In this Ph.D. project, we propose to conduct different sets of experiments to investigate the kinetics as well as study the mechanism behind hydrate swapping.
Methane production from methane-rich gas hydrate sediments is considered technically challenging and commercial unattractive due to high-cost factor and risk of hydrate destruction. Hydrate swapping is proposed as a potential method to recover methane from hydrate deposits.
This method is a carbon neutral method as it produces Methane and stores carbon dioxide in hydrates, at the same time, without destabilizing the hydrates. This method is less understood and many unknowns yet to be studied.
Natural gas hydrates occur abundantly in permafrost regions and deep oceans sediments. Known methods to produce methane gas from gas hydrates deposits are unviable and risky due to possible destruction to hydrates deposits coupled with the catastrophic release of a large amount of methane gas.
The idea of this Ph.D. project is to investigate the possibility of methane production with simultaneous storage of CO2 by injecting carbon dioxide and flue gas. In Swapping process, methane gas is produced from natural gas hydrate by injecting and storing CO2 without affecting the stability of the solid hydrates.
The key driver for hydrate swapping is the difference in the thermodynamic stability of CH4 and CO2 hydrates as CO2 hydrates are more stable than CH4 hydrates. This stability difference (fugacity/chemical potential difference) means that a spontaneous swapping reaction should occur.
A demonstration of the viability of the project will have enormous scientific and societal effects. Safe production of methane gas natural gas from hydrates while also storing CO2 will address two significant issues of future supply of cleaner energy fuel and mitigating the effect of global warming.
Validation of the hypothesis (successful production and storage) would result into increase attention to hydrate deposits as an energy resource, help to advance the science of gas hydrates and increase industry interest in this area.
Related Phd projects: Methane production and carbon capture through hydrate swapping by Meng Shi