A theoretical study on high pressure partial oxidation of methane in Rh-washcoated monoliths

Abstract

Rhodium coated monoliths offer a considerable potential for efficient industrial scale production of syngas through catalytic partial oxidation of methane. Much of the previous experimental and theoretical researches in this area have been conducted at a near atmospheric pressure, whereas for industrial applications, pressures up to 30bar may be required. The boundary-layer flow model is used to make a thorough investigation of partial oxidation of methane in monolithic reactors at high pressure. The theoretical findings of the present study show that provided the operating conditions are chosen carefully, increasing the pressure does not significantly affect the selectivity, yield and quality of the syngas compared to low pressure operation. Experimental evidence supporting the theoretical findings reported in this article are emerging through the high pressure measurements at the University of Minnesota (Bitsch-Larsen et al., 2008).