Plasma Chemical Synthesis of Valuable Fuels and Chemicals from n-Hexane and Its Mixture with Methanol and Ethanol

Abstract

Among several emerging technologies that are focused on finding sustainable routes for reforming heavy oils and/or alcohols into valuable fuels and complex chemicals, nonthermal plasma shows promise both due to its non-equilibrium nature and its ability to use intermittent renewable electricity. In this work, we investigate its interaction with organic compounds as a "green" process for simultaneously synthesizing hydrogen, cracking heavy oils, and producing more valuable, complex chemicals. A pin-to-plate microsecond-pulsed argon plasma was used at temperatures of 20, 0, and −20 °C. Using 390 kJ/kg of specific energy input, we were able to achieve a conversion efficiency of 771.4 mmol/kW h for the treatment of the hexane− ethanol mixture at 0 °C. It is concluded that the production of H 2 and other lower fuels (gas hydrocarbons) can be increased by the addition of alcohols in our reforming processes. At 0 °C, the production efficiency and selectivity of gas products were found to be higher compared to other temperatures. A low temperature of −20 °C showed the highest production efficiency for liquid products. Product formation was observed to mainly undergo dissociation and dehydrogenation, whose reaction pathway is also discussed.

Synthesis of Higher-Order Nitrogen-Containing Organic Compounds from Butylamine Using a Microsecond Pulse Dielectric Barrier Discharge

“…Furthermore, using a simple amine can alleviate the requirement of high pressure and temperature for synthesizing higher-order amines, cutting down the energy costs. As reported in our group's earlier paper, 21 we observed that a low temperature of −20 °C increases the production efficiency of liquid products significantly as opposed to room temperature, and thus, it was maintained across all studies except when we studied the effect of temperature. Different operating conditions are investigated to control or induce the reaction chemistry, knowing which, our proposed reactor could potentially be a sustainable alternative to the current NOC synthesis methods, for e.g., the Schiff base reaction for amination.…”

“…In this regard, non-thermal plasma (NTP) can prove to be a notable solution, owing to its previous use in different fuel-reforming studies involving various carbon sources like alcohols, − hydrocarbons, − and a mixture of both . NTP has the ability to produce highly energetic electrons at ambient temperature and pressure conditions.…”

Direct Hydrocarbon Upgrade from n-Hexane, n-Octane, and n-Decane Using a Microsecond Pulsed Dielectric Barrier Discharge Non-Thermal Plasma

“…The microsecond pulsed DBD reactor used in this contribution was describe before by Banerjee et al [12] and is shown in Fig. 1.…”

“…A previous study on a dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) reactor at the McGill PCPL laboratory was conducted by Banerjee et al [12]. A pin and plate NTP was ignited directly over different hexane-based mixtures.…”

Transition into Net-Zero Carbon Community from Fossil Fuels: Life Cycle Assessment of Light-Driven CO2 Conversion to Methanol Using Graphitic Carbon Nitride

“…In conjunction with the carbon-neutral goal of UNFCCC, it is crucial to seek renewable and sustainable technologies such as electrocatalysis, photocatalysis, nonthermal plasma, and membrane separation to address the dilemma. Among them, the photocatalysis process has appeared as a potent alternative to yield carbon fuels, which is known for its mild operating conditions. − It is a sustainable process by utilizing atmospheric CO 2 waste as the raw material and inexhaustible sunlight as the primary driving energy .…”