Natural gas for oil refineries, and the fuel source in hydrogen vehicles. Protein rich animal and fish feed is produced by feeding natural gas to Methylococcus capsulatus bacteria on commercial scale. Natural gas is also used in the manufacture of fabrics, glass, steel, plastics, paint, and other products. Natural gas is mainly composed of methane. After release to the atmosphere it is removed by gradual oxidation to carbon dioxide and water by hydroxyl radicals () formed in the troposphere or stratosphere, giving the overall chemical reaction + 2 → + 2. While the lifetime of atmospheric methane is relatively short when compared
Liquefied natural gas Twomey received patents for a process for large scale liquefaction of natural gas. The intention was to store natural gas as a liquid so it could be used for shaving peak energy loads during cold snaps. Because of large volumes it is not practical to store natural gas, as a gas, near atmospheric pressure. However, if it can be liquefied it can be stored in a volume 600 times smaller. This is a practical way to store it but the gas must be stored at −260 °F (−162 °C). There are two processes for liquefying natural gas in large quantities.