Fecralloy Partially Oxidizes Methane Selectively

Flaring natural gas contributes to the climate change and air pollution, also wastes a valuable source of energy. Micro Gas-to-Liquids technology (GtL) reduces flared natural gas and carbon emissions while producing value-added synthetic crude - condensate, gasoline, diesel and wax. A mobile micro-refinery unit (MRU), integrating high pressure syngas step (catalytic partial oxidation of methane, CPOX) with Fischer-Tropsch (FT) in a single vessel, reduces investment and operating cost compared to auto thermal reforming and steam reforming.

CPOX catalyst must operate at temperature exceeding 900 ^oC to achieve 90+% methane conversion and at pressure of 2 MPa to combine with FT process. FeCralloy knitted fibres are ideal supports materials because the oxidized surface alumina layer resists temperature up to 1050 ^oC . With oxidized FeCralloy as a support, we deposited 0.1%-1% Pt over the fibre surface via solution combustion synthesis. Free of pre-reduction treatment, the selectivity to syngas of the Pt FeCralloy catalyst is superior at both 0.1 MPa and 2 MPa. High pressure restrained the methane conversion and syngas selectivity. Coking deactivates the catalyst, but a quick and simple regeneration step recovers its original reactivity. The FeCralloy surface morphology remains intact after multiple reaction-regeneration cycles.