Directory:Methane Hydrates
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Gas hydrates : are crystalline solids composed of gas molecules trapped inside a rigid lattice of water molecules. These compounds are stable at conditions of relatively low temperature and relatively high pressure. http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~hydrates/about.html
Where to find them : Gas hydrates that are primarily composed of methane (the main component of natural gas) and water occur naturally in Arctic permafrost at depths greater than 200 meters, and they also form in marine sediments at ocean floor depths greater than 500 meters where temperatures hover near freezing and the weight of the water produces high pressures. http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~hydrates/about.html
Vast potential as energy source : Naturally occurring gas hydrates represent a major source of untapped energy. It is estimated that more energy resides in gas hydrates than in all of the energy available in existing gas, oil and coal resources. http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~hydrates/about.html
Perspective
Congress:Member:Tai Robinson said (March 10, 2006):
Methane Hydrates will have to be mined and may be very desirable in
the future. Right now, we have enough renewable methane that is
untapped that we need to first capture the methane produced at land
fills, sewage treatment plants and feed lots before focusing any
energy on the methane hydrates at the bottom of the ocean. The
hydrates are safe, secure and stored in a good place. Methane
reproduces itself quite rapidly compared to crude oil, so we have
quite a future with our under ground methane and renewable methane
from decomposing matter. It would be wise to fully utilize these
sources before devising methods to mine the hydrates. Hopefully we
will choose to embrace all cleaner fuels and never even need a reason
to dive deep for methane hydrates. It is desirable to not burn up the
ship we are on traveling through space on when we can instead just
grab the solar energy that is always present.
Direct Methanol Fuel Cells are great, especially for the fuel storage density. My little
fuel cell demo car on the table at Extra Ordinary Conference is a DMFC
and can run for 24 hours on one little tank full of 2% solution
methanol in water! DMFC's have been approved for use on airplanes and
the replaceable canisters will extend run time considerably compared
to batteries in small electronics like cell phones, lap tops and
gameboys. DMFC's are great in portable applications.
In vehicles, we have billions of internal combustion engines that can
run on methane directly with no need to convert it into methanol and
build fuel cell vehicles. So it would be a waste of time to focus on
this route right now when we have easier solutions. We can also burn
methanol in IC engines, but again it would be simpler to just burn the
methane directly. Methanol offers a fuel density advantage over
compressed natural gas and is easier to handle than liquefied natural
gas.
Methanol is also used when processing biodiesel from veggie oil and
lye. However, when using ethanol, I understand that you can get better
cold weather performance from the biodiesel.
Natural gas, or CNG is methane, the higher the methane content the
better. When you burn it, it does not smell. Pure methane does not
smell either. That is whay the ad mercaptim as an orderant to natural
gas lines. Decomposing matter does smell, as does sewage. Adding a
small electrical voltage to wet, raw sewage skips the methane process
all together and makes hydrogen directly. Producing hydrogen directly
is great because of the many uses we have for it. The byproduct of
electrolysing liquid waste and sewage is a black, carbon rich sludge,
that is a perfect fertilizer.
Jonathan Bonanno wrote (March 10, 2006):
You are 100% correct that harvesting the methane from decomposing matter is
an exceptional manner to gather the resource, problem is people. Waste
Management from Texas struggled with their business for a long time, until
they broke the critical mass barrier in trash collection and processing.
Their primary hurtle was the "local" factions of trash removal that were
entrenched. The same, if not worse, can be said about oil and NG production
and drilling.
Now that Waste Management has and is succeeding more and more everyday,
wouldn't they be a perfect partner to demonstrate the strengths and
potential profits of DMFC? WM is already in this space and growing.
In the News
Scientists unlock frozen natural gas - For the first time, Canadian and Japanese researchers have managed to efficiently produce a constant stream of natural gas from ice-like gas hydrates that, worldwide, dwarf all known fossil fuel deposits combined. (The Star Toronto April 16, 2008)
NETL Researchers Pursue Gas Hydrates Across the Globe - Over the past 18 months, NETL researchers have pursued natural gas hydrates from the Equator to the Arctic Circle. Gas hydrates are solid combinations of natural gas and water that are found in environments of high pressure and/or extremely low temperatures such as the Arctic regions and within shallow sediments of deep-water continental shelves across the globe. They have immense potential as a future energy resource and are also an important, yet poorly understood, component of the global carbon cycle and global climate change. (Netlog Jan. 2008)
China and India Exploit Icy Energy Reserves - China and India have reported massive finds of frozen methane gas off their coasts, which they hope will satisfy their energy needs. But environmentalists fear that tapping these resources could have adverse effects on the world climate. (Speigel Dec. 13, 2007) (Thanks Directory:James Dunn)
BP Drills Alaska North Slope Gas Hydrate Test Well - BP Exploration successfully drilled a research well to collect samples and gather knowledge about gas hydrate, a potential long-term unconventional gas energy resource. Known deposits of methane hydrate are enormous. However, the challenge is finding the technology to unlock the energy, to separate the natural gas from the solid gas-water-ice "clathrate" in which it occurs. (BP Feb. 20, 2007)
Combustible Ice - Over the next decade, China plans to invest 800 million RMB (US $100 million) in the development of methane gas hydrate—so-called “combustible ice?—to meet its rising energy demand and alleviate heavy dependence on fossil fuels. Scientists, however, worry that the move may cause environmental damage due to the unstable nature and high methane content of the energy source. (WorldWatch Sept. 7, 2006) (Thanks ZPEnergy)
Methane Hydrates -- Energy Source of the Future? - Natural gas locked up in methane hydrates could be the world's next great energy source--if engineers can figure out how to extract it safely. (Popular Mechanics Apr. 2006)
Research and Development
More-Powerful Fuel Cells - A cheap polymer material increases the power output of methanol fuel cells by 50 percent. Paula Hammond, a chemical engineer at MIT, has made a fuel-cell membrane out of layers of polymers whose electrochemical properties can be precisely tuned to prevent fuel waste. (MIT Technology Review'' May 22, 2008)
Resources
Methane Hydrates (clathrate)
Gas Hydrates on the ocean floors - On June 15, 2007 the Science channel noted that there is enough energy in gas hydrates in the Gulf of Mexico to power all USA energy needs for 3,000 years. These deposits are found worldwide in the oceans and represent a cleaner and far more abundant source of energy than oil. Methane hydrate is the most common form.
Gas Hydrates - an overview (Rice University)
http://www.netl.doe.gov/scngo/NaturalGas/hydrates/index.html
http://www.fossil.energy.gov/programs/oilgas/hydrates/index.html
http://www.Yamaha-motor.co.jp/global/news/2004/09/22/dmfc.html
Direct Methanol Fuel Cells
http://www.atomki.hu/ar99/b/b02/b02.html
http://www.fctec.com/fctec_types_dmfc.asp
http://www.dmfcc.com/