METAL MONOLITHS FOR HIGH SELECTIVITY CHEMICAL SYNTHESIS

PARTIAL OXIDATION REACTIONS ARE VERY IMPORTANT ROUTES TO CHEMICAL SYNTHESIS. A SIGNIFICANT FRACTION OF ALL CATALYTIC PROCESSES ARE OXIDATION REACTIONS AND THERE IS A PRESSING DEMAND TO IMPROVE YIELD AND REDUCE WASTE BYPRODUCTS IN THE SYNTHESIS OF A WIDE VARIETY OF SPECIALTY CHEMICALS. IN RECENT RESEARCH BREAK-THROUGHS, CERAMIC MONOLITHS HAVE BEEN USED IN PARTIAL OXIDATION PROCESSES TO CATALYZE VERY FAST, HIGH SELECTIVITY SYNTHESIS REACTIONS, SUCH AS THE DIRECT PRODUCTION OF SYNGAS FROM METHANE, OLEFINS FROM HIGHER ALKANES, AND FORMALDEHYDE FROM METHANOL. RESEARCHERS ARE TESTING METAL MONOLITHS (SOLID METAL PLATES PERFORATED WITH SMALL, UNIFORM HOLES) AS A NEW CATALYST FOR CARRYING OUT THESE REACTIONS. METAL MONOLITHS HAVE HIGH THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY, SO THAT THE HEAT OF REACTION CAN BE REMOVED AND THE REACTION TEMPERATURE REGULATED. THIS ALLOWS HIGHER SELECTIVITIES AND GREATER YIELDS THAN ARE POSSIBLE WITH CURRENTLY AVAILABLE CERAMIC MONOLITH CATALYSTS. A NOVEL FABRICATION TECHNIQUE ALLOWS THIN LAYERS OF NOBLE METALS TO BE INCORPORATED INTO THE HOLES OF THE MONOLITH SO THAT THE REACTION RATE CAN BE FURTHER ENHANCED. MONOLITHS CAN BE FABRICATED WITH HOLE DIAMETERS LESS THAN ONE MICRON AND POROSITIES AS HIGH AS 65 PERCENT. THE METAL MONOLITH CATALYSTS CAN BE MOUNTED IN LARGE ARRAYS AND SCALED UP FOR COMMERCIAL CHEMICAL PRODUCTION.