Thermodynamic analysis of hydrogen production by partial oxidation reforming

Department

Mechanical Engineering

Document Type

Article

Publication Title

International Journal of Hydrogen Energy

ISSN

0360-3199

Volume

29

Issue

8

DOI

10.1016/j.ijhydene.2003.09.015

First Page

809

Last Page

816

Publication Date

7-1-2004

Abstract

This paper presents thermodynamic analysis of hydrogen production by partial oxidation reforming. The analysis applies two approximations to the chemistry: global reaction balances and chemical equilibrium. The global reaction analysis provides theoretical upper limits on the process in the form of algebraic expressions involving the steam-to-carbon ratio and the oxygen-to-carbon ratio as process parameters. The equilibrium computations provide a more realistic estimate of the expected product composition and thermal efficiency of the process. The equilibrium predictions are compared to experimental data obtained using a first generation plasmatron reformer operated on diesel fuel. The efficiency of this compact reformer was considerably below the theoretical maximum. © 2003 International Association for Hydrogen Energy. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

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