Double-layered catalytic wall-plate microreactor for process intensification of dry reforming of methane: Reaction activity improvement and coking suppression

Abstract

Based on thermodynamic equilibrium, we speculated that a reactor with high heat transfer and lower pressure loss would be effective for suppressing coking. Thus, a double-layer catalytic wall-plate microreactor (DL-CWPMR) with a baffled channel is proposed herein. In the dry reforming of methane (CH4/CO2 = 1/1, GHSV = 36,000 mlSTP‧(gcat.‧h)‒1), the CH4 conversion was improved to nearly equilibrium at 500–800 °C using DL-CWPMR with a baffle. Moreover, compared to the tubing micropacked bed reactor, the temperature gradient due to the endothermic reaction was obviously reduced, where the operating temperature was lowered by 50 K to afford 90 % methane conversion. The coking level attained a maximum at 650 °C, and its value was lower for the DL-CWPMR with a baffled channel. These two effects are due to the excellent heat transfer properties of CWPMR. DL-CWPMR can be loaded with any granular catalyst. The authors developed a DL-CWPMR with a high overall catalyst loading capacity compared to that of catalyst-coated plate reactors.