A convectively heated steam/methane reformer having a shell and tube reforming reactor for hydrogen production. A reactor core containing the reactants is convectively heated by hot air flowing through the shell or annulus of the reactor. Heated air is supplied to the reactor through several fluid inlets on the shell side of the reformer.

A convectively heated steam/methane reformer having a shell and tube reforming reactor for hydrogen production. A reactor core containing the reactants is convectively heated by hot air flowing through the shell or annulus of the reactor. Heated air is supplied to the reactor through several fluid inlets on the shell side of the reformer.

The present invention relates to high efficient tubular catalytic steam reforming reactor configured from about 0.2 inch to about 2 inch inside diameter high temperature metal alloy tube or pipe and loaded with a plurality of rolled catalyst inserts comprising metallic monoliths. The catalyst insert substrate is formed from a single metal foil without a central supporting structure in the form of a spiral monolith. The single metal foil is treated to have 3-dimensional surface features that provide mechanical support and establish open gas channels between each of the rolled layers. This unique geometry accelerates gas mixing and heat transfer and provides a high catalytic active surface area. The small diameter, high aspect ratio tubular catalytic steam reforming reactors loaded with rolled catalyst inserts can be arranged in a multi-pass non-vertical parallel configuration thermally coupled with a heat source to carry out steam reforming of hydrocarbon-containing feeds. The rolled catalyst inserts are self-supported on the reactor wall and enable efficient heat transfer from the reactor wall to the reactor interior, and lower pressure drop than known particulate catalysts. The heat source can be oxygen transport membrane reactors.

The present invention relates to a balance of plant (BOP) system of solid oxide fuel cells including a burner, a reformer, a steam generator, and heat exchangers, wherein the burner, the reformer and the steam generator are laid sequentially on top of each other to transmit the flames and burned gas generated from the burner directly to the reformer and the steam generator disposed sequentially on top of the burner, and the heat exchangers introduce the flue gas discharged from the steam generator thereinto and preheat the process air to be supplied to cathodes of stacks.

A hydrogen generation apparatus according to the present invention includes: a reformer configured to generate a hydrogen-containing gas through a reforming reaction; a combustor configured to heat the reformer; an air supply device configured to supply air to the combustor; a fuel supply device configured to supply a fuel to the combustor; a CO detector configured to detect a carbon monoxide concentration in a flue gas discharged from the combustor; and a controller configured to control at least one of the air supply device and the fuel supply device to increase an air ratio in the combustor such that the CO concentration in the flue gas increases, and then test the CO detector for abnormality.

A method of controlling the temperature of autothermal microchannel reactors is disclosed. A hierarchical control structure employs a distributed temperature controller including a phase change material and a supervisory control system including the control of one or more inputs into the reactor. The phase change material acts as a fast, distributed controller, and the supervisory controller acts over a longer time horizon to mitigate persistent disturbances. A stochastic optimization method for selecting the phase change layer thickness is employed.

A hydrogen generator includes a reformer that generates a hydrogen-containing gas from a source gas and reforming water, a condensed water channel through which condensed water flows, a circulating water channel through which circulating water flows, an ion exchange resin filter provided to the circulating water channel and deionizing the circulating water, a reservoir tank including a first reservoir provided to the condensed water channel and a second reservoir provided to the circulating water channel, a first communicator through which the first and second reservoirs are in communication with each other, and a reforming water channel that extends from a junction of the circulating water channel and supplies the circulating water as reforming water to the reformer. The pressure in the inner space of the first reservoir is maintained to be the same as the pressure in the inner space of the second reservoir.

This invention relates to a process and an apparatus for conducting simultaneous endothermic and exothermic reactions in a microchannel reactor. A start-up procedure for the microchannel reactor is disclosed.

A hydrogen generation system includes a reformer that produces a hydrogen-containing gas from a raw material and reforming water, a combustor that burns the hydrogen-containing gas and air, an exhaust-gas path, a cooling-water path, a condenser that produces condensed water by exchanging heat between the exhaust gas and the cooling water, a water tank that stores the cooling water, a water pump that feeds the cooling water into the condenser, a reforming-water path along which part of the cooling water is passed into the reformer to serve as reforming water which is branched from the cooling-water path, and a controller. The water tank is disposed at a position higher than the water pump. The water pump is disposed at a position higher than the junction. The controller detects an insufficient supply of the cooling water on the basis of the rotational speed of the water pump.

System and methods for producing synthesis gas are provided. The system includes a reactor and a steam generation system designed to provide precise control of the rate of steam generation to mix steam with fuel gas to produce humidified fuel gas, which is then fed into a combustion chamber of the reactor. The molar ratio of hydrogen to carbon monoxide in the synthesis gas output from the reactor may be accurately controlled by adjusting the humidity of the fuel gas input into the combustion chamber.