Abstract

Gas hydrates are now gaining importance in oil and gas industries because they are considered a future source of energy and a means for the transport of natural gas. On the other hand gas hydrates create problems by plugging the pipelines during transportation. Obviously, predicting the conditions in which hydrates are formed would be valuable. In the present study, experiments were performed to observe the conditions, which favor the formation of an ethane gas hydrate. The results of the hydrate formation are elucidated with the help of a conceptual kinetic model. An empirical correlation is developed to predict the rate of formation of the hydrate in terms of the operating and geometric variables of the system. A simple kinetic model based on the dissolved ethane gas is also developed which shows that the hydrate formation follows the first order rate equation.

Recommended Citation

Mandal, Ajay and Laik, Sukumar (2008) "Modeling of Gas Hydrate Formation in a High Pressure Reactor," International Journal of Chemical Reactor Engineering: Vol. 6: A74.
Available at: http://www.bepress.com/ijcre/vol6/A74