English: Representation of methane hydrate. The hydrate cage ("host") consists of different types of cavities (voids), inside which different molecules ("guest molecules") can be placed. The picture shows a cage with twelve flat faces (dodecahedron), which is most often found in clathrate structures. In this way methane hydrates (hydromethanes) are formed when the "guest" is a methane molecules.

Clathrate hydrates are promising from a practical point of view: as a potential source of fuel. This interest in methane hydrates arose after the discovery of huge reserves of methane, which are larger than the reserves of oil, gas and other fuels combined. Clathrate hydrates are also interesting for fundamental science, since the unusual structure of clathrate hydrates also affects their physical properties. For example, it was found that the thermal conductivity of crystalline clathrates has a dependence characteristic of amorphous bodies. Therefore, gas hydrates belong to a special class of substances - glassy crystals, which, being crystals, have properties of amorphous bodies.

Nowadays, clathrate hydrates can be obtained artificially in laboratory conditions. It is planned that the advantages of their amazing structure will be achieved by increasing the safety of transportation of gases in clathrate form. For example, hydrogen in a clathrate structure is much less explosive than in pure gaseous form.