-methane-isopropanol

Kinetics of dissociation of synthetic and natural methane gas hydrates, and also double isopropanol-methane hydrate is investigated. Thermal fields of the sample surfaces are measured by means of thermal imaging in combustion of released methane with clathrate dissociation. The dissociation rates of natural hydrate and double hydrate with isopropanol are many times lower than those of synthetic methane hydrate. Methane combustion is accompanied by formation of a thin water film on the powder surface, which has a strong effect on the heat and mass transfer mechanisms. The experiments demonstrated partial self-preservation for methane hydrate and the absence of self-preservation for double isopropanol-methane hydrate. The experimentally observed dissociation rate of double isopropanol-methane hydrate is considerably lower than that of methane hydrate.     

NaCl-MgCl_2-H_2O体系低温拉曼光谱研究

通过在低温下进行大量的最优生成条件的实验探索,得到了NaCl-H2O体系和MgCl2-H2O体系水合物生成的最优实验条件——迅速降温至-180℃然后缓慢升温至观察到水合物生成过程结束(即视野突然变暗),最后快速降温至-180℃。对NaCl-MgCl2-H2O体系进行了定性和半定量尝试,并得到结论:3 537cm-1可以指示NaCl的存在,3 514 cm-1可以指示MgCl2的存在;3 537和3 514 cm-1峰的相对高低可以大致判断出NaCl和MgCl2的相对多少。这一发现为天然包裹体液相成分拉曼光谱原位定性、定量分析奠定了良好的基础。对于历史上亚稳低共熔混合物形成过程的模式的争议,实验结果初步赞同了Samson等的观点,即冰在最初的冷却中形成,在冰之间的空隙中剩余过饱和的盐溶液,再次升温时,盐的水合物从这个液体中结晶出来。     

Pressure-induced amorphization of clathrate hydrates

Compression and decompression of clathrate hydrates have been carried out in order to investigate the onset pressures above which the crystalline forms begin to collapse at 0 K and do not revert back to the original structures upon decompression. Several proton-disordered structures of clathrate hydrate I encapsulating noble gases were subjected to compression, the steepest descent minimization of potential energy, the subsequent expansion to the original volume, and the steepest descent minimization. It was found that above the onset pressure, depending on guest species, even the fully occupied hydrates are compressed inelastically, and transformed into amorphous forms from which crystalline structures are no longer recovered by decompression at 0 K.     

Clathrate hydrates: recent advances on CH4 and CO2 hydrates,and possible new frontiers

Gas hydrates continue to attract enormous attention throughout the energy industry, as both a hindrance in conventional production and a substantial unconventional resource. Scientists continue to be fascinated by the hydrates’ ability of sequestering large amounts of hydrophobic gases, unusual thermal transport properties and unique molecular structures. Technologically, clathrate hydrates promise advantages in applications as diverse as carbon sequestration and water desalination. The communities interested in hydrates span traditional academic disciplines, including earth science, physical chemistry and petroleum engineering. The studies on this field are equally diverse, including field expeditions to attempt the production of natural gas from hydrate deposits accumulated naturally on the seafloor, to lab-scale studies to exchange CO₂ for CH₄ in hydrates; from theoretical studies to understand the stability of hydrates depending on the guest molecules, to molecular simulations probing nucleation mechanisms. This review highlights a few fundamental questions, with focus on knowledge gaps representing some of the barriers that must be addressed to enable growth in the practical applications of hydrate technology, including natural gas storage, water desalination, CO₂ – CH₄ exchange in hydrate deposits and prevention of hydrate plugs in conventional energy transportation.     

The effect of lattice constant on the storage capacity of hydrogen hydrates: a Monte Carlo study

ABSTRACT

We use grand canonical Monte Carlo simulations to examine the effect of the size of hydrate cavities (as reflected through the lattice constant of the hydrate unit cell) on the efficiency of clathrate hydrates in storing hydrogen gas. With this approach, the hydrate lattice is treated as a solid substrate where gas absorption takes place. Of practical interests are cases, where the lattice-size parameters are changed in such a way that they can promote/enhance multiple cavity occupancy, namely the presence of more than one guest-gas molecule in the same hydrate cavity. This phenomenon is commonly observed in the case of hydrogen hydrates and could increase their storage capacity. A parametric analysis is also carried out to quantify the correlation between the change in the lattice constant and the storage capacity since small changes in the size of the crystal unit cell may induce significant changes in the storage capacity especially in cases where multiple cavity occupancy occurs.     

Mössbauer spectroscopy as a tool in astrobiology

Two miniaturized Mössbauer spectrometers are part of the Athena instrument package of the NASA Mars Exploration Rovers, Spirit and Opportunity. The primary objectives of their science investigation are to explore two sites on the surface of Mars where water may once have been present, and to assess past environmental conditions at those sites and their suitability for life. Aqueous minerals – jarosite at Meridiani Planum, Opportunity’s landing site, and goethite in the Columbia Hills in Gusev Crater, Spirit’s landing site – were identified by Mössbauer spectroscopy, thus providing in situ proof of water being present at those sites in the past. The formation of jarosite in particular puts strong constraints on environmental conditions during the time of formation and hence on the evaluation of potential habitability. On Earth Mössbauer spectroscopy was used to investigate microbially induced changes in Fe oxidation states and mineralogy at the Loihi deep sea mount, a hydrothermal vent system, which might serve as an analogue for potential habitats in the Martian subsurface and the sub-ice ocean of Jupiter’s icy moon Europa.