Tensile properties of structural I clathrate hydrates:Role of guest-host hydrogen bonding ability

TL;DR

This study investigates how different guest molecules affect the tensile mechanical properties of structural I clathrate hydrates using molecular dynamics simulations, revealing the role of hydrogen bonding in stability and failure modes.

Contribution

It provides new insights into the influence of guest-host hydrogen bonding ability on the mechanical behavior of clathrate hydrates, a topic not extensively explored before.

Findings

Weak H-bonding guests lead to brittle failure of CHs.

Strong H-bonding guests cause ductile failure and destabilization.

Mechanical properties are dominated by guest molecular polarity and H-bonding ability.

Abstract

Clathrate hydrates (CHs) are one of the most promising molecular structures in applications of gas capture and storage, and gas separations. Fundamental knowledge of mechanical characteristics of CHs is of crucial importance for assessing gas storage and separations at cold conditions, as well as understanding their stability and formation mechanisms. Here, the tensile mechanical properties of structural I CHs encapsulating a variety of guest species (methane, ammonia, sulfureted hydrogen, formaldehyde, methanol, and methyl mercaptan) that have different abilities to form hydrogen (H-) bonds with water molecule are explored by classical molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. All investigated CHs are structurally stable clathrate structures. Basic mechanical properties of CHs including tensile limit and Young's modulus are dominated by the H-bonding ability of host-guest molecules and the guest molecular polarity. CHs containing small methane, formaldehyde and sulfureted hydrogen guest molecules that possess weak H-bonding ability are mechanically robust clathrate structures and mechanically destabilized via brittle failure on the (1 0 1) plane. However, those entrapping methyl mercaptan, methanol, and ammonia that have strong H-bonding ability are mechanically weak molecular structures and mechanically destabilized through ductile failure as a result of gradual global dissociation of clathrate cages.