Dense ceramic membranes for partial oxygenation of methane

Conference · Sat Dec 31 04:00:00 EST 1994

OSTI ID:214532

Balachandran, U; Dusek, J T; Mieville, R L ^[1]

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1. Argonne National Lab., IL (United States); and others

Several perovskite-type oxides (ABO{sub 3}) that contain cation-dopants show mixed (electronic/ionic) conductivity. These mixed-conductivity oxides are promising materials for oxygen-permeating membranes that can operate without electrodes. One could use this material for producing synthesis gas (CO + H{sub 2}, syngas) by direct conversion of methane, the main component of natural gas. The syngas could be used to produce high-value-added products ranging from environmentally friendly liquid fuels to feedstocks for a whole range of chemical processes. This direct electrochemical conversion technology based on dense ceramic membranes should be of great importance to petrochemical industries. The chemical-phase behavior of the ceramic powders in the La-Sr-Fe-Co-O system with various stoichiometries is studied by high-temperature in-situ X-ray diffraction (XRD) as a function of oxygen partial pressure. Membrane tubes are fabricated from the calcined powders by a plastic extrusion technique. The sintered tubes are characterized by scanning electron microscopy and XRD and evaluated in a reactor operated at {approx}850{degrees}C for direct conversion of methane into syngas in the presence of a reforming catalyst. Methane conversion efficiencies of >99% have been observed. Some of the reactor tubes have been operated for up to {approx}500 h. In this presentation, the authors describe the fabrication of the dense membrane tubes, their characterization, and their performance in the conversion reactor.

• OSTI ID: 214532
• Report Number(s): CONF-940713--
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

03 NATURAL GAS
10 SYNTHETIC FUELS
36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
CATALYSTS
CATALYTIC EFFECTS
CATIONS
CERAMICS
CHEMICAL PREPARATION
COBALT OXIDES
IRON OXIDES
LANTHANUM OXIDES
MEMBRANES
METHANE
OXIDATION
SCANNING ELECTRON MICROSCOPY
STRONTIUM OXIDES
SYNTHESIS
X-RAY DIFFRACTION