Thermocatalytic Conversions of Methanol into Dimethyl Ether on Silica Gel Adsorbents in Water–Methanol Waste of Natural Gas Purification

Abstract

The kinetics of thermocatalytic transformations of methanol into dimethyl ether (DME) in water–methanol waste from natural gas purification on the used ASM, ASM BC, BASF KC-Trockenperlen H, BASF KC-Trockenperlen WS, and NIAP-AOS silica gel adsorbents. The physicochemical characteristics of the adsorbents were studied by low-temperature nitrogen adsorption, X-ray phase and X-ray fluorescence analysis, and scanning electron microscopy. The kinetic reaction of the thermocatalytic conversion of methanol into dimethyl ether on the ASM, ASM BC, BASF KC-Trockenperlen H, and BASF KC-Trockenperlen WS adsorbents was of the first order with respect to methanol, and it was of second order on the aluminum-oxide-based adsorbent NIAP-AOS. The activation energy values for the conversion of methanol to DME on the most effective silica gel adsorbent ASM 1 were estimated in the temperature range 160–290°C at a gas flow rate of 400 mL/min, which according to the Arrhenius dependence were 27.8 kJ/mol with an Si/Al ratio of 50.5 kJ/mol.