Kinetic modeling of plasma methane conversion in a dielectric barrier discharge

Methane conversion by plasma offers a promising route to produce higher value-added products. As plasma reaction is a relatively complex process, kinetic modeling is necessary to obtain a general pattern of the complex interaction on the basis of chemical reaction and products. In this paper, we present a method to obtain the kinetic rate coefficient (k) from the experimental data. Although plasma reaction was classified as chemically complex interaction, the reactions showed a certain pattern of the mechanism. In pure methane injection, the decomposition of methane by plasma could initiate coupling reactions and produce C2H6, C3H8, and C4H10. Dehydrogenation of C2H6 into C2H4 and then to C2H2 could be clearly seen by the higher value of the reaction rate constant of C2Hn+2 to C2Hn−2. Using the rate constant values (k) obtained by this method, the pathways of the methane conversion by a dielectric barrier discharge can be drawn.