Research Overview

• Chemical reaction engineering
• Micro-kinetic modelling
• Heterogeneous catalysis
• Biomass conversion technologies: pyrolysis, gasification
• Methane conversion technologies: reforming, partial oxidation, oxidative coupling
• Novel reactor concepts: spouted beds, membrane reactors

Current Research

Current research focuses on the application of, experimentally validated, computational methods to design and optimize chemical engineering processes for the efficient utilization of energy sources. The work primarily aims at the development of novel reactor concepts for the efficient conversion of natural gas and, more specifically, methane. Low-temperature steam reforming for the production of high-purity hydrogen as an energy carrier and Oxidative coupling for the one-step conversion of methane to ethylene as a chemicals building block are major application fields. In this regard, microkinetic models, consisting of elaborate elementary step reaction networks, are developed to accurately describe the occurring chemistry. Thermodynamic consistency is preserved, while a multitude of methods (transition state and collision theory, Evans-Polanyi relationships and unity bond index-quadratic exponential potential (UBI-QEP) calculations) are applied for the a priori determination of kinetic parameters. Intrinsic kinetic measurements of catalyst reactivity/selectivity are used to validate the developed models. The further integration of these kinetic models in reactor-scale simulations provides a deeper understanding that opens the road to knowledge-based process design and optimization and, ultimately, intensification. Novel reactor concepts, such as membrane configurations, are investigated to overcome thermodynamic limitations and design modular and energy efficient processes. Further extensions of the methodology are to be applied in the conversion of biomass-derived oxygenates to fuels and chemicals.