Statu quo on CO2 methanation: A review

This review summarizes the statu quo and the perspectives of chemical methanation. CO2 methanation, including catalyst deactivation, reactors, mechanisms, and thermodynamics are presented. This reaction serves as a test bed for our fundamental understanding of heterogeneous catalysis and is used in various industrial processes, including the removal of oxo-compounds (COx) in the feed gas for the ammonia synthesis, in connection with the gasification of coal, where it can be used to produce methane from synthesis gas, and in relation to Fischer Tropsch's synthesis. Moreover, CO2 methanation became of interest as a renewable energy storage system based on a power-to-gas conversion process by SNG (synthetic natural gas) production integrating water electrolysis and CO2 methanation as a highly effective way to store the energy produced by renewables sources. The effectiveness and efficiency of the power-to-gas plants strongly depends on the CO2-methanation process. (C) 2017 Academie des sciences. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.