Theoretical and experimental investigations into the formation and accumulation of gas hydrates ...

• Main Author: Rempel, Alan
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: University of British Columbia 2009
• Subjects: Arctic; Climate change
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.14288/1.0053009; https://doi.library.ubc.ca/10.14288/1.0053009

The substantial volumes of gas hydrates found in the Arctic and in marine sediments are both a possible source of global climate change, and a potential future energy resource. The rate at which a hydrate layer forms, and the spatial distribution of hydrate in the layer are controlled by the physical conditions of the formation environment. To better understand the physical conditions that affect hydrate layer characteristics, I present a quantitative model for the formation of hydrates in a porous medium. The theory is tested using the the results of laboratory simulations of the modelled conditions. Conservation principles are used to derive the full set of governing equations using the minimum number of assumptions and simplifications. Scaling arguments, based on estimates of physical parameters in marine sediments, show that both heat and mass transport are dominated by diffusive processes, so advection may be neglected in most formation environments. Analytical solutions to the leading-order set of ...