Decarbonization of Combustion Gases by Methanization

Originally developed for the production of synthetic methane, methanation represented the formation of methane \({(\text{CH}}_{4})\) from carbon dioxide \({(\text{CO}}_{2})\) and hydrogen \({(\text{H}}_{2})\) through a direct chemical reaction. The research started more than a century ago is still in the stage of improvement, with only a few applications at industrial level, especially in Germany. Today, methanation is also seen as a means of transforming carbon dioxide into an energy vector by using hydrogen, or as a means of storing green hydrogen in a methane fuel vector. The decarbonization of combustion gases represents the third application of methanization. All these applications should also be seen as an alternative to carbon dioxide storage, a complex and expensive operation.