Investigating the Inhibition Mechanism of THF Hydrates and Methods of Hydrate Growth

Abstract

Research objectives One goal of my research is to further understand how kinetic hydrate inhibitors interact with the crystal surface. More specifically, I investigated the influence of molecular weight on the inhibiting capacity of PVP. I addressed this question by comparing kinetic hydrate inhibitors, and exploring their chemical interactions with the hydrate surface, to further unravel the mechanism of inhibition on THF hydrates. Another objective was to develop a new method of growing THF hydrates. Rather than grow the crystals macroscopically, in the Drori laboratory, we have formulated a methodology in which microscopic THF hydrates can be grown under the microscope, which enables quantitative measurements of inhibition activity. The Drori laboratory has been a pioneer in creating this methodology of analyzing THF hydrates, and it is not performed in any other laboratory so far.