Cyclic formation characteristics of tetrabutylammonium bromide hydrates under concentration regulation enhanced by gas circulation

Hydrate cold storage technology offers a promising solution for effectively storing high energy density. Therefore, the aim of this study is to explore the cycling and gas circulation-enhanced formation characteristics of TBAB hydrate at different concentrations. Notably, it was observed that when the concentration of TBAB hydrate surpassed 25 wt%, the hydrate exhibited a consistent high formation efficiency without displaying any discernible decay characteristics. Upon reaching a TBAB concentration of 35 wt%, a notable concentration stratification phenomenon became evident following the complete dissociation of hydrates. Remarkably, the introduction of gas circulation to enhance hydrate formation yielded a bulk phase uniform nucleation mode for TBAB hydrate formation. This led to a remarkable 72 % reduction in the induction time. Even under conditions of 45 wt% concentration, the subcooling was as low as 4.35 °C. These research findings hold significant implications for the advancement of efficient hydrate cycling formation technology and its potential industrial applications.