Low-carbon footprint chemical manufacturing using plasma technology

Delikonstantis, Evangelos; Cameli, Fabio; Scapinello, Marco; Rosa, Victor Retamero De La; Stefanidis, Georgios D.

doi:10.1016/j.coche.2022.100857

Cited by 22 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…Additionally, plasma-assisted processes using renewable energy are more sustainable. 63 Furthermore, non-thermal plasmas eliminate dangerous solvents and strong oxidants used in conventional catalytic processes. Therefore, future work of upscaling, optimization, TEA, and LCA of this non-thermal oxidation process of alkanes will be worth performing.…”

Section: ■ Results and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In the plasma oxidation process of n -alkanes, the cost of separation will need to be accounted for; however, by optimizing the process for high power and short treatment time, a high energy yield and selectivity can be achieved to reduce separation and electrical costs. Additionally, plasma-assisted processes using renewable energy are more sustainable . Furthermore, non-thermal plasmas eliminate dangerous solvents and strong oxidants used in conventional catalytic processes.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Oxidative Functionalization of Long-Chain Liquid Alkanes by Pulsed Plasma Discharges at Atmospheric Pressure

Nguyen

Dimitrakellis

Talley

et al. 2022

ACS Sustainable Chem. Eng.

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We introduce the oxidation of long aliphatic alkanes using non-thermal, atmospheric plasma processing as an eco-friendly route for organic synthesis. A pulsed dielectric barrier discharge in He/O2 gas mixtures was employed to functionalize n-octadecane. C18 secondary alcohols and ketones were the main products, with an optimal molar yield of ∼29.2%. Prolonged treatment resulted in the formation of dialcohols, diketones, and higher molecular weight oxygenates. Lighter hydrocarbon products and decarboxylation to CO2 were also observed at longer treatment times and higher power inputs. A maximum energy yield of 5.48 × 10–8 mol/J was achieved at short treatment times and high powers, associated with higher selectivity to primary oxygenates. Direct hydroxylation of alkyl radicals, as well as disproportionation reactions, are proposed as the main pathways to alcohols and ketones. The results hold promise for functionalizing long hydrocarbon molecules at ambient conditions using catalyst-free plasma discharges.

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Section: ■ Results and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Oxidative Functionalization of Long-Chain Liquid Alkanes by Pulsed Plasma Discharges at Atmospheric Pressure

Nguyen

Dimitrakellis

Talley

et al. 2022

ACS Sustainable Chem. Eng.

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“…The total feed flow rate (BFG + COG = 120 kmol/h) is about 3 orders of magnitude higher than that of the lab-scale NPD reactor. A numbering-up strategy to increase reactor capacity is foreseen for this purpose . Installation of multiple upscaled plasma reactor bundles running in parallel may allow for valorization of the total amount of the off-gases produced by a mini-blast furnace.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A numbering-up strategy to increase reactor capacity is foreseen for this purpose. 40 Installation of multiple upscaled plasma reactor bundles running in parallel may allow for valorization of the total amount of the off-gases produced by a mini-blast furnace.…”

Section: Plantwide Process Model Developmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Valorizing the Steel Industry Off-Gases: Proof of Concept and Plantwide Design of an Electrified and Catalyst-Free Reverse Water–Gas-Shift-Based Route to Methanol

Delikonstantis,

Vettas,

Cameli

et al. 2023

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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Conversion of steel industry off-gases to value-added chemicals enabled by renewable electricity can significantly reduce the environmental burden of the steelmaking process. Herein, we demonstrate that CO2 reduction by H2, both contained in steel mill off-gases, to form syngas via the reverse water–gas-shift reaction is effectively performed by nanosecond pulsed discharges at atmospheric pressure. The experimental results suggest the following: (i) An optimum interelectrode distance exists, maximizing CO2 conversion. (ii) CO2 conversion at constant SEI follows a nonmonotonic trend with H2 excess. CO2 conversion increases with H2 excess up to H2:CO2 = 3:1 upon shifting the chemical equilibrium. At larger H2:CO2, both gas cooling, promoted by the high H2 content, and hindered CO2 collisions in a highly diluted stream hamper CO2 conversion. (iii) SEI enhances CO2 conversion, but the effect decreases with increasing SEI due to equilibrium limitations. A stoichiometric H2:CO2 feed ratio in the plasma reactor is recommended for higher energy efficiency. Intensifying MeOH productivity via SEI elevation is not advised as a 2-fold SEI increase results only in 17% higher MeOH throughput.

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“…The transition to renewable electricity-based chemical production requires novel technical solutions as well as proper infrastructures in order to utilize the energy as efficiently as possible . As already well reviewed by Stankiewicz and Nigar, electricity can be applied to chemical processes based on the electron or charge transfer, such as in electrocatalytic, photochemical/photocatalytic, and plasma-based processes. − However, these approaches involve nonthermal interactions with the catalyst active sites, and therefore, alongside thermal energy transfer, other complex phenomena may take place. These approaches are widely studied and may lead to a substantial contribution toward the reduction of CO 2 footprint of several chemical processes, such as direct water electrolysis for H 2 production. , On the other hand, the electrification methods by conversion of electric energy to heat (direct heating) in catalytic reactors ensures higher technology readiness levels .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Joule-Heated Catalytic Reactors toward Decarbonization and Process Intensification: A Review

Zheng,

Ambrosetti,

Tronconi

2023

ACS Eng. Au

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The supply of the heat required for chemical processes via renewable electricity, i.e., process electrification, provides an alternative strategy for replacing conventional fossil fuel combustion. This approach enables fast, selective, and uniform heating, offers great potential for utilizing the excess renewable electric energy, and brings about an important chance for mitigating CO 2 emissions. In this work, we provide an overview of the state-of-the-art electricity-to-heat driven catalytic processes. The principle and fundamentals of Joule heating are provided and briefly compared to induction and microwave heating in view of electrifying catalytic processes. By this comparison, we assess that Joule heating can be regarded as the most promising method for process electrification, and its applications to methane reforming, cracking reactions, CO 2 valorization, and transient process operation are then reviewed. Advantages and disadvantages are critically addressed in terms of efficiency, potential for scale-up and possibility of retrofitting. The current challenges in the development of advanced electrified processes as well as the opportunities of next generation electrification techniques are discussed.

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Low-carbon footprint chemical manufacturing using plasma technology

Cited by 22 publications

References 35 publications

Oxidative Functionalization of Long-Chain Liquid Alkanes by Pulsed Plasma Discharges at Atmospheric Pressure

Oxidative Functionalization of Long-Chain Liquid Alkanes by Pulsed Plasma Discharges at Atmospheric Pressure

Valorizing the Steel Industry Off-Gases: Proof of Concept and Plantwide Design of an Electrified and Catalyst-Free Reverse Water–Gas-Shift-Based Route to Methanol

Joule-Heated Catalytic Reactors toward Decarbonization and Process Intensification: A Review

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