Is “combustible ice” replacing gas and coal?
On the eve it became known that mankind may have a new type of energy raw material - “flammable ice”. This is in this case methane hydrate. This is a mixture of gas and water, lying under the ice and formed as a result of high pressure. As shown by experiments, if you bring a match to a handful of such a substance, it will burn, releasing a lot of thermal energy.
The discovery belongs to Japanese scientists and American geologists. For Japan itself, a country that does not have its own minerals, this would be a great opportunity to gain access to this energy resource, since there are huge deposits of methane hydrate near the islands.
Studies were conducted in Alaska, in the North Slope region. They hinder the industrial production of the substance at the moment, as politicaland environmental factors. The first is that the United States is unlikely to allow Japan to produce methane hydrate in Alaska. And without preliminary research, an industrial approach is hardly possible.
The second catch is that the substance is extremely unstable. When it is extracted from the ocean floor, methane emissions can occur, which can lead to disastrous consequences. Therefore, it is more advisable to pump out gas without ice (by melting the latter directly in the well), but again, additional research is needed for this.
Whether the USA and Japan will agree on industrial production is not yet known. But it is worth noting that it is in “combustible ice” that about 1/3 of all fossil carbon is contained.
The discovery belongs to Japanese scientists and American geologists. For Japan itself, a country that does not have its own minerals, this would be a great opportunity to gain access to this energy resource, since there are huge deposits of methane hydrate near the islands.
Studies were conducted in Alaska, in the North Slope region. They hinder the industrial production of the substance at the moment, as politicaland environmental factors. The first is that the United States is unlikely to allow Japan to produce methane hydrate in Alaska. And without preliminary research, an industrial approach is hardly possible.
The second catch is that the substance is extremely unstable. When it is extracted from the ocean floor, methane emissions can occur, which can lead to disastrous consequences. Therefore, it is more advisable to pump out gas without ice (by melting the latter directly in the well), but again, additional research is needed for this.
Whether the USA and Japan will agree on industrial production is not yet known. But it is worth noting that it is in “combustible ice” that about 1/3 of all fossil carbon is contained.
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