Chemical platform methane

Next to the exploitation of the heating value, (bio) methane is an important platform chemical for the chemical industry. Methane is used as the basic chemical for the synthesis of various important substances like hydrogen, methanol, methyl halogenides (e.g., methyl chloride, chloroform), ethyne, carbon disulfide, and hydrocyanic acid. 

Methane is a stable molecule and can typically be activated only at HT, e.g., above 650 °C in the steam reforming process. Recently, however. Spinner and Mustain (2012, 2013) have reported that methane could conceivably be activated in a room temperature carbonate fuel cell based on an AEM, and a novel catalyst that could produce the carbonate ion from O2 and CO2 at the cathode (Figure 15.33). The carbonate ion diffuses through the AEM and partially oxidizes methane at a NiO—Z1O2 composite anode catalyst to produce oxygenates such as formaldehyde and methanol with syngas. Such LT methane activation, if feasible, could allow the selective production of platform chemicals, rather than syngas, directly from natural gas. 

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