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Title: Catalytic gasification of graphite or carbon. Annual report, October 1, 1984-September 30, 1985

Technical Report ·
OSTI ID:6292075

Highlights for this quarter are: (1) In the gasification of graphite over KOH/NiO catalysts at 860K, more hydrogen and less CO and methane are observed than corresponds to equilibrium. CO2 is a major product, along with hydrogen. (2) A char derived from Illinois No. 6 coal was gasified after impregnation with KOH-NiO. The gasification with steam resulted in almost identical results with those obtained from graphite. The char gave larger amounts of methane (about 1% of gas products) than graphite at gasification temperatures of up to 900K. (3) Nickel is a good gasification catalyst, but it is rapidly poisoned in graphite gasification. Nickel oxide alone is not a catalyst for gasification, but mixtures of NiO and KOH are and are greatly superior to either KOH or Ni alone. (4) The gasification rate of both graphite and char in the presence of KOH/NiO appears to be independent of steam partial pressure in the range tested. (5) To determine whether methane is a major primary product which is then decomposed by steam reforming, methane was added to the steam feed. The vast majority (95+%) of the added methane was recovered in the product, showing that steam reforming plays at most a minor role. However, in the presence of added methane the gasification rate declined. While the reasons for this are not yet clear, they must lie in a surface poisoning by some decomposition product of the small amounts of methane disappearance. Addition of hydrogen to the steam feed caused about a 25% decrease in the rate of gas production as did the addition of CO2 instead of hydrogen. (6) Addition of CO to the steam feed to KOH-NiO impregnated graphite resulted in a 25% increase in the rate of gasification. (7) Adsorption-desorption experiments on graphite using labelled CO, CO2 and H2O have been carried out. If CO is adsorbed at room temperature most of it is desorbed at relatively low temperature (450K). 12 figs.

Research Organization:
Lawrence Berkeley Lab., CA (USA)
DOE Contract Number:
AC03-76SF00098
OSTI ID:
6292075
Report Number(s):
LBL-20325; ON: DE86005842
Resource Relation:
Other Information: Portions of this document are illegible in microfiche products. Original copy available until stock is exhausted
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English