Gas Hydrates:
Energy and the Environment
A Rice Initiative
Walter G. Chapman
Chemical Engineering Dept.
Rice University
RICE
www.gashydate.de/images/hand.jpg
US UNIVERSITY
Geological Survey
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What are Gas Hydrates?
Self-assembled nano-structures formed by
the cooperative hydrogen bonding of water
molecules to create polyhedron cages
around small molecules. Methane trapped
in a single Pentagonal Dodecahedra Cage
From US Geological Survey.
Comparison of ice
and hydrate
structures. One of
the hydrate cages is
shown to contain a
methane molecule.
From the Naval
Research
Laboratory
RICE
http://dusk.geo.orst.edu/oceans/lec14.html
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Why are Hydrates Interesting?
• Pipeline Plugging
• Preventing Gas Hydrate formation accounts for
• 10-15% of the production costs
• $500 Million per year for inhibitors alone
RICE
www.spe.org/cda/images/ hydrate.jpg
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Where Else Do Hydrates Form?
• In sediments below the ocean floor
http://marine.usgs.gov/fact-sheets/gas-hydrates/title.html
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Seismic and Photo Evidence
Seafloor
BSR
RICE
Images: Trehu et al., 2002
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Why are Hydrates Interesting?
• Potential Fuel Source
• Methane Hydrate is stable on land in polar regions and at sea in
water deeper than a few hundred meters, and likely exists on all
continental margins. The triangles here show actual discoveries
(updated from Kvenvolden, 1988). (From Naval Research Lab)
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Distribution of organic carbon in Earth reservoirs
(excluding dispersed carbon in rocks and sediments).
Numbers in gigatons (1015 tons) of carbon
Ocean 983 (e.g.,
dissolved organics,
and biota
Atmosphere 3.6
Land 2790
(Includes soil,
biota, peat
and detritus
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Fossil Fuels
5,000
Data from USGS
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Gas
hydrates
3
4
10,000
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Why are Hydrates Interesting?
• Climate Change and Seafloor Stability
Potential Release of Greenhouse Gases
hydrate.eas.gatech.edu/gthydrates/ schemclimate.gif
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Why are Hydrates Interesting?
• Gas Hydrate Applications
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Flow Assurance
Energy Production
Seafloor Stability
Global Climate Change
Transport and Storage of Natural Gas
Gas Separations and Materials Handling
Templates for Nano-Materials
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Rice Hydrates Team
Organized Under the Shell Center for
Sustainability,
Exec. Director Chris Holmes
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Energy Production from Gas Hydrates
Flow Assurance
Seafloor Stability
Global Climate Change
Public Policy with the Baker Institute
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Molecular to Global Scale
Molecular Mechanisms and Dynamics
• NMR/MRI Mechanisms and Dynamics – Chapman
(Chem. E.) and House (Texas Tech)
• Molecular Simulation – Chapman (Chem. E.)
• Properties at High Pressure – Chapman (Chem. E.)
• X-ray Crystal Structure – Billups (Chemistry)
• Gas Hydrate Kinetics – Bishnoi (Calgary)
• Applications to
• Hydrate Inhibition for Flow Assurance
• Hydrate Dynamics for Resource Modeling
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Molecular to Global Scale
Hydrate Resource Characterization
• Core and Species Analysis – Dickens (Earth Science)
• NMR Well Logging – Hirasaki and Chapman (Chem. E.)
and House (Texas Tech)
• Seismic Interpretation – Zelt and Sain (Earth Science)
• Geologic Scale Simulation – Hirasaki and Chapman
(Chem. E.)
• Resource Interpretation – Dugan (Earth Science)
• Applications to
• Locating High Concentrations of Hydrates
• Characterizing the Hydrate Resource
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Molecular to Global Scale
Hydrate Resource Dynamics
• Species Analysis and Interpretation – Dickens (Earth
Science)
• Production Technology – Hirasaki (Chem. E.)
• Heat Transfer – Bayazitoglu (Mech. E.)
• Reservoir Simulation for Production – Mohanty
(Univ. of Houston)
• Slope Failure – Spanos (Mech. E.)
• Applications to
• Energy Production and Seafloor Stability
• Global Climate Change
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Hydrate Research at Rice
Rice Team Members
Yildiz Bayazitoglu (Mech. Engr.)
Ed Billups (Chemistry)
Walter G. Chapman (Chem. Engr.)
Jillene Connors (Baker Institute)
Jerry Dickens (Earth Science)
Brandon Dugan (Earth Science)
George Hirasaki (Chem. Engr.)
Chris Holmes (Shell Center for Sustainability)
Amy Jaffe (Baker Institute)
Paul Spanos (Mech. Engr.)
Colin Zelt (Earth Science)
Other Team Members
Raj Bishnoi (Univ. of Calgary)
Waylon House (Texas Tech)
Kalachand Sain (Nat. Geophys. Res. Inst., India)
Kishore Mohanty (Univ. of Houston)
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Business Opportunities
• Flow Assurance Strategies and
Detecting Hydrates
• Seafloor Stability
• Near Wellbore Failure
• Slope Failure
• Energy Production
• Global Climate Change
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Rice University
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Production Issues
• High Concentration of Hydrates
• Production Strategy Depends on
Accumulation Process
• Seafloor Stability
• Reservoir Model (Accumulation and
Production)
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Reservoir Heterogeneity
Lithology and Permeability of the formation
Brine Flux
Heat Effects and Thermal Conductivity
Mechanism and Rate of Dissociation
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Production Response
• Possible Production from Messoyakha Field
• Possibly 36% of the production (5 billion m3) from
hydrates (Makogan, 1981)
• Nankai Trough – Southeastern Coast of
Japan
• Mallik Production Test (Northern Coast of
Canada)
• Hot Ice 1 – North Slope of Alaska – Anadarko
in Collaboration with DOE
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Production Technologies
• Pressure Depletion
• Free Gas Production
Produced Gas
Sea floor
Hydrate Containing
Sediment
“Free” Gas
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Why are Hydrates Interesting?
• Seafloor Stability
Model for seafloor stability at the gas hydrate stability limit from
Booth, J.S., Winters, W.J. and Dillon, W.P., 1994.
http://www.nrlssc.navy.mil/~hydrates/Research.htm
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Why are Hydrates Interesting?
• Seafloor Stability
http://www.nrlssc.navy.mil/~hydrates/Research.htm
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