The high-yield direct synthesis of dimethyl ether from CO₂ and H₂ in a dry reaction environment

Abstract

Highly efficient DME synthesis from CO2 and H2 was realized in a dry reaction environment via the incorporation of a water-conduction membrane.

Recent Progress in Direct DME Synthesis and Potential of Bifunctional Catalysts

“…For methanol and direct DME synthesis, the removal of the by-product water using a membrane is discussed to increase product yield by increasing and decreasing the partial pressure of the reactants and the inhibiting by-product water, respectively, which also helps to protect the catalyst from deactivation [148,149]. Improved CO 2 conversion and high methanol yield were reported employing a zeolitebased membrane reactor at different H 2 /CO 2 feed ratios and temperatures compared to a conventional reactor [150,151].…”

“…In the work by Li et al [149], a Na + -gated water-conducting membrane was incorporated into the direct DME synthesis reactor to generate a dry reaction environment. According to the authors, due to the absence of water, the activities of the CO 2 hydrogenation catalyst (Cu/ZnO/Al 2 O 3 ) and the methanol dehydration catalyst (HZSM-5) are boosted 4-and 10-fold, respectively.…”

Synthesis of size-controlled boehmite sols: application in high-performance hydrogen-selective ceramic membranes

“…Oligomerization: (6) where R is ethyl. During hydrolysis, alkoxide linkages are broken to produce aluminum hydroxides.…”

“…The combination of reaction and separation also allows for increased conversion at lower temperatures, which increases process efficiency by lowering energy consumption as compared to separation in a separate stage using pressure swing adsorption or cryogenic distillation. [3][4][5][6][7] Various types of hydrogen-selective membranes have been developed including dense metal or metallic membranes, 8 metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), 9 perovskites, 10 polymer, 11 and other two-dimensional material membranes. 12 Among these, silica-based microporous membranes are a promising technology for high purity hydrogen production in membrane reactors because of their high thermal stability, chemical resistance, and moderate cost.…”

Separation enhanced methanol and dimethyl ether synthesis

“…The developed NaA zeolite membrane reactor was also demonstrated in the direct production of DME from CO 2 , achieving a single-pass conversion up to 73% and a DME yield up to 54.5%. 11 In parallel, sorption enhanced technology for the production of DME has been developed and scaled up in recent years. 4,[12][13][14][15][16][17][18] Interestingly, the most promising materials for high temperature steam adsorption are again LTAtype zeolites.…”