A Low Temperature And Pressure Methanol Synthesis

Researchers and industrial practitioners have been discussed a lot about methanol
synthesis nowadays. This is because due to the high demand of methanol itself in
processing formaldehyde, chloromethanes, amines, acetic acid, MTBE and methyl
methacrylate. In addition of that, currently methanol synthesis using syngas has attracted
this researchers and industrial practitioner since it involving greenhouse gas which is CO2.
Methanol synthesis reaction is an exothermic reaction. Researchers are still trying
to find a way to lower down the operating conditions (e. g temperature and pressure)
because of controlling the temperature inside the reactor is difficult. Besides, high
operating conditions may deactivate the catalyst, thus lowering down the CO conversion,
yield and not less may lowering down the selectivity of methanol. Since that sulphur free
synthesis gas has been able to produce, Cu-based catalyst, a more active catalyst can be
used and a low pressure and temperature methanol synthesis is more feasible.
The study on low temperature methanol synthesis using 2-butanol has been
successful and currently been applied in big scale. However, there is still no well-establish
study on low temperature and pressure using aromatics solvent as catalytic solvent, thus
gain the author interest to study on this matter.
In the first semester, the author come out with some theory about how methanol is
produced after done some deep research. The project continued in the second semester with
catalyst preparing, catalyst characterization, run methanol synthesis reaction in a three
phase reactor and samples analysis. In this project, two aromatics solvents (toluene and
xylene) is use in the process of synthesizing methanol at temperature of 150 - 200°C and
pressure of 20 bar. Percentage of total carbon conversion and yield will be observed as well
as the selectivity at the end of this project