A apparatus may extract temperature for each region of a feed water and steam system of a thermoelectric power plant with respect to a combustible combination including one or more combustibles, extract one or more vectors for each region from the temperatures extracted for each region, generate one or more combustible clusters, each cluster including one or more combustible combinations having similar properties from the extracted vectors, and extract a characteristic component of a combustible combination that increases or decreases a boiler performance index from among one or more combustible combinations included in the one or more combustible clusters.

The apparatus includes: a hydrogen generation container provided with a magnesium-based hydride accommodation part accommodating magnesium-based hydride; a reaction water tank storing water or an aqueous solution; the pipes connected to the reaction water tank and the hydrogen generation container; a pump operating to suction water or the aqueous solution from the reaction water tank and then exhaust it through the pipes to the hydrogen generation container; a pressure gauge measuring the pressure in the inside of the hydrogen generation container; and a control unit, on the basis of the pressure value of the pressure gauge, controlling the amount of water caused to flow through the pipes by the pump.

Hydrogen generation assemblies, hydrogen purification devices, and their components are disclosed. In some embodiments, the devices may include a permeate frame with a membrane support structure having first and second membrane support plates that are free from perforations and that include a plurality of microgrooves configured to provide flow channels for at least part of the permeate stream. In some embodiments, the assemblies may include a return conduit fluidly connecting a buffer tank and a reformate conduit, a return valve assembly configured to manage flow in the return conduit, and a control assembly configured to operate a fuel processing assembly between run and standby modes based, at least in part, on detected pressure in the buffer tank and configured to direct the return valve assembly to allow product hydrogen stream to flow from the buffer tank to the reformate conduit when the fuel processing assembly is in the standby mode.

A fuel cell module includes a fuel cell stack and FC peripheral equipment. The FC peripheral equipment includes an evaporator. At least one of evaporation pipes of the evaporator connects a water vapor discharge chamber and an inlet of a reformer to form an evaporation return pipe as a passage of water vapor. A raw fuel pipe is inserted into the evaporation return pipe for allowing a raw fuel to flow from the downstream side to the upstream side of the evaporation return pipe.

In an ammonia or hydrogen plant comprising a desulfurisation section, a reforming section and a shift section, where the shift section comprises a low temperature shift converter and a medium temperature shift converter, a vent line is arranged downstream from the low temperature shift converter and the medium temperature shift converter in order to allow the shift converters to be re-heated with process gas at a low pressure (typically 3-7 bar). This way condensation of water vapour in the process gas is avoided. By applying this vent line it becomes possible to save significant time, more specifically 8-24 hours, for restarting the production after temporary shut-down thereof, because a heat-up of the LTS/MTS converter in circulating nitrogen is avoided.

A method of operating a hydrogen generator includes: a step (a) of generating a hydrogen-containing gas by a hydrogen generation unit by using a raw material in the hydrogen generation unit; a step (b) of removing a sulfur compound from the raw material by a hydrodesulfurizer which is heated by heat transferred from the hydrogen generation unit; and a step (c) of performing an operation of supplying the raw material to the hydrogen generation unit after stopping the generating of the hydrogen-containing gas by the hydrogen generation unit. The step (c) is not performed unless, at least, a temperature of the hydrodesulfurizer is such a temperature at which carbon deposition from the raw material is suppressed.

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.

Provided is a power conversion system having a solid-oxide fuel cell capable of stably generating electricity from hydrogen generated by an organic hydride. The power conversion system includes a solid-oxide fuel cell, a reactor for producing hydrogen and a dehydrogenation product from an organic hydride by dehydrogenation reaction, and a heat engine for generating motive power. The power conversion system separates the hydrogen produced by the reactor, and supplies the hydrogen as fuel to the solid-oxide fuel cell. Exhaust heat of the heat engine is supplied to both the solid-oxide fuel cell and the reactor.

A gaseous fuel catalytic partial oxidation (CPOX) reformer can include a plurality or an array of spaced-apart CPOX reactor units, each reactor unit including an elongate tube having a wall with internal and external surfaces, the wall enclosing an open gaseous flow passageway with at least a portion of the wall having CPOX catalyst disposed therein and/or comprising its structure. The catalyst-containing wall structure and open gaseous flow passageway enclosed thereby define a gaseous phase CPOX reaction zone, the catalyst-containing wall section being gas-permeable to allow gaseous CPOX reaction mixture to diffuse therein and hydrogen-rich product reformate to diffuse therefrom. At least the exterior surface of a CPOX reaction zone of a CPOX reactor unit can include a hydrogen barrier. The gaseous fuel CPOX reformer also can include one or more igniters, and a source of gaseous reformable fuel.

Hydrogen generation assemblies, hydrogen purification devices, and their components are disclosed. In some embodiments, the devices may include a permeate frame with a membrane support structure having first and second membrane support plates that are free from perforations and that include a plurality of microgrooves configured to provide flow channels for at least part of the permeate stream. In some embodiments, the assemblies may include a return conduit fluidly connecting a buffer tank and a reformate conduit, a return valve assembly configured to manage flow in the return conduit, and a control assembly configured to operate a fuel processing assembly between run and standby modes based, at least in part, on detected pressure in the buffer tank and configured to direct the return valve assembly to allow product hydrogen stream to flow from the buffer tank to the reformate conduit when the fuel processing assembly is in the standby mode.