Scientists would very much like to find a way to convert methane (the primary component in natural gas) to methanol at room temperature. Doing so would offer a new source of liquid fuel that would be readily available due to the abundance of methane. Unfortunately, researchers have found it difficult going due to the unreactive nature of methane. But now, a team of researchers from Belgium and the U.S. has identified the active site of an iron-containing catalyst that has raised hopes for designing a practically useful catalyst that might make converting methane to methanol a possibility. In their paper published in the journal Nature, the researchers describe their efforts, what they discovered and why they believe their findings may lead to a practical way to convert methane to a more efficient energy resource. http://phys.org/news/2016-08-catalyst-methane-methanol-room-temperature.html Paper: http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v536/n7616/full/536280a.html
