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ISEP - DM – Biorrecursos

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http://hdl.handle.net/10400.22/16333

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Browsing ISEP - DM – Biorrecursos by advisor "Constantino, Dânia"

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  • CO2 valorisation for methanol production: exploring the key role of supports in the catalytic performance
    Publication . Mendes, Inês Carolina de Vasconcelos; Silva, Paula Cristina Pereira; Constantino, Dânia
    Global warming, caused mainly by the increase in carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels, calls for sustainable solutions such as carbon capture and utilisation (CCU). CO2 can be used to produce fuels and chemicals, such as methanol, which is widely used in industrial synthesis and, recently, as a marine fuel. The production of methanol through the hydrogenation of CO2 supports the circular economy. The research community is focussing on improving cost-effectiveness through innovative catalysts, advances in reactors and better process integration. This dissertation focused on the development and study of different supported catalysts for the synthesis of methanol from CO2. Different catalysts were developed based on copper and zinc supported on alumina and alumina doped with silica using: incipient wetness impregnation and precipitation methods. Their catalytic performance was assessed in a fixed bed reactor for 8 hours, using optimum conditions obtained from a parametric study previously performed (250ºC, 30 bar, H2/CO2 ratio of 3 and GHSV of 2.8 L∙gcat -1∙h-1). The C20Z10A (P) catalyst, based on 20% by mass of copper, 10% by mass of zinc supported alumina prepared by precipitation, showed promising results, with copper-normalised time yield (CTY) values (1.04 molCO₂∙gCu -¹∙s-¹) and selectivity for methanol (7.9%). The best selectivity obtained was 12.8 per cent with the C20Z10S10 (P) catalyst, based on 20 per cent by mass of copper, 10 per cent by mass of zinc supported on alumina doped with 10 per cent by mass of silica prepared by precipitation. Although this was the material with the highest selectivity for methanol, its CTY was only 0.51 molCO₂∙gCu -¹∙s-¹. Compared to the reference material, TMC-3/1, (22.9 %), the selectivities obtained were lower. The use of aluminosilicates with 40% silica by mass as a support did not positively influence the catalyst. C20Z10A (P) should be investigated in detail, as it could be a promising catalytic system to be used in catalytic films to be integrated into a new microstructure reactor, also known as NetMIX.
    2024-10-16Master thesis Embargoed access Show more