Modellization of a microreactor for the catalytic partial oxidation of methane

Abstract

Conversion of methane and carbon dioxide, which are two of the cheapest and most abundant carbon-containing materials, into useful products is an important area of current catalytic research. This reaction has also very important environmental implications because both methane and carbon dioxide are greenhouse gases which may be converted into valuable feedstock. The aim of this work is to propose a catalytic reactor design for the conversion of methane and carbon dioxide. In this sense, simulations will be carried out from Ansys® software by means of Fluent CFD models. Then, a sensitive analysis will be performed to study the influence of flowrate, reactant ratio, pressure and temperature on the reaction conversion and selectivity profiles. Finally, a reactor prototype and optimum operational conditions will be proposed.