Catalytic dry reforming over a platinum-based catalyst is described experimentally and numerically in a laboratory pilot-plant flow reactor. The results reveal that coking in the upper part of the catalyst bed and at the entrance of the reactor occurs, depending on the composition of the reaction mixture and the respective temperature. To a significant extent, gas-phase reactions play a role as being the cause for the observed coking behavior in the reforming of methane in the presence of carbon dioxide at high temperatures of 1123−1273 K and at 20 bar. Hydrogen addition can inhibit coke formation better than water addition. The reactor is modeled by a one-dimensional description of the reacting field using elementary-step reaction mechanisms of up to 4238 gas-phase reactions among 1034 species and 58 heterogeneous reactions among 8 gas-phase species and 14 surface-adsorbed species. The study leads an optimized positioning of the catalyst in a technical reformer tube.

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Water‐in‐oil‐in‐water (W/O/W) and water‐in‐oil (W/O) emulsions of paraffin oil were prepared with sorbitan monooleate (Span 80)/polyoxyethylene sorbitan monooleate (Tween 80) or polyethylene glycol monostearate (SG‐6), respectively. The physical characteristics and the absorption of toluene gas in these emulsions were investigated to evaluate the influence of the emulsifier dosage and the oil/water ratio. Both investigated W/O/W emulsions provided high stabilities and low viscosities. The absorption of toluene gas was excellent, with little foam occurring during the absorption. Although the W/O emulsions with 2–5 % SG‐6 were of high stability, their high viscosities strongly limited their application as volatile organic compound absorbents. Stable emulsions consisted of small and uniform droplets and some emulsions underwent mild demulsification after the absorption.

High throughput experimentation (HTE) approaches and the choice of the design of experiment (DoE) tools are discussed with regard to their convenience and applicability in homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis as a concerted workflow. Much attention is given to diverse methodologies and strategies, which are fundamental for the experimental planning. For two target reactions in two case studies presented in this chapter, HTE methods were applied to create and evaluate catalyst libraries. A homogeneous catalyst case study is illustrated first, which deals with parallel synthesis and screening of organometallic catalysts in the polymerisation of ethylene. The second case study (heterogeneous catalysis) focuses on coherent synthesis and testing of dopant effects on the performance of oxidation catalysts in a reaction of transformation of n-butane to maleic anhydride. Supporting examples from the literature described here show that careful planning of libraries and test conditions is vital in high throughput experimentation in order to deliver meaningful results leading to performance improvements or disruptive new findings.

Renewable feedstocks have been in the spotlight of intensive research activities over the past 10 years. Glycerol is one of the feedstock molecules which has been the target of numerous research efforts, for a number of reasons. First of all glycerol is currently readily available due to the fact that it is a couple product of the first generation biodiesel production. Secondly glycerol can be taken as a representative model substrate to explore the options of selective conversion of sugar alcohols to products of value. In our paper we discuss potential routes for the valorisation of glycerol which lead to intermediates already established within the petrochemical value chain and illustrate what impact high throughput experimentation may have as a success factor on research and development for this field. As illustrative examples we have chosen the oxidative transformation of glycerol to acrolein and acrylic acid and the carbonylation of glycerol to C4-acids.