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Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis in Silicon and 3D Printed Stainless Steel Microchannel Microreactors

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Catalysis for Clean Energy and Environmental Sustainability

Abstract

In recent years, environmental challenges have led to a focus on the production of clean synthetic fuels from different carbon sources using Fischer-Tropsch (FT) synthesis. Catalyst development and reactor improvements are the major points of interest to obtain high selectivity toward desired hydrocarbons in FT synthesis. The first part of this chapter summarizes the fundamentals of FT synthesis, catalysts, and possible reaction mechanisms, the drawbacks of present synthesis reactors, and how microchannel microreactor (specified as microreactor in this chapter) technology addresses them with its unique characteristics. Two case studies are presented to describe catalyst screening for FT synthesis in two types of microreactors: Silicon (Si) microreactors are fabricated using conventional microfabrication techniques with dimensions 1.6 cm × 50 μm × 100 μm. Stainless steel (SS) 3D printed microreactors of dimensions 2.4 cm × 500 μm × 500 μm are fabricated by direct metal laser sintering method. The FT studies with Si and SS microreactors coated with different catalysts/supports and temperature-programmed reduction (TPR) experiments with H2 not only provide insight into metal-support interactions but also catalyst performance in terms of kinetics, selectivity, CO conversion, and stability. Conversion of syngas enriched with CO2 and CO2 utilization in FT synthesis are the key factors in the production of next-generation biofuels. A case study on the effect of silica and alumina promoters on Co-Fe-K precipitated catalysts in a lab-scale reactor to enhance CO2 utilization in FT synthesis is also included.

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Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge the funding received from NSF CREST (#260326) and UNC-ROI (#110092). Part of the work was performed at North Carolina A&T State University and Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering, a member of the Southeastern Nanotechnology Infrastructure Corridor (SENIC) and National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure (NNCI), which is supported by the National Science Foundation (Grant ECCS-1542174).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Nanoengineering, Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering, North Carolina A&T State University, Greensboro, NC, USA

    Nafeezuddin Mohammad, Shyam Aravamudhan & Debasish Kuila

  2. Department of Chemical, Biological and Bioengineering, North Carolina A&T State University, Greensboro, NC, USA

    Omar M. Basha & Lijun Wang

  3. Department of Chemistry, North Carolina A&T State University, Greensboro, NC, USA

    Sujoy Bepari, Richard Y. Abrokwah, Vishwanath Deshmane & Debasish Kuila

Authors
  1. Nafeezuddin Mohammad
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  2. Omar M. Basha
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  3. Sujoy Bepari
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  4. Richard Y. Abrokwah
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  5. Vishwanath Deshmane
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  6. Lijun Wang
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  7. Shyam Aravamudhan
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  8. Debasish Kuila
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Correspondence to Debasish Kuila .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, New Delhi, Delhi, India

    K. K. Pant

  2. Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, New Delhi, Delhi, India

    Sanjay Kumar Gupta

  3. Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology (ISM) Dhanbad, Dhanbad, Jharkhand, India

    Ejaz Ahmad

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Mohammad, N. et al. (2021). Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis in Silicon and 3D Printed Stainless Steel Microchannel Microreactors. In: Pant, K.K., Gupta, S.K., Ahmad, E. (eds) Catalysis for Clean Energy and Environmental Sustainability. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-65021-6_14

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