The effect of electrode materials on the co-generation of syngas and higher hydrocarbons from CO2 and CH4 using dielectric-barrier discharge has been investigated. The electrode materials tested here include aluminum, copper, steel, and titanium. For the feed of methane in the absence of CO2, the order of activity of methane conversion from high to low was Ti≈ Al > Fe > Cu, while the order of the activity of CO2 conversion was Al > Cu > Ti > Fe for the case of CO2 feed without methane. Regarding the co-feed of methane and CO2, the titanium electrode shows the best activity for the conversions, while the other three materials show a similar performance for the conversions. The effect of dilution gas, helium, on the conversions has also been discussed.

We reported in this work a simple, effective, and efficient hydrogen production from plasma methanol decomposition using DC and AC corona discharges at ambient condition. The highest hydrogen production rate was achieved with AC corona discharges. The power consumption was normally less than 0.02 Wh/Ncm3 H2. A major advantage of methanol decomposition using corona discharge is that only a very small discharge space is enough for sufficiently high decomposition.

The atomic economic reaction of acetic acid formation from methane and carbon dioxide via dielectric-barrier discharges at ambient conditions was investigated in this work. A significantly high selectivity of acetic acid (up to 5.3%) has been achieved with high conversions of methane (more than 54.1%) and carbon dioxide (more than 37.4%).

A novel plasma reduction and calcination (PR&C) method has been recently developed. Upon the experimental investigations on methane conversions, including partial oxidation, methane combustion, NO reduction by methane and CO2 reforming, the catalysts prepared by this PR&C method exhibit a remarkable enhancement in the dispersion, low-temperature activity and stability. A plasma-enhanced acidity has also been addressed, which would play an important role in the improved dispersion. The PR&C method is leading to a better preparation of supported catalysts, esp., those for methane conversion.

Ni-Fe/Al2O3 catalyst for partial oxidation of methane was prepared first by glow discharge plasma treatment following by calcinations thermally. Such prepared catalyst exhibits better performance over the catalyst prepared without such plasma treatment. The conversion of methane and the selectivity of CO and H2 over the plasma treated catalyst are 97.44, 100 and 100% at 875℃, while, at the same temperature, they are 90.09, 97.28 and 97.09%, respectively, over the catalyst prepared without plasma treatment. At the same methane conversion, the reaction temperature with the plasma treated Ni-Fe/Al2O3 is at least 80℃ lower. TEM characterization shows that the catalytically active species after plasma treatment are still highly dispersed on the support. In addition, the plasma treated Ni-Fe/Al2O3 catalyst also possesses better anti-carbon deposit ability.