Banca de QUALIFICAÇÃO: FERNANDO ERICK SANTOS DA SILVA

Uma banca de QUALIFICAÇÃO de DOUTORADO foi cadastrada pelo programa.
STUDENT : FERNANDO ERICK SANTOS DA SILVA
DATE: 28/01/2025
TIME: 09:30
LOCAL: meet.google.com/ymq-ssdr-oci
TITLE:

WC-NI/Al2O3, MO2C-NI/Al2O2 AND WC-MO2C/Al2O3 NANOCATALYZERS FOR THE DRY REFORMING OF METHANE

KEY WORDS:

NANOCATALYSTS; CARBIDES; METHANE REFORMING; DRY REFORMING; TUNGSTEN; MOLYBDNUM; NICKEL.

PAGES: 20
BIG AREA: Engenharias
AREA: Engenharia Química
SUMMARY:

The search for economically viable forms of renewable energy is a relevant concern for sustainable global development. Among the renewable energy sources, hydrogen (H2) is considered an alternative to the use of fossil fuels in transportation, since it has minimal environmental impacts. The main technologies for the production of H2 from natural gas are: steam reforming, dry reforming, partial oxidation and autothermal reforming.

All of these technologies use noble metals such as platinum as catalysts. However, these catalysts, in addition to being expensive, have the problem of being sensitive to the presence of sulfur, a compound that is present in natural gas and causes the deactivation of the catalysts. This makes it necessary to add a second stage to the process to remove the sulfur. In addition, reserves of noble metals will tend to run out, since they are limited .

Transition metal carbides are catalysts that present catalytic activity similar to that of noble metals, such as selectivity. This peculiar characteristic of this family of compounds has sparked interest in further studies of their performance in reactions of industrial interest. Thus, they have become a lower-cost alternative to noble metal catalysts . Molybdenum (Mo₂C) and tungsten (WC) carbides have emerged as effective catalysts in processes such as dry methane reforming (DRM) for the production of H2 and synthesis gas. These materials offer advantages compared to nickel (Ni)-based catalysts, which face challenges related to sintering and coke formation . Different authors found that transition metal carbides exhibit high catalytic activity in methane reforming reactions, having demonstrated significantly lower carbon deposition compared to reduced Ni-based catalysts.

The present work aims to produce WC-Ni/Al₂O₃, Mo₂C-Ni/Al₂O₃ and WC-Mo₂C/Al₂O₃ catalysts, and subsequently their catalytic activity in dry methane reforming will be studied. An experimental design will be used as a tool to optimize variables such as the concentration of the active phase of the catalyst, the reaction temperature and the operating time. The catalysts will be characterized by different techniques, including N₂ adsorption (BET), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) analysis, and temperature programmed reduction (TPR). In addition, catalytic tests will be carried out to evaluate the efficiency and stability of the developed materials.

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
Presidente - 2929066 - ANDRE LUIS LOPES MORIYAMA
Interna - 1271737 - CAMILA PACELLY BRANDÃO DE ARAÚJO
Interno - 349801 - CARLSON PEREIRA DE SOUZA
Externa à Instituição - BRUNA RÊGO DE VASCONCELOS - UDS