Methanol future

R. Baranescu and co-workers, "Prototype Development of a Methanol Engine for Heavy-Duty AppHcation-Performance and Emissions," Sy4E Paper 891655, SyPE Future Transportation Technology Conf. (Aug. 7—20,1989), Society of Automotive Engineers, Warrendale, Pa. 

J. H. Perry and C. P. Perry, Methanol Bridge to a Renewable Energy Future University Press of American, Lanham, Md., 1990. 

Future Methanol Processes. The process route for methanol synthesis has remained basically unchanged since its inception by BASF in 1923. The principal developments have been in catalyst formulation to increase productivity and selectivity, and in process plant integration to improve output and energy efficiency while decreasing capital cost. 

Future Uses. The most recent uses for methanol can be found in the agricultural sector. Test studies are being carried out where methanol is sprayed directly onto crops to improve plant growth. Methanol can be used as a carbon source for the production of single-cell protein (SCP) for use as an animal feed supplement. The process has been commercially demonstrated by ICl at their BiUingham, U.K., faciUty. However, the production of SCP is not commercially practical at this time, in comparison to more conventional protein sources. 

Based on these developments, the foreseeable future sources of ammonia synthesis gas are expected to be mainly from steam reforming of natural gas, supplemented by associated gas from oil production, and hydrogen rich off-gases (especially from methanol plants). 

Moore, R. M. Gottesfeld, S. and Zelenay, P. (1999). A Comparison Between Direct-Methanol and Direct Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicles. SAE Future Transportation Technologies Conference. Paper 99FTT-48 (August). 

United States, methanol derived from natural gas as a fuel additive is a promising future market. Methanol has neither the environmental problems of methyl-t-butyl ether (MTBE), nor the evaporating qualities of ethanol. 

Synthesis gas is an important intermediate. The mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen is used for producing methanol. It is also used to synthesize a wide variety of hydrocarbons ranging from gases to naphtha to gas oil using Fischer Tropsch technology. This process may offer an alternative future route for obtaining olefins and chemicals. The hydroformylation reaction (Oxo synthesis) is based on the reaction of synthesis gas with olefins for the production of Oxo aldehydes and alcohols (Chapters 5, 7, and 8). 

A possible additional cause is the formation of a highly unstable salt, similar to fulminate, by the action of nital on metals. In order to prevent future incidents, it is recommended that methanol be used in lieu of ethanol in nital mixts (Ref 2) Refs 1) H.H. Fawcett, C EN 27, 1396 (1949) CA 43, 5593 (1949) 2) F. Fromm et al, C EN... 

In contrast, the mono-layer of methanol is built up much more slowly and is not complete until the concentration of methanol in the aqueous mixture is about 35%w/v. The behavior of methanol on the reverse phase is reminiscent of the adsorption of chloroform on the strongly polar silica gel surface. The complementary nature of the silica gel surface and that of the reverse phase is clearly apparent. It is also clear that strongly dispersive solvents might form bi-layers on the reverse phase surface just as polar solutes form bi-layers on the highly polar surface of silica gel. In fact, to date there has been no experimental evidence furnished that would support the formation of bi-layers on the surface of reverse phases, although their formation is likely and such evidence may well be forthcoming in the future. 

Once syngas and methanol can be produced viably from renewable resources then established synthetic pathways can be used to produce a whole variety of bulk chemical feedstocks (Scheme 6.16). (There is insufficient space to discuss the details here and readers are invited to consult a textbook of industrial chemistry.) By analogy, syngas and/or methanol will become the petroleum feedstock of the future. 

The electrocatalytic oxidation of methanol has been widely investigated for exploitation in the so-called direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC). The most likely type of DMFC to be commercialized in the near future seems to be the polymer electrolyte membrane DMFC using proton exchange membrane, a special form of low-temperature fuel cell based on PEM technology. In this cell, methanol (a liquid fuel available at low cost, easily handled, stored, and transported) is dissolved in an acid electrolyte and burned directly by air to carbon dioxide. The prominence of the DMFCs with respect to safety, simple device fabrication, and low cost has rendered them promising candidates for applications ranging from portable power sources to secondary cells for prospective electric vehicles. Notwithstanding, DMFCs were... 

In spite of the rich chemistry developed starting from the OsHCl(CO)(P Pr3)2 complex, the presence of a carbonyl group in its coordination sphere is probably a limitation for some subsequent developments. In this context it seems important to mention the encouraging reactivity of the related osmium(IV) complex, OsH2Cl2(P Pr3)2, that in methanol afford OsHCl(CO)(P Pr3)2. We believe that both interrelated osmium complexes present not only a rich chemistry but also a promising future as starting materials in organometallic chemistry. 

Hamelinck, C. Faaij, A. P. C., Future prospects for production of methanol and hydrogen from biomass. Journal of Power Sources 2002,111(1), 1-22. 

---