COKE FORMATION DURING HYDROCARBONS PYROLYSIS .2. METHANE THERMAL-CRACKING

Part one of this article dealt with coking in a steam cracking furnace . In this process, coke deposition is a very complex phenomenon due to the number of parameters involved. Nevertheless, for this process, co ke deposition is a secondary reaction which does not affect steam crac king yields. It is completely different for methane thermal cracking. Coke is one of the main products of this reaction. Part two of this ar ticle deals with coke deposition on the walls of the reactors used for methane thermal cracking. After a brief description of the different set-ups used to study coke deposition, the main parameters involved ar e listed. The importance of temperature, conversion, type of diluent, and hydrocarbon partial pressure will be enhanced. To conclude, two ap proaches to the mechanism are proposed to explain coke formation durin g methane thermal cracking.