http://www.anl.gov/PCS/acsfuel/preprint%20archive/Files/41_4_ORLANDO_08-96_1425.pdf
Azerbaijan, we're certain, though located somewhere in the far Asia Minor barrens North by Northeast from Bumstump, Egypt, must be a beautiful and sophisticated nation.
That said, aside from some fairly remote Natural Gas deposits of an extent that might yet remain to be fully determined, they don't have a lot of basic resources to work with, aside from sand and air.
Given those parameters, they elected to see what could be done by combining Carbon Dioxide, as might be extracted from industrial exhaust, or from the atmosphere itself, with Natural Gas, as represented by mixtures of Methane, Ethane, and etc.
Quite a lot, it seems.
Although the translation results in some lack of clarity, it appears that Azerbaijan is developing technology similar, or parallel, to that described for us best so far by Penn State University, wherein Carbon Dioxide can be "Tri-reformed", or, as per other research we've cited, "Bi-reformed", with Methane and other natural hydrocarbon gasses to synthesize higher hydrocarbons.
Comment follows excerpts from:
"CO2 reduction reactions in heterogeneous oxidation and catalytic cracking processes
A.K. Mamedov ,Institute Petrochemical Processes; Baku, Azerbaijan
Abstract: The paper contains the results of heterogeneous catalytic activation of CO2 by various organic substances, generalizes main scientific aspects of the new direction - "Oxidative Catalysis by Carbon Oioxide ", and develop the petrochemical oxidative processes using carbon dioxide as an oxidant.
... the elaboration of new classes of oxidative processes, based on the nontraditional oxidant, carbon dioxide, is of great importance both to theory and practice and to environmental protection.
We aim to reduce CO2 by hydrogen evolved from organic compounds IN SITU reaction, i.e., to realize the reduction of carbon dioxide with simultaneous selective oxidation of organic compounds. The reduction of carbon dioxide with alkanes, olefins, alcohols and high molecular parafins were studied as examples of these reactions ... .
Experiments were carried out in a ... catalyst bed reactor at atmosphere pressure. Catalysts were prepared by usual impregnation method on (Silicon and Aluminum Oxides).
Model example of the specified reactions is the oxidation of methane by carbon dioxide:
Investigation of CH4 interaction with CO2 showed that the traditional regularities of this reaction, known for nickel catalysts .are not valid in the case of manganese system ,where there is no formation of carbon even during the reaction of CO2 in equimolar mixture with CH4.
(As we take this, and as we have from other sources documented, using Manganese-based catalysts helps prevent carbon deposition which has been a noted problem in other Carbon Dioxide reforming technologies using Nickel catalysts.)
... full conversion of CO2 and CH4 was observed, yielding the equimolar mixture of CO+ H ... .
(Carbon Dioxide and Methane were, in other words, fully converted into Carbon Monoxide + Hydrogen; or, to use a word more recognizable and meaningful, Syngas - synthesis gas.)
In the reaction of ethane with CO2 the regularities of alkane oxidation with CO2 change a little.The reduction of C-H bond energy in the case of ethane leads to the decrease of CO2 activation temperature.
For simultaneous activation of CO2 and dehydrogenation of ethane the catalyst has to combine reduction-oxidation and basic functions. ... the conversion of CO2 satisfies to 52.3%.that of ethane was 82.6% with ethylene selectivity of 76.8 %.Contents of ethylene and carbon monoxide in the reaction mixture are
similar ,thus making it possible to use this mixture without separation for carbonylation of ethylene.
The main tendency of propane oxidation with CO2 is similar to those observed ...in ethane conversion. During oxidation of propane by carbon dioxide ... olefins yield was 73% with the olefins selectivity of 78%.
(And, olefins, generally, we believe, are fine materials from which to start making gasoline and other useful hydrocarbon compounds.)
One of the new reactions with CO2 participation is ethylene oxidation, which is characterized by ethylene dehydrodimerization into butadiene."
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Many, most, of the technicalities in the full report are beyond our understanding and ability to accurately, clearly report. Like much of what we submit, the information begs review by those qualified to assess it and translate it into meaningful terms for the rest of us.
What is clear, though, is that, in Azerbaijan, they are beginning to learn that Carbon Dioxide can be reacted with light hydrocarbons, such as Methane, which can itself be synthesized from Carbon Dioxide via the Nobel-winning Sabatier process, to synthesize higher hydrocarbons suitable as raw materials from which to make liquid fuels and other valuable products.