Methane

Chemical structure of methane

Methane is a chemical compound with the chemical formula CH₄ (one carbon atom bonded to four hydrogen atoms). It is a group-14 hydride, the simplest alkane, and the main component of natural gas. The relative abundance of methane on Earth makes it an economically attractive fuel, although capturing and storing it poses technical challenges due to its gaseous state under normal conditions for temperature and pressure.

Naturally occurring methane is found both below ground and under the seafloor and is formed by both geological and biological processes. The largest reservoir of methane is under the seafloor in the form of methane clathrates. When methane reaches the surface and the atmosphere, it is known as atmospheric methane. It has also been detected on other planets, including Mars, which has implications for astrobiology research.

Dependencies

• Carbon
• Hydrogen
  • Methane
    • Natural gas

See also

• Fuel
• Hydrocarbon
• Chemical compounds

References

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Methane, which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License (view authors).