Heat Management Of Methanol Steam Reforming Process In Micro-channel

Hydrogen production from methanol-steam reforming reaction in micro-channel is the leading orientation of fuel preparation technology for fuel cell. The reforming process is complicated, which refers to the problem of heat and mass transfer in micro-scale environment, physics and chemical potential difference drive because of the catalyst reforming reaction, and the coupling of the whole problem. To give valuable advice for the heat management, I take the general consideration of basic mechanism effect on the reaction catalyst interface, the micro-scale effect on the heat and mass transfer in micro-channel, and chemical potential difference effect on the interface heat and mass transfer because of the reforming reaction.In the numerical models, catalyst layer is considered as porous media with fixed porosity and permeability, and physics and chemical potential difference law is described as chemical kinetics. In the mathematic model, momentum source, components source and energy source represent the resistance of catalyst layer, components change because of reforming reactions, and energy change because of endothermic reforming reactions respectively. Established the comprehensive physical and mathematical models, CFD software was used to simulate the comprehensive reform process, including the influence of structure dimensions, catalyst arrangement, heating and operation conditions. After the detail simulation, we have described the basic effect mechanism on the heat and mass management, including micro-construction dimension, catalyst arrangement and heating condition. Also we have elaborated the relevance of operate parameter and reaction mechanism, the change of temperature and velocity and molar species according to the reforming reaction.All those results have taken the whole consideration of the common effect of heat and mass transfer, the development relevance with progress element and the construction, mass and heat management in micro-channel. Those study give the basic theory for methanol-steam catalytic reforming reaction in micro-channel, also expand the recognize extent in mass and heat transfer problem because of multi- potential difference in microstructure.