What is methane?

Question

Please explain with details.

Answer 1

methane is the most basic hydro-carbon. Its also the most basic alkane. It's a colorless, odorless gas. It is the main component of natural gas. It is a major greenhouse gas, and when burnt it creates water vapor and carbon dioxide. It naturally occurs in digestive systems due to bactierial production, in natural gas deposits, and methane hydrate in the ocean.

Answer 2

Methane is a fuel composed of natural gas. Methane is also a potent greenhouse gas which is a source for global warming.

Answer 3

Very simply methane is one of the simplest hydrocarbon gases - technically an alkane. The chemical formula is CH4 which means there are 4 hydrogen atoms attached to 1 Carbon atom.

It is colorless and ordorless. It is highly flammable and the source of many of coal mine explosions.

It is generated naturally from decaying vegetation (such as in a landfill or swamp) which has limited amounts of oxygen or from bacterial action. Cows generate a lot of methane gas from their digestion of grasses - contrary to what many say, they release the methane by belching (like indigestion in cows) not by flatulence.

Geologically it can be derived from other kerogens which are being converted to natural gas. Being the simplest, it is one of the first to be generated and persists throughout the hydrocarbon generation or cracking processes.

It is the predominant gas (but not the only gas) derived from coal and shale. As a result it is often called "coal gas" or "shale gas".

Answer 4

CH4 and a nicer way of saying natural gas. Uranas and Neptunes atmosphere is primarily made up of Methane and is generally referred as Cow farts

Answer 5

Methane is a gas at room temperature. It is a hydrocarbon, naturally found underground and burned for heating and for generating electricity.

Its chemical composition is CH4. Its molecules have a carbon atom in the middle, surrounded by four hydrogen atoms. In chemical terms, it is the shortest alkane.

Answer 6

A molecule made up of a carbon atom and four hydrogen atoms, each linked to the carbon atom by a single valence bond.

It is the first (lightest) in a list of single-valence-linked hydrocarbons in which carbons are joined in a straight line:
methane
ethane
propane
butane
pentane
hexane
heptane
octane
(and so on)
(check out a few of these on Wikipedia)

Answer 7

Any fuel that burns puts off methane gas.

Answer 8

a hydrocarbon, in the form of a gas, at least on earth.
Methane is plentiful on Uranus.
no, I'm not kidding.

Answer 9

comes from decomposing plant material etc. swamp gas.. cows pass a lot of methane.. it also breaks down the Ozone layer

Answer 10

A gas emitted by cows.