Effect of conditioners upon the thermodynamics and kinetics of methane hydrate formation. A preliminary structure-properties relationship study

• Main Authors: DI PROFIO, Pietro, Arca S., Germani R., Savelli G.
• Other Authors: Arca, S., Germani, R., Savelli, G.
• Format: Conference Object
• Language: English
• Published: 2005
• Subjects: Methane hydrate
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/11564/364354

The synthesis and stability of gas hydrates was found to be heavily affected by the presence of small quantities of additives, or conditioners, particularly surfactants. In a recent work, we showed that the enhancement of hydrate formation, both from previously described and newly synthesized surfactants, is probably due to surfactant monomers, rather than micelles, and that the features of hydrate induction time should not be used as a measure of critical micelle concentration. In the present paper, we discuss the results of a structure-properties relationship study in which a preliminary attempt to relate the structural features of several amphiphilic additives to some kinetic and thermodynamic parameters of methane hydrate formation - e.g., induction times, rate of formation, occupancy, etc. - is conducted. According to the present study, it is found that, for a particular conditioner, a reduction of induction time does not correlate to an increase of the formation rate and occupancy, and vice versa. This may be related to the nature of chemical moieties forming a particular amphiphile (e.g., the hydrophobic tail, head group, counterion, etc.). The understanding of the mechanisms by which those moieties play their differential role may be the key tool to the design and synthesis of tailored conditioners.