Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
7058804 | International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer | 2013 | 8 Pages |
Abstract
A disc microreactor with constructal tree-shaped flow architecture is introduced for methanol steam reforming. For this design, a three-dimensional model is developed and analyzed numerically to predict the resulting hydrogen production. The methanol conversion ratio, yield of hydrogen production in the product of the tree-shaped microreactor, are all evaluated and compared with the corresponding microreactor using a parallel flow pattern. In addition, the effect of branching level, steam to methanol ratio (SMR), and inlet velocity on the reaction performance of the microreactor with a constructal tree-shaped network are also investigated and discussed. The results indicate that the methanol conversion in the disc tree-shaped microreactor is more than 10% better than that of a parallel microreactor. Furthermore, the yield of hydrogen at the outlet of the disc tree-shaped microreator is greater than the parallel flow configuration. The CO concentration in the products of the disc tree-shaped microreactor is higher than that of parallel microreactor. In addition, the disc tree-shaped microreactor with a larger branch level behaves enhanced performance on the methanol conversion and hydrogen production.
Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering
Chemical Engineering
Fluid Flow and Transfer Processes
Authors
Feng Yao, Yongping Chen, G.P. Peterson,