All-inclusive reference on clathrate hydrates from a molecular perspective

Clathrate hydrates are crystalline water-based inclusion compounds many of which form at high pressures and low temperatures. Molecular science has provided the foundation for many areas of modern hydrate research and applications ranging from desalination processes to flow assurance in oil and gas pipelines.

Clathrate Hydrates provides detailed information on the molecular science aspects of hydrate research, covering the structural, compositional, spectroscopic, thermodynamic, and mechanical properties of clathrate hydrates as well as simulation methods and selected engineering applications. Edited and authored by recognized leaders in the field, this comprehensive resource introduces readers to clathrate hydrates and reviews the state-of-the-art of the field. In-depth chapters address different areas of specialization such as characterization of clathrate hydrates using NMR spectroscopy, infrared and Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray and neutron diffraction and scattering.

• Highlights recent developments in clathrate hydrate research and applications such as natural gas recovery, desalination, and gas separation
• Reviews various molecular simulation methods for characterizing clathrate hydrates, including quantum mechanical calculations and Monte Carlo results
• Contains tables of known guest molecules, summaries of structural and physical properties, and different classes of clathrate hydrate phase equilibria
• Introduces unconventional guest-host interactions, related non-hydrate clathrates, and space-filling cages using the Frank-Kasper approach
• Covers the molecular motion of guest and host molecules and the relationship between cage geometry and guest dynamics
• Presents the rate and mechanisms of hydrate formation and decomposition from both macroscopic and microscopic points

Clathrate Hydrates: Molecular Science and Characterization is an indispensable reference for materials scientists, physical chemists, chemical engineers, geochemists, and graduate students in relevant areas of science and engineering.

John A. Ripmeester is Principal Research Officer (retired), Steacie Institute for Molecular Sciences, National Research Council of Canada (NRC), Ottawa, Canada. He has more than fifty years of research experience in clathrates and inclusion compounds, porous materials, supramolecular materials, materials characterization, and solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and the author or co-author of more than 750 journal and conference papers.

Saman Alavi is an Adjunct Professor at the Department of Chemistry and Biomolecular Sciences, University of Ottawa, in Ottawa, Canada. He is the author of more than 150 journal and conference papers. Dr. Alavi's current research activities center on simulations of clathrate hydrate materials.