Fuel processors systems

The additional issue for PEM is the minimization of steam needed for the fuel processor system. Since an APU is a mobile and/or remote unit, the need for external sources of water should be minimized. The reformate stream is further diluted by additional steam, if that water is not removed prior to the fuel cell stack. 

Pfiefer et al. are developing a methanol fuel processor system using steam reforming for a 200 Wg fuel cell based power supply. The researchers are currently working on the methanol reformer reactors, heat exchangers, combustors, and preferential oxidation reactors (Figure 23) for the system. The reactor bodies are either stainless steel or copper. 

So far, micro structured fuel processor systems seem to be limited to the first two technologies. Figure 2.1 shows a general flow scheme of a fuel processor with heterogeneously catalyzed reactors for gas purification. Devices shown in dashed lines are not mandatory for the system. 

Schuessler et al. [85] of XCELLSiS (later BALLARD) presented an integrated methanol fuel processor system based on autothermal reforming, which coupled fuel/water evaporation with exothermic preferential oxidation (PrOx) of carbon monoxide. The reactor technology was based, in contrast to most other approaches, on a sintering technique. 

Comparison of Micro Structured Fuel Processor Systems with Conventional Technologies... 

Figure 1. Flow Diagram of Major Fuel Processor System Components...

Validate models with data from the Nuvera fuel processor system. 

GE EER and GE s Global Research Center (GRC) will analyze the design for reliability (DFR) of the fuel processor. The components that require a design review to reduce capital costs have been identified. DFR templates that have been developed by GRC to record all failures will be used. This data will be analyzed and all identified reliability issues will be addressed during the design of the next system. The DFR plan also includes component testing that will help identify failures of subsystems and components. Information from DFR analysis will be combined with the economic analysis to determine the economic benefits of the advanced fuel processor system. 

Integrate STAR fuel processor and fuel cell, investigate the performance of the power system, and identify system level integration issues. Deliver the integrated fuel processor system to ANL. 

Design, build and demonstrate a fully integrated, 50-kilowatt electric (kWe) catalytic autothermal fuel processor system. The fuel processor will produce a hydrogen-rich gas for direct use in proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell systems for vehicle applications. 

Develop preliminary design of 50-kWe fuel processor system and performance goals for individual components. 

Ship fuel processor system to Argonne National Eaboratory. 

Completed fabrication and assembly of fuel processor system. 

Models have been developed for the entire fuel processor system (ASPEN) and several of the microchannel reactors (FEMLAB and FLUENT). 

Operate modular fuel processor system with liquid hydrocarbons to generate real reformate... 

Operated fuel processor system with liquid hydrocarbon fuels for over 1000 hrs... 

Figure 1. Fuel Processor System Showing the Stages for POx/SR, HTS, LTS and PrOx...

Concentration of Fuel Processor System during 800 hrs Operation with Isooctane... 

Venturi, M., zur Megede, D., Keppeler, B., Dobbs, H., Kallio, E. Synthetic Hydrocarbon Fuel for APU Application The Fuel Processor System. Society Automotive Engineering, 2003-01-0267... 

For different applications, the power needed from the fuel cells varies from less than 1W for small applications such as sensors and mobile phones to over 100 kW for automobiles and stationary applications. With microreactors, hydrogen flows capable of producing power in the range from 0.01 W to 50 kW have been achieved [3]. Numerous applications of fuel conversion in microstructured devices have dealt with the combination with fuel cells to yield a power supply for microelectric devices and microsensors and as an alternative to a conventional battery. Thus, the resulting power output of the fuel cell has been in the low watts area, from 0.01 Wto a few watts, as in the integrated methanol fuel processors built by companies such as Casio and Motorola [4]. PNNL has developed various low-power portable fuel processor systems, from lower than 1W [5-7] to systems that could provide 15 W, such as a portable and lightweight system for a soldier portable fuel cell [8,9]. In the range of... 

When hydrocarbon distillate fuels such as gasoline, diesel or jet fuels are used, it is also necessary to include a desulfurization unit in the fuel processor system. Hence Shaaban and Campbell [26] patented a system with an effective sulfur removal process that was able to operate with various hydrocarbons. It consisted of a reformer with membrane purifier and water recovery, a catalytic combustor for fuel to provide the energy for the reforming process and the desulfurization unit. 

Another sub-watt power system was also developed by researchers from Batelle [34] as an alternative to conventional battery technology. The microscale fuel processor system for liquid fuels such as methanol and butane consisted of an integrated vaporizer, steam reformer and combustor. The system generated 10-500 mWe power output with a reactor volume of less than 5 mm. The energy density of the system operated with methanol was stated to be at least an order of magnitude greater than that of lithium ion batteries. 

Irving et al. developed a fuel processor system that could provide hydrogen without further purification for 1-5 kW power output of the PEM fuel cell [37]. The Innova-Gen fuel processor could reform fuels of multiple types including natural gas, gasoline and diesel (see Figure 23.8). 

Figure 24.9 The 250W i fuel cell-fuel processor system VEGA developed by cooperation between Truma and IMM. Photograph courtesy of TRUMA.

Figure 15.1 Schematic of the integrated fuel cell-fuel processor system.

Figure 14.30 Sankey diagram of the 2 kW CHP PEM fuel cell/methane fuel processor system [171].

Figure 14.32 (a) Fuel processor of the VeGA system [16]. (Soixrce O Connell et al. [16]. Reproduced with permission of Elsevier.) (b) 250 Wjj fuel cell/fuel processor system VeGA developed by a cooperation of TRUMA and IMM [106]. 

Moon, DJ, Sreekumar, K, Lee, SD, Lee, BG, Kim, HS. Studies on gasoline fuel processor system for fuel-cell powered vehicles application. Appl. Catal. A Gen. 2001 215 1-9. 

Moon, DJ, Ryu, JW, Yoo, KS, Sung, DJ, Lee, SD. Development of isooctane fuel processor system for fuel cell applications. Catal. Today 2008 138 222-227. 

In practical micro-reactors designed for fuel processor systems the channel dimensions are in the range 250-1000 gm in height and from 250 gm to several millimeters in width. Practical micro-reactors are comprised of a multitude, normally thousands, of channels of identical dimensions which are operated in parallel. Owing to the high number and relatively large dimensions of the chaimels, the pressure drop is in the order of a few millibars to a few tens of millibars. 

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