Incorporation of Catalyst in Membrane Reactors

Separation layer Porous substrate Dispersed catalyst 

If the catalyst is reactive with the separation layer of the membrane, direct contact between them must be avoided. 

In general, the membranes modified by coating a catalyst on the membrane surface or loading a catalyst inside the membrane s porous structure are called catalytic membranes. In most cases, catalytic membranes do not need to be perm-selective but are required to be highly active for the reactions considered and to have a sufficiently low overall permeability so that they are operated in the diffusion-controlling regime. For catalytic membranes, the catalytic composition and activity as well as the porous texture have to be optimized for the reactions considered and kept stable in use. However, it is difficult to modulate these properties of catalytic membranes. Therefore, very few studies have been performed on catalytic MRs in application. It is noteworthy that in some cases extra catalysts will be applied in the catalytic MRs to promote the reactions considered. 

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