HETEROGENEOUS CATALYSTS FOR SUB- AND SUPERCRITICAL WATER GASIFICATION OF WASTES AND BIOMASS

Nowadays, substantial efforts are devoted to decrease our dependence on fossil fuels. This change will heavily rely on development of new and improvedcatalytic processes. Over the past two decades, catalytic hydrogen production from wet biomass and organic compounds in sub- and supercritical water(SCW) has gained significant attention. In this process, catalysts are employed to enhance the gas formation rate at moderate temperatures. Catalystscan be also utilized to shift the product distribution toward a more desirable compound (e.g. hydrogen). The effectiveness of various types of heterogeneouscatalysts, mainly containing nickel and ruthenium, have been demonstrated for hydrothermal gasification of organic compounds. This paper overviews the major findings of hydrothermal gasification with the aid of heterogeneous catalysts in terms of activity,hydrogen selectivity and stability. Commercially available catalysts including supported and skeletal metal catalysts, activated carbon, oxides, metal wires and other innovative catalysts are considered.