97/01087 Methane conversion for application in fuel cells

Abstract

Conventional steam reformers are large and expensive for small scale fuel cell installations. But also the high endothermicity of the reforming reaction for the production of synthesis gas is a drawback. An alternative to conventional steam reforming is the partial oxidation of methane to synthesis gas. This process is slightly exothermic. The flexibility of the process makes small scale application possible. However, the partial oxidation process seems especially attractive for application within a high temperature fuel cell, because of relatively high CO/H{sub 2}-ratio for the output gases. In this paper the results of the study on the mechanism of the partial oxidation to synthesis gas on silica-supported nickel catalysts are discussed. Moreover, a process for the partial oxidation is proposed in which air instead of oxygen can be used. Based on the results of the mechanistic study two processes for the catalytic partial oxidation are proposed and simulated using the Aspen Plus flowsheeting program with which the mass and heat balances were optimized.