NETL recently released the spring 2020 edition of Fire in the Ice, which features various projects and initiatives supported by the program.

A periodic newsletter published by NETL’s Methane Hydrate Research and Development Program, the latest volume of Fire in the Ice, features Claire McKinley, a recipient of the prestigious National Academy of Sciences/NETL Methane Hydrate Research Fellowship. The Portland, Oregon native is the 11th recipient of the fellowship, which was created in 2007 to support highly qualified graduate and postgraduate scientists engaged in research on gas hydrates. The award will help fund two years of her research on “Evaluating the Extent of Microbial Fe-Reduction and its Role in the Global Methane Cycle.”

The latest issue of Fire in the Ice also features research by the Scripps Institute of Oceanography, LLNL USGS, and the University of Texas at Austin. Research focuses on developing techniques for better identification of methane hydrate resources and laboratory efforts to quantify the flow properties of methane hydrates, which can assist in modeling methane production in a functioning well.

Methane hydrates are a naturally occurring combination of predominantly methane gas and water that form under specific conditions of low temperature and high pressure. Once thought to be rare, gas hydrates are now known to occur in great abundance in association with arctic permafrost and in the shallow sediments of the deep-water continental shelves. The most recent estimates of gas hydrate abundance suggest they contain perhaps more organic carbon than all the world’s oil, gas, and coal combined, and could potentially serve as a significant source of clean-burning natural gas for meeting future domestic energy needs.

The primary mission of the Lab’s Methane Hydrate Research and Development Program is to collaborate with industry, academia, international research organizations, and other U.S. government agencies to advance scientific understanding of  hydrates as they occur in nature so that their role as a resource and potential for offsetting climate change can be more fully understood.

The latest volume of Fire in the Ice, along with previous editions, can be viewed here.

NETL is a U.S. Department of Energy national laboratory that produces technological solutions for America’s energy challenges. From developing creative innovations and efficient energy systems that make coal more competitive, to advancing technologies that enhance oil and natural gas extraction and transmission processes, NETL research is providing breakthroughs and discoveries that support domestic energy initiatives, stimulate a growing economy, and improve the health, safety, and security of all Americans. Highly skilled men and women at NETL’s sites in Albany, Oregon; Anchorage, Alaska; Houston, Texas; Morgantown, West Virginia; and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania conduct a broad range of research activities that support DOE’s mission to advance the national, economic, and energy security of the United States.