Abstract
CONSIDERABLE effort has been devoted to the conversion of methane into more useful compounds1. Oxygen has generally been used to draw methane into reaction, at the cost of losing some of the feedstock as carbon dioxide. Several catalytic routes exist for the formation of synthesis gas, (CO + H2)2,3, but attempts to synthesize higher hydrocarbons from methane have not yet resulted in a commercially viable process4. Here we report that exposure of platinum to pure methane, followed by hydrogenation, can result in appreciable conversion to aliphatic hydrocarbons with up to six carbon atoms. Optimization of this process could lead to a new route to industrially important alkanes.
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Belgued, M., Pareja, P., Amariglio, A. et al. Conversion of methane into higher hydrocarbons on platinum. Nature 352, 789–790 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1038/352789a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/352789a0
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