A Disruptive Innovation for Upgrading Methane to C3 Commodity Chemicals

Abstract

There are large reserves of stranded natural gas waiting for a viable solution and smaller scale biogas opportunities offering methane feedstocks rich in CO2, for which utilization can become an innovation advantage. C123 will evaluate how to best valorise these unexploited methane resources by an efficient and selective transformation into easy- to- transport liquids such as propanol and propanal that can be transformed further into propylene and fed into the 6B$ polypropylene market. In C123 the selective transformation of methane to C3 hydrocarbons will be realized via a combination of Oxidative Conversion of Methane (OCoM) and hydroformylation (HF), including thorough smart process design and integration under industrial relevant conditions. All C123 technologies exist at TRL 3, and the objectives of C123 will result in the further development of this technology to TRL 5 with a great focus on the efficient the overall integration of not only the reaction steps but also the required purification and separation steps, incorporating the relevant state-of-the-art engineering expertise.

Environmental Performance Assessment of a Novel Process Concept for Propanol Production from Widely Available and Wasted Methane Sources

“…Second, propanol can be processed downstream when impurities are created. Ethane must not necessarily be removed because this compound is even more reactive than methane under oxygenated conditions in OCoM …”

“…First, feedstocks containing methane (C1) are converted into ethylene (C2) via a so-called oxidative conversion of methane (OCoM). Second, ethylene is transformed into propanol (C3) via hydroformylation followed by hydrogenation . Hydroformylation is typically applied to produce aldehydes by the reaction of ethylene with CO/H 2 via homogeneous catalysis. , Rh complexes are often selected as catalysts due to their high activity and selectivity .…”

Carbon-efficient conversion of natural gas and natural-gas condensates to chemical products and intermediate feedstocks via catalytic metal–organic framework (MOF) chemistry

“…174 Of note, Siluria has reportedly been able to lower the reaction temperature by using proprietary “nanowire” catalysts and to lift reaction yields via multi-stage reactor schemes. 175 To our knowledge, there are, as yet, no experimental examples of MOF-catalysed ethylene formation via eqn (6).2CH 4 + O 2 → C 2 H 4 + 2H 2 O…”

Kinetics Assessment of the Homogeneously Catalyzed Hydroformylation of Ethylene on an Rh Catalyst

“…This has led to an increase in the popularity of heterogeneously catalyzed hydroformylation and hydroformylation in general as a research topic, with a particular focus on the reaction mechanism and corresponding kinetics. Recently, an elegant combination of hydroformylation with OCoM (Oxidative Conversion of Methane), which produces ethylene and syngas, has been proposed, which further increases the interest in hydroformylation. A strategy for the design of a heterogeneous catalyst which is currently extensively investigated in the literature is the “heterogenization” of the homogeneous catalyst, aiming at the immobilization of the ligand-modified homogeneous catalyst, in order to maintain its catalytic performance.…”