Reaction and hydrogen production phenomena of ethanol steam reforming in a catalytic membrane reactor

Ethanol steam reforming (ESR) can be performed efficiently using catalytic membrane reactors (CMR) to enhance H-2 production. To investigate the reaction of ESR and the effect of membrane on H-2 production, a numerical model was developed to predict the chemical reaction phenomena. The simulations suggested that lower Reynolds numbers were conducive to ethanol conversion and H-2 recovery. The H-2 yield could be increased by recovering H-2 from the ESR product gas using the Pd membrane, and the membrane had a better performance at low Reynolds numbers. Alternatively, total H-2 production increased at higher Reynolds numbers, but H-2 recovery decreased due to shorter residence time in the reactor. Increasing the S/E ratio enhanced the ESR performance to produce H-2 due to the excessive steam supplied to the reaction, but the H-2 recovery declined slightly and more energy would be required. Although a high inlet temperature increased the H-2 concentration on the retentate side, it also caused the membrane to experience a higher risk of melting. An increase in pressure facilitated both the ethanol conversion and H-2 recovery, scribing to more H-2 permeating through the membrane. Overall, the obtained results in this study are beneficial to ESR operation for H-2 production. (c) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.