Gas Hydrates - From a Laboratory Curiosity to Global Importance

When compressed by a depth of only a few hundred metres of water simple gases like air and methane combine with liquid water to make solids — gas clathrate hydrates. These compounds occur widely on the ocean floor and have long been known to fishermen who regularly haul up lumps of so-called ''hissing-ice’’ in their nets. Gas hydrates are a major focus for current research. They account for 30% of the Earth’s methane and are a major potential resource. Destabilisation of clathrate beds leading to a 'planetary burp’ is proposed as cause of the Permian-Triassic extinction event and is a potential consequence of runaway global warming. And gas hydrates provide a window into the properties of the water molecule — arguably the most important problem in condensed matter science. Werner Kuhs is a leading authority on gas hydrates and will talk about his work on these intriguing compounds.

Tea and cakes will be served from 1630 outside Lecture Theatre A.