Methane decomposition for hydrogen production by catalytic activity of carbon black under low flow rate conditions

Abstract

Recently, carbon materials were reported to work as catalysts for the production of H 2 from hydrocarbons. However, the hydrogen production rate is extremely low. To broaden the scope of carbon materials as catalysts for the decomposition of hydrocarbons, a higher H 2 production rate is required. Thus, the hydrogen production rate under conditions employing a low flow rate of hydrocarbon per unit area and a large quantity of carbon materials as the catalyst should be evaluated, and the influence of these conditions on the rate of H 2 production by carbon materials should be discussed. Herein, the H 2 production rate was measured under conditions employing a low flow rate of CH 4 and a large quantity of carbon black (CB) as a catalyst. H 2 production started at 600°C and the production rate was less than 0.1%. The transmission electron microscope image of CB heated in CH 4 atmosphere demonstrated that a low flow rate of CH 4 does not affect the reaction site (i.e., graphite edges) of CB. However, the H 2 production rate was extremely low compared to that achieved with a high flow rate. It is proposed that there is an optimal flow rate for maintaining the catalytic activity at the graphite edge of CB for decomposition of CH 4 .