CO2 reforming of hydrocarbon gases

二氧化碳是温室气体(GHG)的主要组成部分，其排放量已攀升至历史最高水平，并导致全球变暖，因此，由于人类对化石燃料的大规模开发和利用，极端和破坏性的气候活动更加频繁。为了阻止这种对我们环境的有害影响，人们一直在开发二氧化碳封存技术，包括地质储存、深海储存和化学转化，以减少并最终消除向大气中排放的二氧化碳。甲烷和其他轻烃的二氧化碳重整，也称为干法重整，将二氧化碳转化为合成气，从合成气中合成一些商品化学品和产品，形成二氧化碳的化学利用路线之一。然而，阻碍其商业化的障碍是缺乏工业上满意的干法重整催化剂。为了消除这一障碍，萨斯喀彻温大学的王辉博士采用的策略是，首先开发实验室规模、高活性、超稳定和选择性好的催化剂，在实际原料或模拟可能含有污染物的实际原料下评估可接受的催化剂，制造工业形状的催化剂，在更大范围内研究催化剂的性能，包括传质和热传递，并对进一步扩大规模的过程进行模拟。在NSERC发现基金的支持下，王博士和他的学生成功地开发出了一种复合催化剂，该催化剂经过了2000小时的寿命测试，表现出高活性和选择性，但没有明显的失活。在这一成功之后，该项目也得到了NESERC的Dicovery补助金的支持，研究了实际工业原料中的催化剂性能，开发了工业催化剂(颗粒催化剂)的制备方法，对工业催化剂进行了评估，并对过程进行了模拟。除了开发一种商用二氧化碳转化技术外，这项研究工作还将为加拿大提供培训反应工程、催化剂开发和温室气体排放控制领域的高素质人员的机会。

Carbon dioxide is the main component of greenhouse gases (GHG), of which the emission has climbed a historically-highest record and resulted in global warming and thus, more frequent extreme and damaging climate activities due to the massive exploitation and utilization of fossil fuels by human being. To ban this deleterious impact on our environment, one has been developing carbon dioxide sequestration technologies including geological storage, deep-sea storage and chemical conversion, in order to reduce and finally eliminate carbon dioxide emission to the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide reforming of methane and other light hydrocarbons, also known as dry reforming, converts carbon dioxide into synthesis gas from which a number of commodity chemicals and products are synthesized, forming one of the chemical utilization routes of carbon dioxide. However, the obstacle that prevents its commercialization is the lack of an industrially-satisfactory catalyst for dry reforming. To remove this obstacle, the strategy that Dr. Hui Wang at University of Saskatchewan uses is to first develop laboratory scale, highly active, ultra stable and well selective catalysts, to evaluate the acceptable catalyst under actual feedstock or simulated actual feedstock containing possible contaminants, to make industrial shaped catalyst, to study catalyst performance including mass transfer and heat transfer in larger scale, and to model the process for further scaling up. Thanks to the support from NSERC's Discovery grant, Dr. Wang and his students have successfully developed a composite catalyst that has undergone 2000 h life test and shown high activity and selectivity but no significant deactivation. Following this success, this project, also supported by NESERC's Dicovery grant, studies the catalyst performance in actual industrial feedstock, develops methods of industrial catalyst (pellet catalyst) preparation, evaluates the industrial catalyst, and models the process. In addition to the development of a commercial carbon dioxide conversion technology, the research work will provide opportunities of training high quality personnel in the areas of reaction engineering, catalyst development and GHG emission control for Canada.