Quo Vadis Dry Reforming of Methane?—A Review on Its Chemical, Environmental, and Industrial Prospects

Abstract

In recent years, the catalytic dry reforming of methane (DRM) has increasingly come into academic focus. The interesting aspect of this reaction is seemingly the conversion of CO2 and methane, two greenhouse gases, into a valuable synthesis gas (syngas) mixture with an otherwise unachievable but industrially relevant H2/CO ratio of one. In a possible scenario, the chemical conversion of CO2 and CH4 to syngas could be used in consecutive reactions to produce synthetic fuels, with combustion to harness the stored energy. Although the educts of DRM suggest a superior impact of this reaction to mitigate global warming, its potential as a chemical energy converter and greenhouse gas absorber has still to be elucidated. In this review article, we will provide insights into the industrial maturity of this reaction and critically discuss its applicability as a cornerstone in the energy transition. We derive these insights from assessing the current state of research and knowledge on DRM. We conclude that the entire industrial process of syngas production from two greenhouse gases, including heating with current technologies, releases at least 1.23 moles of CO2 per mol of CO2 converted in the catalytic reaction. Furthermore, we show that synthetic fuels derived from this reaction exhibit a negative carbon dioxide capturing efficiency which is similar to burning methane directly in the air. We also outline potential applications and introduce prospective technologies toward a net-zero CO2 strategy based on DRM.

Optimizing barium promoter for nickel catalyst supported on yttria‐stabilized zirconia in dry reforming of methane

“…In this scenario, barium is helpful to reduce the amount of carbon deposition on the surface of the catalysts during the DRM reaction course 6,8,15,43,44 …”

“…In this scenario, barium is helpful to reduce the amount of carbon deposition on the surface of the catalysts during the DRM reaction course. 6,8,15,43,44 Furthermore, oxygen radical, generated by the decomposition of the adsorbed carbon dioxide over the oxygen vacancies of yttria-stabilized ZrO 2 support, takes part in the processes of regenerating metallic nickel sites by the reaction with the deposited carbon and adsorbed hydrogen atom, produced by the methane decomposition. 50…”

“…Therefore, baria is very useful in endowing the catalysts with carbon resistance properties 6,8,15,43,44 …”

“…Therefore, baria is very useful in endowing the catalysts with carbon resistance properties. 6,8,15,43,44 Herein, several nickel-based, barium-promoted, and yttria-stabilized zirconia catalysts were prepared via the incipient wetness impregnation method to optimize the barium loading and its influence on the activity and stability of NiZrY catalysts.…”

Combustion, Chemistry, and Carbon Neutrality

“…602−606 Detailed investigations of catalytic reactions in a combustion context can profit from the analytical expertise obtained from inspection of gas-phase combustion systems, 223,607 e.g., by employing VUV-PI-MBMS to analyze the selective conversion of syngas to light olefins, 608 or PEPICO spectroscopy for tracing gas-phase radicals (Section 2.1.2) in a study of light alkane functionalization, in which this technique was coupled with operando spectroscopy and DFT calculations. 225 Reactions that involve catalytic treatment of gaseous species of importance in a combustion context, such as in catalytic combustion, 226,609−616 exhaust gas aftertreatment, 617−623 syngas conversion, 608,624 partial oxidation, 330,615,625 dry reforming, 358,605,626 chemical looping partial oxidation for H 2 and syngas production, 627 synthesis of ammonia as a noncarbon gaseous fuel, 628 methanation, 335 methanol-to-olefin conversion, 629 and further reactions, present experimental and mechanistic challenges. The complexity of such reaction processes is evident e.g., from the investigation of Li et al on C 2 −C 4 light olefin production from syngas using a specific ZnGaO x spinel catalyst.…”