Nanofurnaces and Microreactors for Catalysis

高温气相催化反应在化学工业和环境中普遍存在。这些反应可以为下游生产提供基础，或者可以将有毒的烟气转化为无害的化学物质。知道反应发生在催化剂表面，很大一部分能量损失在加热气体、载体和床上。对于吸热反应尤其如此，因为吸热反应必须不断地向床提供热量。对于放热反应，基质、床和气体本身都会产生热惯性，从而延长了反应器运行前的起燃延迟。在这个研究项目中，我们建议使用磁感应作为传统加热方法的替代方法。这样，热量直接输送到反应部位，从而提供更高的能效和更快的加热速度。这将使用由磁性纳米颗粒组成的纳米材料组装而成，这些纳米颗粒容易受到磁感应加热(IH)，并由催化剂装饰。在我们的五年研究计划中，我们将在实验室以往成果的基础上，研究和发展高温气相催化反应中的纳米炉子的概念。研究目标将针对这一新型催化工艺的几个方面：(A)设计一种新的用于感应催化的纳米材料模板，该模板由磁极、惰性壳(或基质)和壳内或壳上的催化剂组成。它们在反应过程中的行为将通过原位技术进行研究，这将为操作过程中纳米结构的演变提供宝贵而独特的见解。(B)通过比较不同固定床反应器的比吸收率来研究不同的固定床反应器设计。这一主题将转移到测试使用感应加热通过乙炔分解生产碳纳米球的可能性。(C)对过程进行模拟和建模，以支持反应堆的设计和优化。一旦模型根据实验数据得到验证，我们的目标是使用多尺度方法绘制IH和传统类型的反应器催化剂床层的温度和反应速率图。催化剂可以进一步优化，以提高整体性能。通过对废气、产量、生产率和功耗的详细分析，我们将以传统方式加热的等效反应堆为基准，对各种感应加热配置进行基准测试。该研究计划提出了研究感应加热催化过程的新方法。这一新兴的研究领域在纳米材料工程、反应堆设计和建模领域提供了丰富多样的科学挑战。该研究计划为HQP培训和创新提供了肥沃的土壤，这些创新可以导致更高效的反应堆类型和生产蓝氢或减少有毒排放的新途径。

High-temperature gas-phase catalytic reactions are ubiquitous to the chemical industries and the environment. These reactions can provide the building blocks for downstream production or can convert toxic flue gases to innocuous chemicals. Knowing that the reaction takes place at the surface of the catalyst, a large fraction of the energy is lost heating the gas, the support, and the bed. This is especially true for endothermic reactions, for which heat must be continually supplied to the bed. For exothermic reactions, the substrate, the bed, and the gas itself contribute to thermal inertia which extends the light-off delay before the reactor is operational. In this research program, we propose to use magnetic induction as an alternative to traditional heating methods. This way, the heat is administered directly to the reaction site thus providing higher energy efficiency and faster heating rates. This will be done using assemblies of nanomaterials consisting of magnetic nanoparticles, susceptible to magnetic induction heating (IH), decorated by the catalyst. In our 5-year research program, we will build on previous successes of the lab to investigate and develop the concept of nano furnaces in high-temperature gas-phase catalytic reactions. The research objectives will target several aspects of this novel catalytic process: (A) Design a new nanomaterial template for induction catalysis made of a magnetic susceptor, an inert shell (or matrix), and a catalyst within or on the shell. Their behavior during the reaction will be studied with in situ techniques which will provide precious and unique insight into the evolution of the nanostructures during operation. (B) Investigate different fixed-bed reactor designs by comparing their specific absorption rate. This theme will branch to test the possibility of using induction heating to produce carbon nanosphere by the decomposition of acetylene. (C) Simulate and model the process to support the design and the optimization of the reactor. Once the model is validated against experimental data, we aim to map the temperature and the reaction rate across the catalyst bed of IH and conventional types of reactors using a multiscale approach. The catalyst can be further optimized to improve the overall performance. With a detailed analysis of the exhaust gas, the yield, production rate, and the power consumed, we will benchmark the various induction heating configurations against equivalent reactors heated by traditional means. The research program proposes new approaches to investigate induction heated catalytic processes. This emerging field of research offers a rich variety of scientific challenges in the fields of nanomaterials engineering, reactor design, and modeling. The research program provides fertile grounds for HQP training and for innovation that can lead to more efficient types of reactors and novel pathways to produce blue hydrogen or mitigate toxic emissions.