Small Molecule Catalysts for Harvesting Methane Gas

• Main Authors: Baker, S. E., Ceron-Hernandez, M., Oakdale, J., Lau, E. Y.
• Language: unknown
• Published: 2021
• Subjects: 03 NATURAL GAS; Arctic; Ice; permafrost
• Online Access: http://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1338170; https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1338170; https://doi.org/10.2172/1338170

As the average temperature of the earth increases the impact of these changes are becoming apparent. One of the most dramatic changes to the environment is the melting of arctic permafrost. The disappearance of the permafrost has resulted in release of streams of methane that was trapped in remote areas as gas hydrates in ice. Additionally, the use of fracking has also increased emission of methane. Currently, the methane is either lost to the atmosphere or flared. If these streams of methane could be brought to market, this would be an abundant source of revenue. A cheap conversion of gaseous methane to a more convenient form for transport would be necessary to economical. Conversion of methane is a difficult reaction since the C-H bond is very stable (104 kcal/mole). At the industrial scale, the Fischer-Tropsch reaction can be used to convert gaseous methane to liquid methanol but is this method is impractical for these streams that have low pressures and are located in remote areas. Additionally, the Fischer-Tropsch reaction results in over oxidation of the methane leading to many products that would need to be separated.