Visualizing a Catalyst at Work during the Ignition of the Catalytic Partial Oxidation of Methane

We present a spatiotemporal operando X-ray absorption study of a highly dynamic process, the ignition of the noble metal catalyzed partial oxidation of methane. Evolvement and propagation of the platinum component's structural changes are investigated with a high-speed X-ray camera, which in combination with temperature profiling by IR-thermography and catalytic activity measurements by online mass spectrometry gives insight into the first stages of the ignition of the reaction toward hydrogen and carbon monoxide.