Hydrocarbon Upgrading and Co-processing by Metal-modified Zeolites and Zincosilicates

Direct conversion of methane to higher value products is of great interest to industry and academia. However, the inherent stability of methane means no commercial processes exist to date. Non-oxidative, co-processing of methane with methanol, ethanol and ethylene has been shown to improve methane conversion and product selectivity at moderate temperatures (less than 700K) and could provide a route to direct methane valorisation. This thesis explores the effect of framework topology (mainly MFI vs CHA) in various metal-exchanged aluminosilicate and zincosilicate materials for hydrocarbon upgrading, with the aim of enhancing methane conversion through co-processing reactions at temperatures of 673K and below. This study was facilitated by the development of a novel hydrothermal synthesis method for CHA topology zincosilicate materials.