Kinetics of palladium catalysed partial oxidation of methane

Abstract

Catalytic partial oxidation of methane to methanol has been investigated in a pressures range of 5-15 kg/cm² and at different temperatures (573-763 K) in quartz-lined reactor using asbestos supported palladium catalyst. The effect of process variables namely, reaction temperature, ratio of the weight of the catalyst to molar flow rate of methane (<i style="">W</i>/<i style="">F</i>_A0), pressure on conversion of methane and selectivity to reaction products like methanol, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide were investigated. The kinetic study carried out indicated first order rate for the main reactions. From the effect of temperature on rate constant, activation energy and frequency factors were evaluated. The rate constants are found to be 2.53 and 1.84, activation energies are found to be 186948.60 and 162231.08 for the two main reactions.