Kinetic simulation of the enzymatic oxidation of methane

The kinetics of methane oxidation by methane monooxygenase is simulated numerically. Literature data on the distribution of products of the oxidation of deuterated methane CH_{4 ? n} D _n (CH₃D, CH₂D₂, and CHD₃), as well as on the kinetic isotope effect in the competitive oxidation of CH₄ and CD₄ by methane monooxygenase, are analyzed in the framework of a nonradical multistep mechanism. Kinetic schemes whose first step involves two hydrogen atoms of the oxidation substrate are considered. The kinetic models suggested for methane oxidation are in good agreement with experimental data.     

Homogeneous high-temperature oxidation of methane

The kinetics of homogeneous deep oxidation of methane in lean mixtures (up to 2 vol % CH₄ in air) in ceramic tubes and fixed beds of ceramic spheres was studied. Experiments with the homogeneous reaction have shown that the methane oxidation occurs via a consecutive scheme through CO formation. The reaction rate of CH₄ oxidation was found to depend upon the equivalent pass diameter with a significant reaction inhibition in packing of small tubes and spheres, reflecting the influence of mass transfer on the radical-chain termination at the ceramic surfaces. It was also found that CO oxidation practically does not depend upon the mass exchange conditions, but it is visibly inhibited by methane. Recommended kinetic equations and their parameters are presented.     

On the mechanism of thermal oxidation of methane

Using the method of freezing radicals in conjunction with ESR spectroscopic measurements, the kinetics of the thermal oxidation of methane has been studied under atmospheric pressure depending on the temperature, composition of the mixture, and nature of the surface of the reaction vessel. It has been shown that in a reactor treated with boric acid, the intermediates methylhydroperoxide and hydrogen peroxide are responsible for chain branching. It has been established that the leading active centers of the reaction are the HO₂ radicals, while chain branching occurs as a result of the decomposition of peroxy compounds—methylhydroperoxide and hydrogen peroxide. In reactors treated with potassium bromide, the concentrations of radicals and peroxy compounds were found to be lower than the sensitivity of the method of measurement. Computations were performed for the scheme of methane oxidation at 738 K for a reactor treated with boric acid. Satisfactory agreement was found between the experimental and computed kinetic curves of accumulation of main intermediates CH₂O, H₂O₂, CH₃OOH. The influence of their addition on the kinetics of the reaction has been considered. It has been shown that the addition of formaldehyde does not lead to chain branching, however; it contributes to the formation of those peroxy compounds that bring about chain branching. Mathematical modeling confirmed conclusions made on the basis of experimental data concerning the nature of the leading active centers and the products that are responsible for the degenerate chain branching.     

Kinetics of catalytic oxidation of methane

A kinetic model for methane oxidation in sulfur dioxidecontaining gaseous mixtures at 640–830 °C with Al₂O₃ as catalyst is suggested.     

Simulation of methane oxidation on Pt

The authors present a generic model of CH4 oxidation on Pt with the emphasis on the role of surface-oxide formation. The latter process is treated in terms of the theory of first-order phase transitions. The corresponding Monte Carlo simulations indicate that the surface-oxide formation may result in stepwise features in the reaction kinetics. Specifically, with increasing CH4 pressure and/or decreasing O2 pressure, the model predicts a sharp transition from a low-reactive state with the surface completely covered by oxide to a high-reactive state with the surface covered by chemisorbed oxygen. In the former case, the reaction is first order in CH4 and zero order in O2. In the latter case, both reaction orders are positive. All these findings help in interpreting available experiments.     

Partial oxidation of methane over phosphate

Partial oxidation of methane over unpromoted and promoted iron phosphate catalysts was investigated in the temperature range of 873–953 K in a flow reactor. Using XRD and IR techniques, the bulk and surface structure of the given catalysts have been studied. The modification functions of lanthanum phosphate for partial oxidation of methane were also examined.

---

873–953 . - -. .

     

Mechanistic study on the enzymatic oxidation of flavonols

Several flavonols have been transformed upon treatment by Trametes versicolor laccase. Most of the major oxidation products have been isolated by HPLC as pure compounds and their structures have been, when possible, investigated through spectral methods (HPLC-MS and NMR). The results are coherent with the predominance of a dismutation process, leading to cation formation, over direct radical-radical coupling.     

Structures of enzymatic oxidation products of epigallocatechin

To understand the structures of uncharacterized black tea polyphenols, the oxidation products of (−)-epigallocatechin were investigated. Enzymatic oxidation and subsequent heating of the reaction mixture afforded four new oxidation products (6, and 9–11) along with theasinensins C (4) and E (5), dehydrotheasinensin E (12), epitheaflagallin, hydroxytheaflavin, and desgalloyl oolongtheanin. The structures of the new compounds were determined chemically and spectroscopically. Isotheasinensin E (6) is a C-2 epimer of 5, and compounds 9 and 10 are oxidation products of 12. Another new compound, 11, is a yellow pigment and presumed to be a degradation product of proepitheaflagallin. The results disclosed new oxidation mechanisms that occur during black tea production.     

甲烷直接氧化制甲醇研究进展概述

目前,天然气转化为高附加值化工产品的应用越来越受到人们关注.甲烷作为天然气的主要成分,其转化和应用是天然气化工领域的重要研究方向.而甲烷直接氧化制甲醇长久以来一直是研究重点.甲烷直接氧化制甲醇与传统的甲烷二步法间接转化相比,有节能和工艺简化的突出特点.然而,甲醇直接氧化制甲醇过程所面临的主要问题有：(1)甲烷分子的活化能很高,需要苛刻的操作条件才能活化参与反应;(2)反应进行的程度难以控制,生成的甲醇会进一步被氧化生成较多副产物,大大降低甲醇收率.因此,高效活化甲烷分子和抑制甲醇深度氧化是促进该过程工业化的重要研究内容.本文主要论述了非均相、气相均相和液相体系中甲烷直接氧化制甲醇的研究进展.在甲烷非均相氧化过程中,采用过渡金属氧化物作为催化剂在高温条件下催化甲烷部分氧化反应,其中,钼系和铁系催化剂的研究最为广泛.研究表明, MoO3可作为催化剂的主要活性组分,尤以 MoO3/Ga2O3催化剂性能最好,得到甲醇收率最高.在铁系催化剂中, Fe-ZSM-5 催化反应的甲醇选择性和收率都相对较高;但是每次反应后催化剂都需要重新活化,这种间歇性操作会增加成本,不利于工业化应用.总之,甲烷的非均相氧化过程存在易形成金属聚集体、催化剂选择性低以及甲醇收率低(5%)等问题,需要深入系统地研究解决.然而,与非均相氧化过程相比,操作较为简单的甲烷气相均相氧化作为目前最有工业前景的过程受到越来越多关注.在此过程中,影响反应的主要因素有反应器、反应条件(反应压力、反应温度和反应时间等)以及添加的介质等.反应器的特殊设计需要考虑的方面有反应产物的分离与转移、反应热的移除以有效提高甲烷的转化率,比如膜反应器对物质的分离作用.反应压力对反应过程的影响较为复杂.基于动力学因素,提高反应压力可以较大幅度地增加甲醇收率,同时最佳反应温度降低,但是,当压力高于8.0 MPa时,设备成本消耗大幅增加.另外,研究表明,进料中加入 NOx作为添加介质可以提高甲烷转化率和甲醇选择性,同时降低初始反应温度.与前两个氧化体系相比,液相均匀氧化过程能够获得较高的甲烷转化率与甲醇选择性.但是液相体系中强腐蚀性介质的使用增加了设备成本,阻碍了该过程工业化的应用进程.因此,促进液相体系工业化的关键就是开发绿色高效的催化剂.     

Ethylene oxidation under conditions of the oxidative coupling of methane

Ethylene conversion under conditions of the oxidative coupling of methane has been investigated. In an empty reactor above 740°C, ethylene oxidation occurs at a higher rate and its main product is carbon monoxide. Filling the reactor with an inert material (quartz) or a NaWMn/SiO₂ catalyst leads to a marked decrease in the ethylene conversion rate. Addition of methane to the reaction mixture dramatically slows down ethylene conversion rate and increases the C₃ hydrocarbon content of the reaction products. The kinetics of ethylene oxidation in the presence of methane over the NaWMn/SiO₂ catalyst is reported.     

Direct oxidation of methane to oxygenates over heteropolyanions

Partial oxidation of methane to formaldehyde and methanol was studied at atmospheric pressure in the temperature range of 700-750 °C using heteropolycompound catalysts （NH4）6HSiMo11FeO40, （NH4）4PMo11FeO39, and H4PMo11VO40, which were prepared and characterized by various analysis techniques such as infrared, visible UV, XRD and DTA. O2 or N2O was used as the oxidizing agent, and the principal products of the reaction were CH3OH, CH2O, CO, CO2, and water. The conversion and the selectivity of products depend strongly on the reaction temperature, the nature of oxidizing agent, and the composition of catalyst.     

New compounds obtained by enzymatic oxidation of phloridzin

Oxidation of phloridzin was studied in a model system in the presence of apple polyphenol oxidase. In addition to 3-hydroxy phloridzin, two major oxidation products were purified by reversed phase HPLC at the semi-preparative scale. Their structures were elucidated by UV, ESI-MSⁿ and NMR spectroscopies. The first compound was a colourless product, whose novel structure strongly differs from its precursor showing a biphenyl moiety and a propionic acid chain. The second product was an oxidised form of the first one and corresponded to a stable yellow pigment with two isomeric forms. A mechanism of formation of these products, which implied successive oxidation and nucleophilic addition steps was proposed.     

Carbon kinetic isotope effect in the oxidation of methane by hydroxyl

The carbon kinetic isotope effect in the reaction of CH₄ with OH has an experimentally measured value of 1.003. The measurement was performed using a static system in which the source of OH was the gas-phase photolysis of H₂O₂ with ultraviolet light produced by a high-pressure mercury arc lamp. Implications for the tropospheric cycle of CH₄ are considered briefly.     

Strategies toward the sustainable electrochemical oxidation of methane to methanol

1. Download : Download high-res image (283KB)
2. Download : Download full-size image

     

The role of pressure in partial oxidation of methane

Analysis of experimental data and results of kinetic simulation throw light on the reasons for which the pressure exerts influence on the partial oxidation of methane to methanol. Among the most important factors are a crucial transition of the reaction to the steady-state chain-branched regime, an increase in the role of nonlinear gas-phase reactions, and a change in the relative contribution of heterogeneous transformations to the overall process.     

The promoting effect of energetic activation of a methane molecular-beam in the direct catalytic partial oxidation of methane

Energetic activation of a methane molecular-beam promoted remarkably the direct catalytic partial oxidation on Pt and Rh foils, in particular, hydrogen formation was dramatically enhanced.     

Effect of homogeneous initiator on heterogeneous-homogeneous oxidation of methane

A kinetic method of freezing out free radicals combined with recording ESR spectra was used to study the HCl effect on the partial oxidation of methane over SiO₂. This effect is ascribed to the surface modification of catalyst.

---

HCl SiO₂. .