A dynamic model for the direct conversion of methane to methanol in a catalytic fixed-bed reactor

In the present paper, a dynamic model for partial oxidation of methane to methanol by oxygen in a fixed-bed reactor filled with the particles of V2O5/SiO2, as the reaction catalyst has been presented. It has been observed that by increasing the conversion of methane, the selectivity of both CO and formaldehyde is enhanced, while, that of methanol and CO2 is reduced. The effects of certain pertinent parameters of the system such as temperature, pressure, concentration of oxygen in the feed, and gas hourly space velocity (GHSV) on the conversion of methane and selectivity of the products have been investigated. The data predicted from the model have been correlated with the experimental results obtained from the present study and those available in the literature. The degree of agreement is between 50-80%.