Green Hydrogen and Carbon
The catalytic reforming of methane in an electro-thermal fluidized bed (EFB) for production of hydrogen and synthetic carbon with zero emissions of green-house gases is a promising future technology.
Hydrogen is one of the acknowledged resources on the way of transition to low-carbon economies due to its wide range of possible applications in industries as a fuel in fuel cells and engines, for methanol production and other chemical products.
The process of catalytic reforming of methane, natural gas or gas derived from biomass, is an alternative to the existing methods of methane conversion like hydrogen synthesis, water electrolysis and thermochemical water conversion. The prospects for its industrial application are primarily related to the economic performance of the process, which can be increased by commercialising both of products - hydrogen and carbon material.
TMEC Lab reactors for the reforming of methane
The efficiency of the reforming technology is influenced by the next aspects:
• endothermic nature of the reaction, which requires temperature of 500-1200°C depending on the type of catalyst;
• degrading of the catalyst’s performance due to deposits of carbon on its surface;
• difficulties with energy input for up-scale units of high productivity.
Two types of effective catalysts were identified: iron oxides F2O3 and carbon materials (carbon black, natural and artificial graphite, biochar). The main advantages of these catalysts are the price and low environmental impact. However, the degree of the methane conversion and the quality of carbon material are determined by the operating parameters of the process.
Up-scaling of the process has to address the next principle issues: input of thermal energy into the reformer without partial combustion of methane, the possibility of the continuous operation of the reactor and respective replacement of the catalyst. These requirements can be met by the application of the EFB Technology, which releases thermal energy inside a fluidized bed by passing electric current through the solid phase.
The reactor performance and product quality highly depend on operating modes and catalyst properties.
The solution of the issues mentioned above is planned through experimental studies of the process of the methane reforming in a laboratory reactor with an electrothermal fluidized bed developed in the Institution.