Millisecond Production of Hydrogen from Alternative, High Hydrogen Density Fuels in a Cocurrent Multifunctional Microreactor

Abstract

A pseudo-2-dimensional model is used for modeling a multifunctional microreactor for hydrogen generation by coupling catalytic ammonia decomposition on ruthenium with catalytic propane combustion on platinum. The two reactions are carried out in adjacent parallel plate channels in a cocurrent flow mode. Operating lines defining the attainable region are computed. The high temperatures and fast heat transfer ensure that both reactions go to completion in as low as submillisecond contact times and enable compact hydrogen production for portable and distributed power generation. The ammonia decomposition reaction tends to be limited by the intrinsic rate of reaction, whereas catalytic combustion is also affected by mass and heat diffusion. We have found that moderate and high conductivity materials are preferable because they support a rather wide attainable region. We show that one such device could enable variable hydrogen supply for variable power needs. A simple operating strategy to dial in the desirabl...