Accelerated Formation of Methane Hydrate in Aluminum Foam

The effects of aluminum foam (AF, average pore size of 1000 mu m) on formation and growth kinetic behaviors of methane hydrate with 0.03 wt % sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) were investigated in a 300 cm(3) stainless steel vessel without stirring under 4.2, 6.0, and 8.3 MPa and 273,15 K. AF is a porous metal medium possessing large rough surface and excellent thermal conductivity. The experimental results demonstrated that porous AF played an acceleration role in the initial formation and further growth of methane hydrate by promoting hydrate nucleation and facilitating the removal of hydration heat. When AF was used, not only was the induction time reduced but the formation and growth were also sped up significantly, compared to conditions without it. In addition, under the above three pressures, the maximum formation rates (R(f,max)) were increased by enormous times, 52% and 23%, with the help of AF, respectively. The relatively low increment of R(f,max) under high pressure most likely was caused by AF's own limitations (pore size). AF with smaller pore size can be selected for further study.