Core-Shell Catalyst Pellets for CO2 Methanation in a Pilot-Scale Fixed-Bed Reactor

Power-to-methane (PtM) offers an efficient opportunity for surplus renewable energy storage, but heat management is a major challenge for conducting the highly exothermic methanation reaction. To address this challenge, this study presents the first successful demonstration of core-shell catalyst pellets in a pilot-scale reactor for CO₂ methanation. Experiments in a wall-cooled fixed-bed reactor are conducted with diluted and undiluted reactant feed under systematic variation of cooling temperature and inlet gas flow rate. The results show that core-shell catalyst pellets significantly reduce the hot-spot temperature while maintaining comparable reactant conversions to uncoated catalyst pellets at the same conditions. Additionally, core-shell catalyst pellets allow for undiluted reactant feed at comparably low hot-spot temperatures (approx. 600 °C).