Conceptual design and CFD simulation of a novel metal-based monolith reactor with enhanced mass transfer

This paper introduces a novel structured metallic catalyst that improves mass transfer performance of a monolith reactor for highly exothermic gas-solid reactions. The monolith channels are designed to have metallic substrates that consist of two layers with one of the layers being the metallic support and another layer being a foam metal annular that is tightly deposited onto the support surface by some means. Parametrical studies based on a 2D monolith reactor model showed that the present design yields an enhanced mass transfer between the bulk fluid and the catalyst layer due to a decrease in external film resistance, and an enhanced mass transfer within the solid phase mainly due to the viscous flow effect within the porous catalyst layer.