EXPLOITATION OF NATURAL GAS HYDRATES AS AN ENERGY SOURCE: PROSPECTS AND PROBLEMS

Abstract

Natural gas is the cleanest burning fossil fuel and has been identified as a strong candidate for an energy source compared to oil and coal. Natural gas hydrate is an energy source for methane, which has twice the carbon content of all fossil fuels and is evenly distributed throughout the world. Several field tests have been conducted on energy production from hydrate resources, and their results have established the possibility of energy production from hydrate resources. In this article, we review various studies on the resource potential of natural gas hydrate, including laboratory studies and several recent field tests.