Abstract
A set of bending tests of clathrate hydrate single crystals has been performed for the first time to reveal their mechanical properties. The samples used in the tests were columnar single crystals of tetrahydrofuran (THF) clathrate hydrate, each grown from an aqueous THF solution filling the space between parallel temperature-controlled walls, into the form of a fixed beam spanning the space between the walls or a cantilever fixed on either one of the walls. The single crystals thus grown were subjected to in-situ bending tests in the strain-rate range 1 × 10−5 - 4 × 10−3 s−1. Applying the classical theory of the mechanics of beams to the observations obtained in the tests, we deduced the stress-strain relations for individual crystals and then evaluated their strength and Young's modulus to be 0.89-44 MPa and 0.36-32 GPa respectively.
