(617df) Development of Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis in Microreactor

Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis (FTS) is the process that converts synthesis gas (syngas, a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen) into a wide range of long chain hydrocarbons and oxygenates in the presence of catalysts such as iron or cobalt. The products of the reaction include jet fuel, naphtha and diesel. The goal of this study is to design and construct a microchannel reactor that demonstrates a low selectivity to methane and high yield of naphtha and diesel range hydrocarbons. The benefit of the implementation of FTS in a microreactor include: better flow residence time uniformity, temperature control, and catalyst utilization. Better flow uniformity will achieve more uniformly selective FTS reactor products, the temperature control will narrow the product distribution and catalyst utilization will improve the yield of hydrocarbon products.

The investigation of FTS in a microreactor will examine the effects of operation conditions such as pressure, temperatures, residence time and flow ratio on the performance of the reactor. In this contribution, we will present important experimental features of the FTS reaction in a microreactor as well as summarize some recent insights on the FTS microreactor product distribution.