Electrochemical conversion of methane to ethylene in a solid oxide electrolyzer.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 30862779.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-019-09083-3 and PMC identifier 6414614.
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Abstract
Conversion of methane to ethylene with high yield remains a fundamental challenge due to the low ethylene selectivity, severe carbon deposition and instability of catalysts. Here we demonstrate a conceptually different process of in situ electrochemical oxidation of methane to ethylene in a solid oxide electrolyzer under ambient pressure at 850 °C. The porous electrode scaffold with an in situ-grown metal/oxide interface enhances coking resistance and catalyst stability at high temperatures. The highest C<sub>2</sub> product selectivity of 81.2% together with the highest C<sub>2</sub> product concentration of 16.7% in output gas (12.1% ethylene and 4.6% ethane) is achieved while the methane conversion reaches as high as 41% in the initial pass. This strategy provides an optimal performance with no obvious degradation being observed after 100 h of high temperature operation and 10 redox cycles, suggesting a reliable electrochemical process for conversion of methane into valuable chemicals.