Specific features of the growth, composition, and content of natural gas hydrates synthesized in inverted oil emulsions

Abstract

A study of specific features of the growth, composition, and content of natural gas hydrates formed in a water-in-oil emulsion demonstrated that the process in which hydrates are formed in a water-oil emulsion occurs in stages and depends on the saturation of hydrate growth zones with the hydrate-forming gas via diffusion of natural-gas components across the oil phase. Hydrates enriched in methane are formed in water-oil emulsions, compared with the hydrates grown from distilled water, which is accounted for by the difference in solubility between natural-gas components in oil and water, and also by the presence of a surfactant layer on the surface of emulsified water drops. With increasing fraction of water in an emulsion, the content of hydrates decreases, and the mass of a hydrate being formed is independent of the composition of the water-oil emulsion.