The build-up of carbon on catalysts used for the thermocatalytic conversion of CO2 reduces the efficiency of these processes and represents a barrier to their industrial application (IMAGE)
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The build-up of carbon on catalysts used for the thermocatalytic conversion of CO2 reduces the efficiency of these processes and represents a barrier to their industrial application. The research team headed by Prof. Matteo Maestri discovered that carbon formation is closely related to the ratio of carbon dioxide (CO2) to methane (CH4) present during the Dry Reforming reaction. The image, published on the front cover of the prestigious scientific journal Angewandte Chemie, expresses this concept and depicts a hot-air balloon flying over dark mountains, a metaphor for carbon formation. The CO2 molecules, present in greater numbers than the methane molecules in the basket, are the balloon’s driving force. Without the thrust provided by the CO2, the methane would tend to sink downwards, towards the undesirable formation of carbon.
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Politecnico di Milano
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