Plasma fluidized beds and their scalability
Tomohiro Nozaki, Xiaozhong Chen, Dae-Yeong Kim, Hyun‐Ha Kim
Abstract
Over the last decade, plasma catalysis has attracted considerable research attention as an emerging low-carbon technology. In plasma catalysis, stable molecules such as CO 2 , CH 4 , and N 2 are activated by electron impact or electrical energy, thereby ushering in a low-temperature chemistry domain that departs from energy-intensive, heat-dependent systems. Moreover, renewable-energy-driven plasma technologies are expected to help realize power-to-X schemes. In this short review, fluidized bed (FB) reactors incorporated with dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) are explored as potential candidates for upscaling plasma catalysis systems without employing a numbering-up approach. To that end, a scaled-up FB-DBD reactor is conceptualized using CO 2 methanation as a model reaction, followed by the validation of laboratory-scale FB-DBD reactors, which exhibit remarkably high feed gas conversion rates at temperatures lower than those of thermal catalysis units. Finally, certain salient conclusions and perspectives are presented. • Plasma catalysis—a renewable-energy-driven low-carbon technology—is explored. • Fluidized bed/dielectric barrier discharge (FB-DBD) reactors are targeted. • Scalability of FB-DBD reactors for commercial applications is analyzed. • Potential of FB-DBD reactors to function without numbering-up is discussed. • Insights are obtained via comparison with packed bed/DBD reactors.