Gas hydrates researched by grant winner Matvey Semyonov

His project, supported by the Russian Science Foundation, is titled ‘Investigation of the effect of frozen promoter solutions on the process of formation of hydrates of various gases and evaluation of the stability of the resulting hydrates under natural storage conditions’.

Matvey Semyonov has been studying gas hydrates for over a decade – and has been handling this particular project for three years. As he says, promoters – compounds which enhance hydrate formation – are currently one of the foci of interest for the chemical science. Hydrate technology is very promising in various fields, such as utilization of greenhouse gases, water desalination, cryogenic storage, gas separation, hydrocarbon storage and transport, and others.

“Basically, the effectiveness of reagents in laboratory conditions is evaluated in autoclaves with stirring of the promoter solution in the atmosphere of a hydrate-forming gas. However, such methods are energy-consuming and require additional technological units. Under static conditions, that is, without stirring, the formation of hydrates from liquid solutions is extremely difficult even with the addition of hydrate promoters,” shares the interviewee.

Therefore, Semyonov and his co-authors research the influence of frozen solutions of promoters on the formation of methane hydrate and associated petroleum gas. They plan to synthesize compounds and prepare solutions at KFU”s premises.

The endgame is to offer an accelerated technique of hydrate production from frozen promoter solutions with minimal energy costs.