Study of Fe2O3-Al2O3 catalyst reduction parameters and conditions for catalytic methane decomposition

Abstract

Catalytic methane decomposition (CMD) converts CH4 into value-added carbon nanotube (CNT) and hydrogen products without CO2 emission. To further improve the CMD performance in the moving fixed bed, the reduction characteristics of the catalyst were studied in the present work. Fe2O3-Al2O3 catalyst was employed and the effects of key reduction parameters (e.g., reduction gas, reduction temperature, heating process, and heating atmosphere) were investigated comprehensively. The results show that the Fe2O3-Al2O3 reduced by CH4 shows better catalytic activity than H2 due to the Fe3C generation as catalytic active sites and has a larger surface area. A higher CH4 reduction temperature improves catalytic reactivity, stability and shortens the reduction time. The CH4 as heating atmosphere shows better catalytic activity compared to H2 and N2. The morphology of CNTs obtained under different catalyst reduction conditions is basically the same. The results are expected to shed light on the reactor design and process optimization.