Measurement of the Diffusivity and Solubility of Methane into Aqueous TBAB

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dc.contributor.advisorClarke, Matthew A.
dc.contributor.authorOjo, Olajumoke Ifeoluwa
dc.contributor.committeememberJohnston, Kimberly
dc.contributor.committeememberGates, Ian Donald
dc.date2018-06
dc.date.accessioned2018-05-01T20:12:06Z
dc.date.available2018-05-01T20:12:06Z
dc.date.issued2018-04-26
dc.description.abstractNatural gas is a relatively clean burning fuel that can be used for cooking, heating and electricity generation. To adequately meet the developing world’s growing demand needs for natural gas it is necessary to have adequate infrastructure for gas transportation and storage. Historically, natural gas has been stored either in underground geological formations or above ground as either Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) or Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG). All of the previously noted storage technologies are mature technologies, but also technologies that require large capital investments. As a lower cost alternative to CNG storage, a number of researchers [1] have proposed using gas hydrates and, more recently, semiclathrates as a medium for above-ground natural gas storage. Gas hydrates are ice-like compounds, formed in the presence of water and light gases that have the ability to entrap large volumes of gas at conditions that are much milder than those needed to store natural gas as either CNG or LNG. Semiclathrates are similar compounds to gas hydrates. However, the presence of a quaternary ammonium salt leads to semiclathrates being able to form at conditions that are even milder than those required for gas hydrate formation. Several experimental analyses have been carried out in order to determine the three-phase (solid-liquid-vapour) equilibrium conditions at which semiclathrates form. However, in order to more thoroughly evaluate the feasibility of using semiclathrates for gas storage purposes it will be necessary to know the solubility of the gas in the solution as well as the diffusivity of the gas in the solution. Originally, the aim of the study was to modify an existing experimental apparatus and to measure the solubility and diffusivity of methane gas in aqueous solutions of tetra-n-butyl-ammonium bromide (TBAB) at conditions close to semiclathrate formation conditions. However, as the experiments proceeded, it was found that maintaining a constant pressure in the reactor was not straight forward. Thus, the main focus of the thesis shifted to establishing an adequate control strategy. Three control strategies were tried; PID control, on-off control and on-off control plus an inline microflow metering valve. For each strategy, several runs were carried out in an attempt to measure the solubility and diffusivity. Each of the experimental runs took close to a month to complete, after which time it was concluded that only an on-off controller with an inline microflow metering valve was capable of providing the appropriate control needed to maintain a constant pressure in the reactor. Following the experiments, the diffusivity and solubility of methane in aqueous TBAB solutions were regressed from the experimental data using the finite acting model and the infinite acting model as utilized in the original work of Etminan [2]. From the analysis of the experimental data, the diffusivity and solubility were seen to follow the expected trend; the diffusivity increases and the solubility decreases with temperature, at a constant pressure.en_US
dc.identifier.citationOjo, O. I. (2018). Measurement of the Diffusivity and Solubility of Methane into Aqueous TBAB (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. doi:10.11575/PRISM/31873en_US
dc.identifier.doihttp://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/31873
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1880/106587
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisher.facultyGraduate Studies
dc.publisher.facultySchulich School of Engineering
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Calgaryen
dc.publisher.placeCalgaryen
dc.rightsUniversity of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.
dc.subjectSolubility
dc.subjectDiffusivity
dc.subjectSemiclathrates
dc.subjectNatural gas storage
dc.subjectMethane
dc.subjectTetra-n-butyl Ammonium Bromide
dc.subject.classificationEngineering--Chemicalen_US
dc.subject.classificationEngineering--Petroleumen_US
dc.titleMeasurement of the Diffusivity and Solubility of Methane into Aqueous TBAB
dc.typemaster thesis
thesis.degree.disciplineChemical and Petroleum Engineering
thesis.degree.grantorUniversity of Calgary
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Science (MSc)
ucalgary.item.requestcopytrue
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