Plasma-assisted ammonia and value-added hydrocarbons productions from CH4 and N2
Ammonia is crucial for life as a primary element for fertilizer production and it is also a foundational feedstock for pharmaceuticals, dyes, and chemical synthesis. Ammonia has also emerged as an energy carrier and transportation fuel. Plasma-based reactors are potentially operated by renewable electricity sources (wind and solar), offering lightweight, flexible, straightforward on/off switch, and safety operations, which highlight them as promising candidates decentralized ammonia and hydrocarbon production plants. The project aims to produce high ammonia yield and value-added hydrocarbon products from an abundance of natural gas (CH4) and N2. The project is also dedicated to providing novel insights into the activation mechanisms of these two stable molecules to ammonia and hydrocarbons under the plasma regime. The findings from this project will provide fundamental understandings to fill the existing knowledge gaps in the field and set important steps for the future optimization of plasma technology for ammonia production at industrial scales.