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Natural resins extracted from crude oil in the South China Sea have a significant inhibition effect on hydrate nucleation and growth due to the polar functional group of resins. [Display omitted] • Resins were extracted from the crude oil from the SCS. • The resins contained many polar heteroatomic functional groups. • Hydrate grew along gas flow in the microfluidic channels. • The resins could retard the hydrate formation kinetics. • The more polar resins showed a stronger inhibitory effect. Hydrate plugging in oil and gas transport pipelines is a crucial challenge to the safety of flow and maintenance of pipelines. Specifically, the resins, the strongest polar component in crude oil would significantly affect hydrate kinetics but the mechanism of the interaction remains unclear. Here, a microfluidic chip was used to monitor the hydrate formation under gas flow in-situ , with and without resins extracted from the crude oil. FTIR–ATR and NMR results indicate the presence of a large number of polar components in the resins. High-resolution mass spectrometry showed that two resins contain a variety of heteroatom compounds and sulfur-containing heteroatom. The results indicated that these resins played a surprisingly inhibitory role in the hydrate formation kinetics; this was ascribed to the presence of the polar functional groups. The results also showed that the hydrate grew along the direction of gas flow. Notably, the presence of resins could prolong the induction time and lower the growth rate; this effect could be enhanced with the addition of resins containing more heteroatoms. This study filled the gap in the effect of natural resins on the hydrate formation kinetics and provided guidance on preventing hydrate plugging in oil and gas transport pipelines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The utilization and transportation of clean energy require efficient energy storage solutions. Gas hydrate represents a promising way for high-density storage under mild conditions. In particular, hydrate induced by confined space has the advantage of being environmentally friendly with rapid nucleation and high mass transfer efficiency. However, the cost of artificial pore-construction methods has hindered its widespread application. In this study, we report a novel approach of hydrate storage in the -SO 3 − modified flexible balsa wood as a naturally porous material. The surface sulfonate groups were successfully grafted by coupling agents which was verified by various techniques. The material's natural porous hierarchical structure allows for efficient fluid flow in porous media, enabling a reduction in induction time by ∼88% and a storage capacity of up to 150.6 v/v by adjusting the load water amount. The 100 wt% water-loaded wood materials exhibited the highest water conversion efficiency. Moreover, the recoverable mechanical properties make it reusable without performance degradation. The inner pore structure and hydrate morphologies were further investigated by X-ray microscopy to clarify the hydrate growth mechanism. The interconnected pores and channels make the hydrate grow in layers inside. In addition, the performance could be adjusted by simply changing the hydrophobicity to regulate the gas flow which may contribute to the large storage systems. The use of natural biomass porous materials provides an environmentally friendly and economically feasible strategy for gas storage. [Display omitted] • The modified flexible balsa wood was synthesized and applied in energy storage. • Methane hydrate induction time was reduced by ∼88% and the storage capacity was enhanced to 150.6 v /v. • The 400 wt% water loaded case exhibited the best storage performance. • The hydrate started to form in axial parenchyma structures verified by X-ray microscopy. • Tunable storage performance based on hydrophobic and hydrophilic modification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]