Partial oxidation of methane to syngas in a perovskite hollow fiber membrane reactor

A perovskite mixed conducting membrane made from the composition BaCoxFeyZrzO3−δ (BCFZ, x + y + z = 1.0) in a hollow fiber geometry was used to construct a membrane reactor for the partial oxidation of methane to syngas (CO + H2). In the membrane reactor without catalyst filling, the product gas contained mainly unreacted CH4 and O2 together with a few percent of CO2. After packing sufficient Ni-based catalyst around and behind the hollow fiber membrane, syngas (H2 + CO) was observed. At 925 °C, the CO selectivity reached about 97% with CH4 conversion of 96%. The possible reaction pathways were proposed to be an oxidation-reforming process.