Effects of initial water content on steam reforming of aliphatic hydrocarbons with nonthermal plasma

The effects of initial water content on steam reforming of aliphatic hydrocarbons such as methane, propane, and neopentane with nonthermal plasma were analyzed in terms of substrate conversion, carbon recovery, and product selectivity. It was found that water addition increased CO2 yield despite a decrease in substrate conversion. The number of carbon atoms in the substrate hydrocarbon affected the additive effect due to the insufficient supply of oxygen atoms from water. Plausible reaction pathways for the conversion of substrate to COx are proposed to explain the relative concentrations of COx species; these pathways involved different precursors for CO and CO2.