Industrial Consultancy & Sponsored Research (IC&SR) , IIT Madras
A Process for Low Temperature, Low Pressure Synthesis of Clathrate Hydrates
Categories for this Invention
Category – Advanced materials
Applications – Energy resource, environmental engineering, Prebiotic Chemistry, Gas storage and separation
Industry – Chemical
Market -The global advanced materials market size was estimated at USD 61.35 billion in 2022 and it is expected to reach USD 112.7 billion by 2032, at a CAGR of 6.27% from 2023 to 2032.
Image Gallery
Problem Statement
- Clathrate hydrates (CHs) are crystalline inclusion compounds in which different guest molecules are encased in H-bonded water-cages, that requires high-pressures and moderate temperatures that enable their existence in marine sediments and permafrost region of earth.
- The presence of CHs in interstellar medium (ISM) is still in question due to the extreme high vacuum and ultracold conditions present there.
Technology
- The present invention discloses a process for synthesizing clathrate hydrates in interstellar environment at low pressure comprising:
- The said interstellar environment is set at low pressure of 10-10 mbar and at cryogenic temperatures in the range of 10 K to 135 K
- The water vapor and guest molecule are condensed separately or together in an ultrahigh vacuum chamber
- The condensed mixture is gradually annealed to temperatures below the desorption temperature of guest molecule in vacuum for 0-48 hour
- The said the guest molecule includes methane, carbon dioxide, acetone and tetrahydrofuran.
- The clathrate hydrates includes methane hydrate, carbon dioxide hydrate, acetone hydrate, and tetrahydrofuran hydrate.
Key Features / Value Proposition
Technical Perspective:
- Discloses a process for synthesizing clathrate hydrates(CH) in ISM especially formation of methane, CO2, acetone and tetrahydrofuran hydrates in extreme low-pressure environments where CH are subjected to various chemical processes that act as sources for prebiotic molecules
- The present invention found that the molecular mobility and interactions play crucial roles in the formation of CHs, even though there is no external pressure to force cage formation.
User Perspective:
- CHs can exist in extreme low-pressure environments present in the ISM, CH are ideal in Astrochemistry and Planetary Exploration, carbon capture and storage
Questions about this Technology?
Contact For Licensing
sm-marketing@imail.iitm.ac.in
ipoffice2@iitm.ac.in
Research Lab
Prof. PRADEEP T
Department of Chemistry
Intellectual Property
- IITM IDF Ref. 1817
- IN 356814 –Granted
Technology Readiness Level
TRL-3
Experimental Proof of Concept