(Invited) Plasma Catalysis: An Emerging Electrification Technology for Sustainable Production of Fuels and Chemicals

Abstract

The conversion of inert molecules (e.g., CO2, CH4, and N2) with strong chemical bonds for the synthesis of value-added synthetic fuels and platform chemicals has attracted significant interest. However, the activation of these molecules remains a great challenge as they are thermodynamically stable and require a significant amount of energy for activation. Non-thermal plasma (NTP) is an emerging and attractive technology for gas conversions under ambient conditions. The combination of NTP with heterogeneous catalysis has great potential to generate a synergistic effect from interactions between the plasma and catalysts, which can activate catalysts at low temperatures and improve the activity and stability of the catalysts, resulting in a remarkable increase in conversion, selectivity, and yield of end-products, as well as the energy efficiency of the process. Moreover, plasma processes can be switched on and off instantly, allowing for great flexibility in decentralised chemical production using renewable energy sources, particularly intermittent renewable energy. The potential of plasma-catalytic technologies for the synthesis of fuels and chemicals via various chemical processes such as CH4 activation, CO2 conversion, and ammonia synthesis will be discussed in this presentation.