The promising properties of ceramic foam catalysts were investigated in several types of catalytic processes, whereby a marked improvement in terms of higher selectivity and/ or yield could be expected in fast reactions or reactions with a pronounced heat development such as 1) oxidative dehydrogenation of alkanes, 2) partial oxidation of ethylene, and 3) steam and dry reforming of methane. Improvement of Technical Processes for Base Chemicals Production However, a more practical classification is given on the basis of (potential) applications of ceramic foam catalysts. The processes described herein are of very heterogeneous nature with respect to the reaction mechanisms and process parameters such as temperature, pressure, and space velocity. The following section deals with catalytic applications of ceramic foams, mostly in laboratory-scale experiments.

These coatings have the advantage of a large specific surface area without the disadvantage of outer diffusion through shaped catalyst parts. Active substances can be fabricated by a tailored coating (for coating methods of honeycombs and ceramic foams, see Section 5.4.2).