The Catalytic Synthesis of Hydrocarbons from Carbon Monoxide and Hydrogen

Abstract

The increasing demand for energy, coupled with the uncertainty and expense of crude oil imports, has renewed interest in the production of fuels and chemicals from hydrogen-deficient materials. These energy sources such as coal, residua, oil shale, and tar sands can be gasified with steam and oxygen to produce a gas containing large quantities of carbon monoxide and hydrogen. Once methane is removed from this CO/H₂ mixture it is purified to remove S poisons and then reacted over a catalyst to produce a variety of organic products. The synthesis of hydrocarbon products, with the exception of methane, is commonly referred to as the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis reaction.