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

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.

Exploiting two-dimensional morphology of molybdenum oxycarbide to enable efficient catalytic dry reforming of methane

The two-dimensional morphology of molybdenum oxycarbide (2D-Mo2COx) nanosheets dispersed on silica is found vital for imparting high stability and catalytic activity in the dry reforming of methane. Here we report that owing to the maximized metal utilization, the specific activity of 2D-Mo2COx/SiO2 exceeds that of other Mo2C catalysts by ca. 3 orders of magnitude. 2D-Mo2COx is activated by CO2, yielding a surface oxygen coverage that is optimal for its catalytic performance and a Mo oxidation state of ca. +4. According to ab initio calculations, the DRM proceeds on Mo sites of the oxycarbide nanosheet with an oxygen coverage of 0.67 monolayer. Methane activation is the rate-limiting step, while the activation of CO2 and the C-O coupling to form CO are low energy steps. The deactivation of 2D-Mo2COx/SiO2 under DRM conditions can be avoided by tuning the contact time, thereby preventing unfavourable oxygen surface coverages.

Dry reforming of methane by stable Ni-Mo nanocatalysts on single-crystalline MgO

Large-scale carbon fixation requires high-volume chemicals production from carbon dioxide. Dry reforming of methane could provide an economically feasible route if coke- and sintering-resistant catalysts were developed. Here, we report a molybdenum-doped nickel nanocatalyst that is stabilized at the edges of a single-crystalline magnesium oxide (MgO) support and show quantitative production of synthesis gas from dry reforming of methane. The catalyst runs more than 850 hours of continuous operation under 60 liters per unit mass of catalyst per hour reactive gas flow with no detectable coking. Synchrotron studies also show no sintering and reveal that during activation, 2.9 nanometers as synthesized crystallites move to combine into stable 17-nanometer grains at the edges of MgO crystals above the Tammann temperature. Our findings enable an industrially and economically viable path for carbon reclamation, and the "Nanocatalysts On Single Crystal Edges" technique could lead to stable catalyst designs for many challenging reactions.

Kinetic study of the methane dry (CO2) reforming reaction over the Ce0.70La0.20Ni0.10O2−δ catalyst

The kinetic behaviour of the Ce_0.70La_0.20Ni_0.10O_2−δ catalyst during the methane dry reforming reaction was investigated in a fixed bed reactor in the temperature range of 923–1023 K with the partial pressure of CH₄ and CO₂ ranging between 5 and 50 kPa.

Impact of small promoter amounts on coke structure in dry reforming of methane over Ni/ZrO2

Choosing the correct alkali metal as a promoter not only reduces coke formation in dry reforming of methane but also removes coke via gasification.

Isolated Zr Surface Sites on Silica Promote Hydrogenation of CO2 to CH3OH in Supported Cu Catalysts

Copper nanoparticles supported on zirconia (Cu/ZrO₂) or related supported oxides (Cu/ZrO₂/SiO₂) show promising activity and selectivity for the hydrogenation of CO₂ to CH₃OH. However, the role of the support remains controversial because most spectroscopic techniques provide information dominated by the bulk, making interpretation and formulation of structure-activity relationships challenging. In order to understand the role of the support and in particular of the Zr surface species at a molecular level, a surface organometallic chemistry approach has been used to tailor a silica support containing isolated Zr(IV) surface sites, on which copper nanoparticles (∼3 nm) are generated. These supported Cu nanoparticles exhibit increased CH₃OH activity and selectivity compared to those supported on SiO₂, reaching catalytic performances comparable to those of the corresponding Cu/ZrO₂. Ex situ and in situ X-ray absorption spectroscopy reveals that the Zr sites on silica remain isolated and in their +4 oxidation state, while ex situ solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and catalytic performances show that similar mechanisms are involved with the single-site support and ZrO₂. These observations imply that Zr(IV) surface sites at the periphery of Cu particles are responsible for promoting CH₃OH formation on Cu-Zr-based catalysts and provide a guideline to develop selective CH₃OH synthesis catalysts.