page_title: Carbon dioxide clathrate
section_title: Earth
hierarchical_section_title: Carbon dioxide clathrate / Importance / Earth
caption_attribution_description: This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image mosaic was constructed from data acquired by the MOC red wide angle camera. The large, circular feature in the upper left is Aram Chaos, an ancient impact crater filled with layered sedimentary rock that was later disrupted and eroded to form a blocky, "chaotic" appearance. To the southeast of Aram Chaos, in the lower right of this picture, is Iani Chaos. The light-toned patches amid the large blocks of Iani Chaos are known from higher-resolution MOC images to be layered, sedimentary rock outcrops. The picture center is near 0.5°N, 20°W. Sunlight illuminates the scene from the left/upper left.
context_page_description: Carbon dioxide hydrate or carbon dioxide clathrate is a snow-like crystalline substance composed of water ice and carbon dioxide. It normally is a Type I gas clathrate. There has also been some experimental evidence for the development of a metastable Type II phase at A temperature near the ice melting point. The clathrate can exist below 283K at a range of pressures of carbon dioxide. CO₂ hydrates are widely studied around the world due to its promising prospects of carbon dioxide capture from flue gas and fuel gas streams relevant to post-combustion and pre-combustion capture. It is also quite likely to be important on Mars due to the presence of carbon dioxide and ice at low temperatures.
context_section_description: On Earth, CO₂ hydrate is mostly of academic interest. Tim Collett of the United States Geological Survey (USGS) proposed pumping carbon dioxide into subsurface methane clathrates, thereby releasing the methane and storing the carbon dioxide. As of 2009, ConocoPhillips is working on a trial on the Alaska North Slope with the US Department of Energy to release methane in this way. At first glance, it seems that the thermodynamic conditions there favor the existence of hydrates, yet given that the pressure is created by sea water rather than by CO₂, the hydrate will decompose.
caption: In this mosaic taken by the Mars Global Surveyor: Aram Chaos - top left and Iani Chaos - bottom right.  A river-bed-like outflow channel can be seen, originating from Iani Chaos and extending towards the top of the image.
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