Within the subseafloor, methane hydrates form within the gas hydrate stability zone (GHSZ). Two areas within the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) were investigated in this study: Keathley Canyon and Atwater Valley. The GOM contains an underlying petroleum system and deeply buried, yet dynamic salt deposits. Salt tectonics and fluid expulsion upward through the sediment column lead to the formation of fract...

The gas hydrate petroleum system in the permafrost of the Qilian Mountains, which exists as an epigenetic hydrocarbon reservoir above a deep-seated hydrocarbon reservoir, has been dynamic since the end of the Late Pleistocene because of climate change. The permafrost limits the occurrence of gas hydrate reservoirs by changing the pressure-temperature (P-T) conditions, and it affects the migrati...

Experimental data on the kinetics of propane hydrate dissociation at 0.1 MPa and different external temperatures were obtained. A two-stage mechanism of hydrate dissociation was observed visually. In the first stage hydrate dissociated into metastable water and gas. During the second stage the metastable water crystallized into ice. The release of metastable water during hydrate dissociation an...

One of the most important methods of transporting natural gas in Iran and other parts of the world is the utilization of a network of pipelines. Compression station and turbo compressor units play an important role in gas supply through pipelines. One of the primary concerns in these units is the reduction of fuel consumption. By cooling of exhaust gas from the source station, the pressure ...

The effect of the concentration of kinetic hydrate inhibitors, polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), and polyvinylcaprolactam (PVCap) on the onset and growth of synthetic natural gas hydrates is investigated by measuring the hydrate onset time and gas consumption rate. Although the hydrate onset time is extended by increasing the concentration from 0.5 to 3.0 wt % for both PVP and PVCap, the growth rate ...

Seafloor methane release due to the thermal dissociation of gas hydrates is pervasive across the continental margins of the Arctic Ocean. Furthermore, there is increasing awareness that shallow hydrate-related methane seeps have appeared due to enhanced warming of Arctic Ocean bottom water during the last century. Although it has been argued that a gas hydrate gun could trigger abrupt climate c...

In this work we investigated the behavior of methane hydrates dispersed in crude oils from different fields at temperatures below 0°C. In case of crude oil emulsion the size of water droplets is in the range of 50÷100μm. The size of hydrate particles formed from droplets is the same. The self-preservation is not expected in this field. However, the self-preservation of hydrates with the size of...

The presence of structure H (sH) methane hydrate in natural environments, in addition to the well-known structure-I (sI) and II (sII) hydrates, has recently been documented. Methane in the presence of condensates (C5-C7) forms sH hydrate at lower pressure than the sI hydrate. Thus, the occurrence of sH methane hydrate is likely to have both beneficial and negative practical implications. On the...

Antifreeze proteins (AFPs) prevent ice growth by binding to a specific ice plane. Some AFPs have been found to inhibit the formation of gas hydrates which are a serious safety and operational challenge for the oil and gas industry. Molecular dynamics simulations are used to determine the mechanism of action of the winter flounder AFP (wf-AFP) in inhibiting methane hydrate growth. The wf-AFP ads...

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 ...