Fluid dynamics and kinetic simulation for steam reforming of ethanol using a microchannel reactor

Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell (PEMFC) has been recognized to be the potential source for future vehicles due to environmentally friendly. Supplying hydrogen for mobile vehicles is becoming of interest since storing compressed hydrogen in the bottle is not only dangerous but also energy consuming. One way to overcome the drawback is by performing the ethanol steam reforming in situ. In this way, microreactor offers the potential benefit to convert ethanol to hydrogen due to very fast mass and heat transfer. Fluid dynamics inside the microreactors and the kinetic aspects for ethanol steam reforming using Pt/Al₂O₃ catalyst were investigated with aim to determine the proper microreactor design having uniform fluid distribution and to study the influence of reaction temperature, fluid velocity, and reactor length. It was found that placing an obstacle inside the microreactors in certain position gave more uniform distribution of fluid flow. The reaction temperature and fluid velocity showed their influence on hydrogen productivity.