liquid methanol tagged posts

Representative HAADF images and particle size distributions for the unsupported AuPd-PVP sol in the fresh (A to C) and after a CH4 oxidation reaction (D to F). CREDIT Graham J. Hutchings and Christopher J. Kiely

Liquid methanol is widely used as a feedstock for other chemicals and also has considerable potential as an alternative fuel source. However, converting methane—the primary component of abundant natural gas—into methanol is currently achieved by an indirect process which requires high heat and pressure. Now researchers have discovered a new approach that allows the direct conversion of methane to methanol utilizing molecular oxygen under much milder reaction conditions.

A team has used colloidal gold-palladium (Au-Pd) nanoparticles to directly oxidize methane to methanol with h...

Phenanthroline ligands used in the borylation of methane. Credit: IBS

Using a new hybrid breed of computational and experimental chemistry, an international team of chemists was able to solve a puzzle that has been dubbed a ‘Holy Grail reaction’ and devise a method for catalyzing reactions with methane. As organic chemistry evolved, techniques for catalyzing hydrocarbons advanced and one by one a method was created for their manipulation. Ethane, propane, butane, pentane – all the alkanes followed a similar pattern and their reactions had predictable results. Only one alkane-methane- refused to follow suit and this confounded chemists for decades. Methane had been just too difficult to work with; its C-H bond could not be manipulated...