Optimization of direct conversion of methane to liquid fuels over Cu loaded W/ZSM-5 catalyst

Abstract

The optimization of methane conversion to liquid fuels over copper loaded W/ZSM-5 catalyst was studied by utilizing experimental design from ‘Statsoft Statistica’ version 6.0 software. Response surface methodology was employed to determine the optimum methane conversion and C5þ selectivity. Numerical results indicated the optimum methane conversion of 29.4% with the corresponding C5þ selectivity of 57.2% were achieved at 12.3 vol% of O2, 203.9 ml/min of total feed flow rate, and %W doped of 3.2 wt%. The optimum C5þ selectivity of 70.2% was attained at 7.6 vol% of O2, 208.9 ml/min of total feed flow rate, and 3.2 wt% ofWcontent with the corresponding methane conversion of 26.7%. By means of variance analysis and additional experiments, the adequacy of this model is confirmed.