Modelling the dynamics of hydrogen synthesis from methane in nanosecond‐pulsed plasmas

Abstract

AbstractA chemical kinetics model was developed to characterise the gas‐phase dynamics of H2 production in nanosecond‐pulsed CH4 plasmas. Pulsed behaviour was observed in the calculated electric field, electron temperature and species densities at all pressures. The model agrees reasonably with experimental results, showing CH4 conversion at 30% and C2H2 and H2 as major products. The underlying mechanisms in CH4 dissociation and H2 formation were analysed, highlighting the large contribution of vibrationally excited CH4 and H2 to coupling energy from the plasma into gas‐phase heating, and revealing that H2 synthesis is not affected by applied pressure, with selectivity remaining unchanged at ~42% in the 1–5 bar range.