Low dosage hydrate inhibitors (LDHI) offer a recently developed hydrate control technology that can be more cost‐effective than traditional practices, such as the use of thermodynamic inhibitors (e.g., methanol and glycols). One class of LDHI, called kinetic inhibitors, is already being successfully used in the field. This paper describes efforts to develop a new class of kinetic inhibitor that shows various improvements over existing commercial technology. The polymer chemistry of the inhibitors and experiments carried out in high pressure cells and wheel/loops is described.

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Methane hydrates were produced in an isochoric high pressure cell in the presence of an ultralow concentration of methanol as an additive. Methanol concentrations examined were in the range 1.5-20 ppm by weight. The real gas equation and the nucleation probability distribution have been used to understand the effect of ultralow concentrations of methanol on the amount of hydrate formation, the rate of nucleation, and the range of probability distribution function in which random nucleation of methane hydrates occur. Comparisons with the pure water baseline experiment showed that an ultralow concentration of methanol exhibits dual effect, both as an inhibitor and as a promoter on structure I methane hydrate formation.