2025S-GS14-3 Discrete Particle Modelling of Methane Hydrate in Sand Layers

Abstract

In this study, methane hydrate is modelled as solid particles in triaxial compression simulation of hydrate bearing sand layers. The validity of the implementation is confirmed by comparing it with an existing model in which the sand particles are bonded with methane hydrate bonds. In the triaxial compression simulation, particles were placed in the pore space of a sand cylinder sample with a porosity of 0.4 until methane hydrate achieved a saturation of 0.372. Comparisons showed that the peak stress was more than double that of the conventional model. A better fit was obtained when the cohesion between the sand-methane hydrate particles was halved to bring this value closer to the results of the conventional model. This study opens up the possibility of reproducing various forms of hydrate presence and could provide an important basis for developing four-phase flow simulations.