Theory and measurement of hydrate dissociation

Abstract

Abstract Experimental data on the rate of dissociation of methane hydrates are presented. The data were obtained from hydrate mass loss measurements using an electrobalance. A resistance heater with a known heat flux was used in the dissociation experiments. A mathematical model describing the dissociation process is also presented. The model, based upon first principles, assumes that the water formed during dissociation is blown away by the methane gas produced so that the dissociation process may be regarded as a moving‐boundary ablation problem. Agreement between the model and the data is within 10%.