Controlled oxidation of methane doped catalysts irradiated by microwaves

The oxidative coupling of methane has been studied on a (SmLiO2)0.8(CaOMgO)0.2 catalyst by using two different modes of heating: a conventional oven and a microwave irradiation set-up. The C2 selectivity obtained with microwave heating was much higher than with conventional heating especially at low conversions. This difference could arise from the reduction of oxidation products (ethane, ethylene) in the gas phase under microwave irradiation.