Synthesis gas production from CO2-containing natural gas by combined steam reforming and partial oxidation in multi-stage gliding Are-discharge system

Abstract

In this work, the reforming of CO2-containing natural gas was conducted under the alternating current AC gliding arc discharge plasma system at ambient conditions. The results reveal that the addition of steam content of 10 mol% to the simulated natural gas was found to greatly enhance the natural gas reforming performance in terms of reactant conversions, product yields, product selectivities, and power consumptions. Next, a technique of combining steam reforming with partial oxidation of CO2-containig natural gas in an AC gliding arc discharge was examined in order to optimize the reforming efficiency. The results show that the partial oxidation could increase both methane conversion and synthesis gas yield. The optimum oxygen feed molar ratio was found at a HCs/O2 feed molar ratio of 2/1, providing high CH4 and O2 conversions with high synthesis gas selectivity and relatively low power consumptions, as compared with the other processes (sole natural gas reform-, ing, natural gas reforming with steam, and combined natural gas reforming with partial oxidation). For the combined plasma reforming of CO2-containing natural gas with steam and partial oxidation in multistage gliding arc discharge system was finally investigated. The series of experiments were carried out to investigate reactant conversions, product selectivities and yields, and power consumption by varying residence time, stage number of plasma reactors, feed flow rate, hydrocarbons (HCs)/O2 feed molar ratio, and input voltage. An increase in stage number from 1 to 3 stages at a constant feed flow rate enhanced the reactant conversions, and product yields with a reduction of power consumptions.