Warm plasma catalytic coreforming of dilute bioethanol and methane for hydrogen production

Abstract Toward hydrogen production from renewable sources, coreforming of dilute bioethanol (5 mol% ethanol) and methane using gliding arc discharge warm plasma is reported. For warm plasma alone, increases in methane to ethanol ratio and specific energy input lead to improving hydrogen yield, but low energy efficiency (<60%). The warm plasma coupled with Ni/CeO 2 /Al 2 O 3 catalyst in a heat‐insulation reactor achieves an energy efficiency of 80%, but the large axial‐temperature drop of the catalyst bed causes low conversions. Therefore, additional heating is provided to maintain the catalyst bed temperature. Under optimal conditions, total carbon conversion of 97% and hydrogen yield of 78% are achieved with an energy cost of 1.16 kWh/Nm 3 and energy efficiency of 85%.