Substituted natural gas (SNG) production using an environment-friendly, metal-free modified beta zeolite (@BEA) catalyst with a dandelion flower-like structure

Abstract

Natural gas (NG) is one of the most efficient energy source compared with the other fossil fuels (coal and petroleum) owing to its higher calorific value and slag free combustion properties. Increasing demand for NG has led to alternative methods of producing substitute NG, which is produced artificially by the process of methanation of syngas derived from biomass or coal. In this study, a modified beta zeolite (@BEA) catalyst was prepared by the microemulsion method, and several characterization techniques were employed to examine their physicochemical properties. The catalyst is than tested for methanation of syngas. The @BEA catalyst exhibited superior CO conversion (62.60%), methane selectivity (75.65%) and high stability because of high basicity percentage and high surface area. Using low gas hourly space velocity favoured methane production in the following order: 30000 > 50000 > 70000 > 90000 h−1. Besides, an associative reaction pathway was noticed in methane formation during the in-situ FTIR spectrum of carbon monoxide and hydrogen. This work provides fundamental insights about CO hydrogenation over unique dandelion-like structure of modified beta zeolite (@BEA) catalyst, that can potentially be applied in process engineering of methane production on commercial level.