Performance of a Laboratory-Scale Methanation Plant with Catalyst Dilution under Dynamic Operating Conditions

• Published in: Industrial & engineering chemistry research 2022-07, Vol.61 (27), p.9644-9657
• Main Authors: Herrmann, Felix, Grünewald, Marcus, Meijer, Tobias, Gardemann, Ulrich, Riese, Julia
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Kinetics, Catalysis, and Reaction Engineering
• ISSN: 0888-5885; 1520-5045
• DOI: 10.1021/acs.iecr.2c00871

Power systems with high shares of fluctuating renewable energies require the management of power demand conforming to availability as well as storage for periods of low generation. The production of synthetic natural gas with power-to-gas (PtG) plants offers a solution to both problems: flexibility in plant capacity and long-term energy storage. Hence, we study the dynamic operability of a methanation plant as a key part of the PtG process. At first, the effect of catalyst dilution on maximum temperature and load range in the main reactor is investigated. Subsequently, the dynamic and load change behavior of the plant are studied by analyzing load ramps and operation according to a pre-defined load profile. For a complete picture, experiments and simulations are evaluated at the same time. Results show that the dilution of a commercial catalyst with inert material is an effective measure to reduce the maximum temperature in a methanation plant without compromising product quality. This holds true for dynamic operation, where the plant shows an excellent capability of following fast load changes. Dividing the main reactor into three zones of different catalytic activity is practical from an operator’s point of view and applicable to existing plants to improve flexibility.