Converting natural gas components to fuels and petrochemicals

Norway is a major producer of natural gas, resources that are mainly exported with little or no upgrading. Utilizing these resources with minimum environmental impact is a major challenge to catalysis. The main focus on the research programme will be on t he environmentally friendly utilization of natural gas components for the production of fuels, petrochemicals and materials. In spite of a concerted research effort over the last couple of decades an economic route to direct natural gas conversion has sti ll not been achieved. Methane conversion will therefore involve synthesis gas as an intermediate also in the years to come. Ethane/propane are also imortant constituents of natural gas and the potential in utilizing this resource is very large. The pro gramme consists of 5 projects. Two projects dealing with the conversion of synthesis gas, two projects on the production of olefins from ethane/propane and one project dealing with natural gas-based new materials with a high value: CNF -polymer composites . The conversion to liquid fuels by the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis is presently the most important technology for natural gas conversion. The first project deals with fundamental studies of the relation between catalyst properties and the selectivitty. T he synthesis gas may also serve as a feedstock for producing dimethyl ether (DME), a product with a great potential. Ethane/ propane are important feedstocks for the production of olefins. One project deals with new technologies for suitable design of ca talysts and reactors for operation at high temperature and short contact times. The second proposal focuses on catalytic dehydrogenation of propane. The objective of the CNF project is to develop in situ polymerization of ethene and propene on CNF's to ac hieve better dispersion of CNF and better interfacial bonding.