Breakthrough in the activation of methane
Grillo-Werke AG successfully converts methane into methanesulfonic acid
© Grillo-Werke AG
Methane is the main component of natural gas and is, thus far, primarily being burned for heat and energy. Industry and science has been searching intensively for a material utilization of methane. Besides direct sulfonation, which has now been achieved by Grillo, research focuses on direct oxidation of methane to methanol and oxidative coupling to ethylene.
Grillo’s Chemicals Division has solved the challenge of methane’s limited reactivity thanks to a tailored reaction environment and specific activators. The process has been continuously optimized and now achieves almost full conversion at mild reaction conditions.
The process called Grillo-Methane-Sulfonation is highly cost-competitive. It is based on natural gas and sulfur trioxide (SO3) as feedstocks and is free of environmentally problematic intermediate and by-products.
Methanesulfonic acid is a modern, green product. It is a very strong acid that is not oxidative; it is readily biodegradable and toxicologically unproblematic. MSA is being used in the electroplating, electronics, industrial cleaning and pharmaceutical industries.
Most read news
Other news from the department science
Get the chemical industry in your inbox
From now on, don't miss a thing: Our newsletter for the chemical industry, analytics, lab technology and process engineering brings you up to date every Tuesday and Thursday. The latest industry news, product highlights and innovations - compact and easy to understand in your inbox. Researched by us so you don't have to.