Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
9760503 | Journal of Power Sources | 2005 | 5 Pages |
Abstract
Fuel-processing is a bridging technology to assist the commercialization of fuel cell systems in the absence of a hydrogen infrastructure. The Argonne National Laboratory has been developing fuel-processing technologies for fuel cells, and has reported the development of novel catalysts that are active and selective for hydrocarbon-reforming reactions. It has been realized, however, that with pellets or conventional honeycomb catalysts, the reforming process is mass-transport limited. This study addresses the development of catalysts structures with microchannels that are able to reduce the diffusion resistance and, thereby, achieve the same production rate within a smaller reactor bed. The microchannel reforming catalysts are prepared and tested with natural gas and gasoline-type fuels in a microreactor (diameter: 1Â cm) at space velocities of up to 250Â 000Â hâ1. The catalysts have also been used in engineering-scale reactors (10Â kWe; diameter: 7Â cm) with similar product qualities. Compared with pellet catalysts, the microchannel catalysts offer a nearly five-fold reduction in catalyst weight and volume.
Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering
Chemistry
Electrochemistry
Authors
J.-M. Bae, S. Ahmed, R. Kumar, E. Doss,