Techno-economic Assessment of Membrane Reactor Technologies for Pure Hydrogen Production for Fuel Cell Vehicle Fleets

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• 作者：Leonardo Roses ; Giampaolo Manzolini ; Stefano Campanari ; Ellart De Wit ; Michael Walter
• 刊名：Energy & Fuels
• 出版年：2013
• 出版时间：August 15, 2013
• 年：2013
• 卷：27
• 期：8
• 页码：4423-4431
• 全文大小：413K
• 年卷期：v.27,no.8(August 15, 2013)
• ISSN：1520-5029

文摘

In the evolution toward a 鈥渃arbon-neutral鈥?energy economy, among the most promising solutions for replacing today鈥檚 greenhouse gas (GHG)-emitting vehicles is the use of hydrogen as an energy carrier. In the pathway toward a future infrastructure based on renewable energy sources, a medium-term step would rely on the use of fossil fuels for on-site production of hydrogen, feeding small fleets of fuel cell vehicles. Great interest is on natural gas as a primary source because of its high hydrogen/carbon ratio. State of the art technology for the production of hydrogen from natural gas includes a series of reacting steps typically involving steam reforming (at 800 掳C or above), a water-gas shift reactor, and a final purification of hydrogen through pressure swing adsorption (PSA). An alternative that has been the subject of growing interest is the use of thin (2鈥?0 渭m thick) Pd-alloy materials as hydrogen perm-selective membranes for the embedded extraction of pure hydrogen from the chemical reactor; this system is usually known as the 鈥渕embrane reactor鈥? This paper studies the adoption of palladium-based membrane reactor technologies for pure hydrogen production from natural gas. In particular, three system layouts are analyzed and compared to the traditional option: (i) autothermal reforming membrane reactor, (ii) steam reforming membrane reactor (externally heated), and (iii) water-gas shift membrane reactor downstream of a steam reformer. The comparison is made in terms of performances and techno-economic considerations for the design of compact systems for on-site production of hydrogen at filling stations. The systems are designed for 50 m³/h (1766 cfh) of hydrogen, which corresponds to refilling 25 vehicles a day with 4 kg of hydrogen (approximately 418 km driving range on fuel cell vehicles with a 70 MPa storage tank).