Methane conversion in the presence of oxygen under low-temperature radio frequency plasma

Abstract

Methane conversion in the presence of oxygen under low-temperature radio frequency (RF) plasma was investigated. The experiment results indicated that the following four factors, i.e., discharge voltage, discharge area, O 2/CH 4 molar ratio and total gas flowrate, affected remarkably the reaction performance. The optimum reaction conditions of methane conversion in the presence of O 2 under RF plasma are as follows: discharge voltage 1050 V, discharge area 989.1mm 2, O 2/CH 4 molar ratio 1/10 and total gas flowrate 200 ml/min. A methane conversion of 91% could be reached under the optimum conditions. Oxygen is good for the breaking of C-H bonds and also acts as a sort of thinner. According to the low-temperature plasma characteristics, the macroscopic kinetics model of methane conversion in the presence of O 2 under radio frequency plasma was studied.