A novel rotary reactor configuration for simultaneous production of hydrogen and carbon nanofibers

A novel reactor configuration, a rotary bed reactor (RBR), was used to study at large scale production the Catalytic Decomposition of Methane (CDM) into hydrogen and carbon nanofibers using a nickel–copper catalyst. The results were compared to those obtained in a fluidized bed reactor (FBR) under the same operating conditions. Tests carried out in the RBR provided higher hydrogen yields and more sustainable catalyst performance in comparison to the FBR. Additionally, the effect of the rotation speed and reaction temperature on the performance in the RBR of the nickel–copper catalyst was studied. The textural and structural properties of the carbon nanofibers produced were also studied by means of N₂ adsorption, SEM and XRD, and compared to those obtained in the FBR set-up under the same operating conditions.