The development of membranes for catalytic membrane reactors for the selective removal of water

High oil prices and increasing costs for CO₂ emissions resulted in the proposal to use cheap CO₂ as feedstock. However, CO₂ is a stable molecule and therefore it is thermodynamically unfavorable to convert it into valuable products. These challenges could be overcome by process intensification through the development of catalytic membrane reactors. By removing one of the products from the reaction mixture, no equilibrium is established and higher conversions are obtained.

In this PhD project the goal is to develop a catalytic membrane reactor that removes water selectively from a complex process stream. The reaction we are looking at is esterification of methanol and CO₂ to dimethyl carbonate (DMC) and H₂O.

$Description: C:\Users\MengersHJ\Documents\PhD\Figures\Reaction DMC.png$

In the membrane reactor H₂O is selectively removed from the reaction mixture and all other components retain in the retentate, as illustrated in Figure 1. Consequently equilibrium is not reached and conversion towards DMC raises.

Figure 1: schematic representation of catalytic membrane reactor.

During this PhD project different aspects in the field of membrane technology are investigated. Such as development of the different layers, mass transport through these layers and process economics & process design.

Master assignment

During your master assignment you will develop new membranes that are selective towards H₂O and test them at different process conditions. In the beginning you will develop new membranes and test them for different membrane properties. After a successful development you will investigate the performance of these membranes in a high-pressure setup at different temperatures, pressures and mixture compositions.

Preferable background: Chemical engineering

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<< Home Home News ICOM 2011 People Teaching Bsc & Msc Assignments Research Vacancies Valorization Publications Intranet	The development of membranes for catalytic membrane reactors for the selective removal of water High oil prices and increasing costs for CO₂ emissions resulted in the proposal to use cheap CO₂ as feedstock. However, CO₂ is a stable molecule and therefore it is thermodynamically unfavorable to convert it into valuable products. These challenges could be overcome by process intensification through the development of catalytic membrane reactors. By removing one of the products from the reaction mixture, no equilibrium is established and higher conversions are obtained. In this PhD project the goal is to develop a catalytic membrane reactor that removes water selectively from a complex process stream. The reaction we are looking at is esterification of methanol and CO₂ to dimethyl carbonate (DMC) and H₂O. $Description: C:\Users\MengersHJ\Documents\PhD\Figures\Reaction DMC.png$ In the membrane reactor H₂O is selectively removed from the reaction mixture and all other components retain in the retentate, as illustrated in Figure 1. Consequently equilibrium is not reached and conversion towards DMC raises. Figure 1: schematic representation of catalytic membrane reactor. During this PhD project different aspects in the field of membrane technology are investigated. Such as development of the different layers, mass transport through these layers and process economics & process design. Master assignment During your master assignment you will develop new membranes that are selective towards H₂O and test them at different process conditions. In the beginning you will develop new membranes and test them for different membrane properties. After a successful development you will investigate the performance of these membranes in a high-pressure setup at different temperatures, pressures and mixture compositions. Preferable background: Chemical engineering