Technical Papers
Sep 4, 2020

Direct Conversion of Methane to Methanol over Copper-Exchanged Zeolite under Mild Conditions

Publication: Journal of Energy Engineering
Volume 146, Issue 6

Abstract

Direct methane-to-methanol (MTM) conversion in a stepwise process under mild conditions has been widely studied. Nevertheless, suitable catalysts and reaction processes for industrial applications have remained elusive. Recently, small-pore copper-exchanged zeolites [copper ion–exchanged mordenite (Cu-MOR)] have been reported as the most effective catalysts for MTM reaction, which necessitates enhancement of active sites in the catalysts and protection of methanol from overoxidation. Herein, we attempt to optimize the catalyst material compositions of Cu-MOR and to optimize the pretreatment and reaction conditions during MTM tests. We investigated effects of copper composition, catalyst activation time, and activation temperature. Rationalizing the catalyst compositions and reaction conditions achieved methanol productivity as high as 0.107  mol/mol Cu (72.63  μmol/g catalyst). We also simplified the catalyst treatment and reaction procedure, which resulted in methanol yield increase.

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Data Availability Statement

All data, models, and code generated or used during the study appear in the published article.

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Published In

Go to Journal of Energy Engineering
Journal of Energy Engineering
Volume 146Issue 6December 2020

History

Received: Apr 3, 2020
Accepted: Jul 6, 2020
Published online: Sep 4, 2020
Published in print: Dec 1, 2020
Discussion open until: Feb 4, 2021

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Authors

Affiliations

Graduate Student, Graduate School of Science and Technology, Niigata Univ., 2-8050 Ikarashi, Niigata 950-2181, Japan. Email: [email protected]
Assistant Professor, Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Program, Faculty of Engineering, Niigata Univ., 2-8050 Ikarashi, Niigata 950-2181, Japan (corresponding author). Email: [email protected]
Tadaaki Shimizu [email protected]
Professor, Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Program, Faculty of Engineering, Niigata Univ., 2-8050 Ikarashi, Niigata 950-2181, Japan. Email: [email protected]
Hee Joon Kim [email protected]
Professor, Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Program, Faculty of Engineering, Niigata Univ., 2-8050 Ikarashi, Niigata 950-2181, Japan. Email: [email protected]

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