ISIS Neutron and Muon Source Data Journal

Neutron Compton Scattering THF-water clathrates and ices in nanoscale confinement

Abstract: Clathrate hydrates are crystalline compounds in which guest molecules are encaged in a host framework of water molecules. Within this class of materials methane hydrate is particularly notable since it occurs naturally on the ocean bed and in permafrost and is both a potential untapped energy resource but also a major source of greenhouse gases. Tetrahydrofuran (THF) hydrates are often used as analogues for natural gas hydrates in experimental research, because they can form directly from solution below 4.4 C at atmospheric pressure. Here we will use conbined neutron Compton scattering with neutron powder diffraction to study the formation of THF-water clathrate and ices under confinement in mesoporous silicas: MCM-41 (pore size ~3nm) and SBA-15 (pore size ~9nm). Our previous experiments RB2210033 (NIMROD) and RB2310497 (Polaris) revealed the exciting result that, in fact, pure water ice (highly cubic and /or 1h+stacking disordered) forms in these systems, even from a clathrate-forming THF-water mixture. We would now like to examine the nuclear momentum distribution of protons in these systems, as a control system to compare different forms of ice and clathrates. This key question can be answered by exploiting the unique capabilities of VESUVIO.

Principal Investigator: Professor Neal Skipper
Experimenter: Dr Camilla Di Mino
Experimenter: Ms Miroslava Novoveska
Local Contact: Dr Andrew Seel
Experimenter: Dr Adam Clancy
Experimenter: Mr Chenwei Zheng

DOI: 10.5286/ISIS.E.RB2610334

ISIS Experiment Number: RB2610334

Publisher: STFC ISIS Neutron and Muon Source

Data format: RAW/Nexus
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Data Citation

The recommended format for citing this dataset in a research publication is as:
[author], [date], [title], [publisher], [doi]

For Example:
Professor Neal Skipper et al; (2026): Neutron Compton Scattering THF-water clathrates and ices in nanoscale confinement, STFC ISIS Neutron and Muon Source, https://doi.org/10.5286/ISIS.E.RB2610334

Data is released under the CC-BY-4.0 license.