Formic acid (FA) is considered as a potential durable energy carrier. It contains~4.4 wt % of hydrogen (or 53 g/L) which can be catalytically released and converted to electricity using a proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell. Although various catalysts have been reported to be very selective towards FA dehydrogenation (resulting in H 2 and CO 2 ), a side-production of CO and H 2 O (FA dehydration) should also be considered, because most PEM hydrogen fuel cells are poisoned by CO. In this research, a highly active aqueous catalytic system containing Ru(III) chloride and meta-trisulfonated triphenylphosphine (mTPPTS) as a ligand was applied for FA dehydrogenation in a continuous mode. CO concentration (8-70 ppm) in the resulting H 2 + CO 2 gas stream was measured using a wide range of reactor operating conditions. The CO concentration was found to be independent on the reactor temperature but increased with increasing FA feed. It was concluded that unwanted CO concentration in the H 2 + CO 2 gas stream was dependent on the current FA concentration in the reactor which was in turn dependent on the reaction design. Next, preferential oxidation (PROX) on a Pt/Al 2 O 3 catalyst was applied to remove CO traces from the H 2 + CO 2 stream. It was demonstrated that CO concentration in the stream could be reduced to a level tolerable for PEM fuel cells (~3 ppm).

Quaternary ammonium salts (QAS) are an important part of the increasing surfactant market. Conventional production processes employ toxic alkyl halides in a Menshutkin reaction with a tertiary amine (DMDA). Dimethyl...