Microfluidic Synthesis of Methane (sI) and Propane (sII) Hydrates

Clathrate gas hydrates have long fascinated researchers and have been the focus of much
in depth study over the past fifty years. Gas hydrates impact societal problems related to
conventional and non-conventional energy production and storage in addition to global climate
change. Most laboratory studies on hydrate formation and agglomeration phenomena have been
carried out in high-pressure batch reactors. Thermal resistances and mass transport limitations
introduce challenges when hydrate formation and dissociation rates are of similar time scales.
However, the study of clathrate hydrates in microscale laminar flow offers that opportunity
to add new knowledge on hydrate science. Our high-pressure microfluidic synthesis and
dissociation of methane (sI) and propane (sII) hydrates, on demand and in a matter of minutes,
shows the potential to bridge the knowledge gap between the laboratory study of hydrates and
the production systems that encounter them. In the present work, we will elucidate the rational
behind the high-pressure microfluidic synthesis of hydrates and the recent advances we have
made in the field.