The strategies designed to reduce methane emissions are failing and there is a requirement for a more effective technology. Hence, there is currently no direct regulation of global methane emissions. This scenario represents a unique opportunity for innovative solutions in the development of a new technology that effectively controls methane emissions. The potential of this new technology is enormous, since it will push the incorporation of methane in emission control legislation.
Traditional palladium and platinum-based catalytic converters are expensive and have proven to be inefficient at controlling methane emissions. The main problem of traditional catalysts is their sensibility to sulphur poisoning. Sulphur poisoning results in this catalysts being rapidly deactivated and therefore having short lifetimes.
Catalysts employed in my current investigations are iron and chromium metal oxides instead of noble metals. Their excellent resistance to sulphur poisoning makes them a better alternative. Investigations have shown that the presence of sulphur might actually increase the activity of the catalyst. Previous experiments have shown that chromium oxides can achieve methane conversions of over 90% in the presence of sulphur and water. There were no signs of catalyst deactivation. Other arguments in favour of metal oxides is that they are cheap and easy to source.
Another unique trait of this PhD proposal is the type of catalyst support used. Hollow fibres have an unbeatable surface area to volume ratio of up to 30,000 m2/m3. This value is six times larger than that of current monolithic supports. Ceramic hollow fibres have excellent thermochemical properties and can easily be coated with catalyst.
Combining the unconventional catalyst and support will generate a new type of groundbreaking catalytic converters. The evidence collected by this investigation will be a starting point for the development and implantation of this technology in larger applications. The multinational companies, Johnson Matthey and Sasol have already expressed their interest in supporting this investigation.
As part of my PhD, I want to research the ability to scale up and down the micro-structured catalytic converter in order to adapt it to multiple applications (from small household boilers to industrial natural gas turbines) and study the possibility of commercialising the technology.