The vapor phase dehydration of methanol to dimethyl ether using catalytic membrane reactor was studied for the first time. The catalytic membranes were prepared by the deposition of a solid-acid catalyst, namely, F-4SF resin (the Russian analog of Nafion (TM)), onto the internal surface of the ceramic ultrafiltration tubular membrane. The catalytic membrane reactor was used in three different configurations of feed supply and product withdrawal. Among these three configurations, the flow through catalytic membrane reactor demonstrates the maximum methanol conversion of 36.4% and 100% selectivity toward DME. (c) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.