Investigation of the Stress–Strain and Strength Behaviors of Ice Containing Methane Hydrate
Publication: Journal of Cold Regions Engineering
Volume 26, Issue 4
Abstract
Mechanical properties and deformation behaviors of methane hydrate are important to assess the stability of gas hydrate reservoirs. In this study, using a high-pressure and low-temperature triaxial testing apparatus, the stress–strain relationship and strength of ice containing methane hydrate were studied. The results showed that the strength increased with a decrease of temperature, and the stress–strain relationship showed an elastoplastic strain-hardening behavior. When the confining pressure was less than 10 MPa, the strength increased with confining pressure. Also, it decreased with further increases of confining pressure beyond 10 MPa.
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the National Science and Technology Major Project, China (Grant No. 2011ZX05026−04); the National High Technology Research and Development Program of China (Grant No. 2006AA09209−5); the Key Program of National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 50736001); and the New Teacher’s Fund for the Doctoral Stations, the Ministry of Education, (Grant No. 20100041120037). Sincere thanks are offered to the editors and anonymous reviewers for their critical comments to improve this paper.
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© 2012 American Society of Civil Engineers.
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Received: Mar 29, 2011
Accepted: Apr 30, 2012
Published online: May 2, 2012
Published in print: Dec 1, 2012
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