Innovative Cu/Ni/Fe/γ-Al2O3/Al mesh-type catalyst and compact plate reactor design for steam reforming of dimethyl ether

Abstract

With the intensification of energy depletion and environmental crisis, the development of hydrogen energy is drawing more and more attention. On-site steam reforming of alcohols and ethers in small-size devices is an effective way to supply hydrogen in a decentralized manner. In this paper, a new mesh-type structured catalyst was developed, which has a uniform γ-Al2O3 support layer on the surface of commercial aluminium mesh prepared by the anodic oxidation method. The compact plate reactor and test system were designed to match the new catalyst. The steam reforming performance of Cu-Ni and Cu-Ni-Fe catalysts and the hydrogen production capacity of the compact plate reactor were investigated at different temperatures and gas hourly space velocity (GHSV) using dimethyl ether (DME) as the feedstock. The experimental results showed that the two catalysts exhibited good self-reduction property. The concentration of carbon monoxide in the product can be significantly reduced for the Cu-Ni-Fe catalyst. When the GHSV was 18,000 ml/(g h) and the temperature was 400 °C, the DME conversion was 66%, and the hydrogen production capacity per unit reaction chamber can reach 76.5 ml/(min cm3). The catalyst developed in this paper also has the advantages of high bonding strength, flexible deformability, light weight and economy.