Gas hydrates stability.

How do gas hydrates form and what are the conditions for their stability?

VISTA

Gas hydrates can be found in large amounts in the permafrost region at the bottom of the sea floor in porous rocks or in sand, in the proximity of water. The hydrate is probably confined in the porous rock and its structure and stability may depend on this confinement. A typical pressure and temperature in natural reservoirs is 50 bar and 10 oC. The salinity of the water resource in equilibrium with the porous rock may also vary.

In the clathrate hydrate crystal, guest molecules are trapped in cages of host water molecules. Water molecules are linked through hydrogen bonding and create these cages.