Catalyst Boosts Butadiene Production Butane-based process generates higher yield using less energy

摘要

RESEARCHERS AT North Carolina State University(NCSU),Raleigh,N.C.,have developed a new catalyst that improves n-butane-to-butadiene conversion efficiency,and could lead to increased butadiene production to meet growing demand.Existing conversion techniques create unwanted byproduct,or convert only a small fraction of the butane in each run through the reactor,note the researchers."This is an expensive process in terms of both energy and money,"says Fanxing Li,a professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at NCSU."Because after every pass through the chemical reactor,you have to separate the butadiene and byproducts from the butane-which takes a lot of energy-and run the butane through the reactor again."