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PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
19
pubmed:dateCreated
2008-5-26
pubmed:abstractText
Methane storage in structure H (sH) clathrate hydrates is attractive due to the relatively higher stability of sH as compared to structure I methane hydrate. The additional stability is gained without losing a significant amount of gas storage density as happens in the case of structure II (sII) methane clathrate. Our previous work has showed that the selection of a specific large molecule guest substance (LMGS) as the sH hydrate former is critical in obtaining the optimum conditions for crystallization kinetics, hydrate stability, and methane content. In this work, molecular dynamics simulations are employed to provide further insight regarding the dependence of methane occupancy on the type of the LMGS and pressure. Moreover, the preference of methane molecules to occupy the small (5(12)) or medium (4(3)5(6)6(3)) cages and the minimum cage occupancy required to maintain sH clathrate mechanical stability are examined. We found that thermodynamically, methane occupancy depends on pressure but not on the nature of the LMGS. The experimentally observed differences in methane occupancy for different LMGS may be attributed to the differences in crystallization kinetics and/or the nonequilibrium conditions during the formation. It is also predicted that full methane occupancies in both small and medium clathrate cages are preferred at higher pressures but these cages are not fully occupied at lower pressures. It was found that both small and medium cages are equally favored for occupancy by methane guests and at the same methane content, the system suffers a free energy penalty if only one type of cage is occupied. The simulations confirm the instability of the hydrate when the small and medium cages are empty. Hydrate decomposition was observed when less than 40% of the small and medium cages are occupied.
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:status
PubMed-not-MEDLINE
pubmed:month
May
pubmed:issn
0021-9606
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:day
21
pubmed:volume
128
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
194505
pubmed:year
2008
pubmed:articleTitle
Molecular dynamics study of structure H clathrate hydrates of methane and large guest molecules.
pubmed:affiliation
Steacie Institute for Molecular Sciences, National Research Council Canada, 100 Sussex Drive, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0R6, Canada.
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article