Description of Research:
My research focuses on catalytically reforming landfill gas to produce syngas (H₂ and CO). Land filling is the most popular method of waste disposal in the U.S., producing CH₄ and CO₂ from the anaerobic decomposition of biomass in landfills. Landfills accounted for 17 % of U.S. methane emissions in 2009, making them the third largest source of anthropogenic methane, which has a global warming potential approximately 21 times that of CO₂. If the CH₄ is captured and used, the landfill becomes a source of inexpensive, local energy.
There are currently 519 operational landfill-gas-to-energy projects in the U.S. supplying 13 billion kWh of electricity and 100 billion cubic feet of LFG to direct-use projects annually. However, the difficulty in using landfill gas (LFG) for energy, especially in small to medium sized landfills, is that the high CO₂ content results in a lower BTU fuel. A solution to this is to catalytically convert a portion of the LFG to syngas in situ increasing the reactivity of the fuel, thereby decreasing engine and turbine emissions used to produce electricity from the LFG.
We have shown in our lab that injecting syngas into an IC engine reduces unburned hydrocarbon, CO, and NOx emissions while improving brake efficiency. We have also shown that a Rh/Al₂O₃ catalyst is effective for dry and auto-thermally reforming LFG to syngas. Currently, we are working on determining the effect of LFG impurities, such as chlorocarbons, on the catalyst activity while reforming LFG.