Issue 19, 2023

Oxidative coupling of methane under microwave: core–shell catalysts for selective C2 production and homogeneous temperature control

Abstract

The oxidative coupling of methane (OCM) was investigated using a catalyst with a core@shell structure or a physical mixture comprised of MgO and SiC or Fe3O4, which was thermally activated via two different heating methods, namely, conventional resistive heating and microwave heating. The use of microwave radiation together with the catalyst structure was essential to achieve high reaction efficiency. The C2 selectivity and yield were correlated with the presence of temperature gradients in the catalytic bed under microwave radiation. These thermal gradients and their distribution were experimentally evaluated using operando thermal visualization. Hotspots and thermal gradients were beneficial to achieve a higher CH4 conversion; however, it was found that a uniform reactor temperature was crucial to attain a high C2 yield in OCM and the core@shell structure is beneficial. The hypothesis that an enhanced OCM performance can be achieved by keeping the catalyst material hot and the gas cold, using microwave to prevent uncontrolled gas-phase reactions was supported by a kinetic study and experimentally demonstrated.

Graphical abstract: Oxidative coupling of methane under microwave: core–shell catalysts for selective C2 production and homogeneous temperature control

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
02 May 2023
Accepted
28 Aug 2023
First published
29 Aug 2023
This article is Open Access
Creative Commons BY license

Catal. Sci. Technol., 2023,13, 5757-5766

Oxidative coupling of methane under microwave: core–shell catalysts for selective C2 production and homogeneous temperature control

R. Kaneda, J. Palomo, L. Hu and A. Urakawa, Catal. Sci. Technol., 2023, 13, 5757 DOI: 10.1039/D3CY00606A

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