Preliminary experimental study of a methanation reactor for conversion of H₂ and CO₂ into synthetic natural gas (SNG)

This paper presents the results of tests conducted on the methanation reactor installation at the Silesian University of Technology. The reactor is a fixed-bed type and it consists of one tube filled up with the nickel powder and Ru/(Al₂O₃) used as a catalyst. The results obtained before and after the modernization of the installation are described. The produced gases are analyzed in the VARIO Luxx of MRU air Emission Monitoring Systems gas analyzer. During the tests, the temperature in three zones of the reactor was measured continuously. The gauge pressure at the inlet and outlet of the reactor was also measured. In the performed tests, the effect of different volumetric flows of substrates (CO₂ and H₂ in stoichiometric ratio) and the effect of pressure on the produced gas composition were examined. Additionally, for the measurement series carried out on the laboratory stand, the estimated CO₂ to CH₄ conversion factors were calculated. For the operation of a methanation reactor under atmospheric conditions, the volumetric share of CH₄ in the produced Synthetic Natural Gas was between 71.0% and 74.5% for analyzed cases of Gas Hourly Space Velocity and for a reaction pressure of 5 bar, CH₄ content was between 88.6 and 89.5%.