34
Reformer
for Conversion of Diesel Fuel into CO and Hydrogen—Eltron
Research Inc., 4600 Nautilus Court South, Boulder, CO
80301-3241; 303-530-0263
Dr.
Michael V. Mundschau, Principal Investigator, eltron@eltronresearch.com
Mr.
James Steven Beck, Business Official, contracts@eltronresearch.com
DOE
Grant No. DE-FG02-05ER84394
Amount:
$750,000
A
major impediment to the commercialization of solid oxide fuel cell systems for
the very large automotive market is the lack of efficient, low-cost, compact
reformers to convert diesel fuel into synthesis gas. The
major issues involve carbon deposition in the cooler zones of the reformer and
catalyst intolerance to sulfur. This
project will develop a reformer that integrates a modified oxygen transport
membrane material with sulfur-tolerant reforming catalysts. The
system, which uses commercial grade diesel as a feedstock, prevents carbon
build-up by transporting the oxygen through self-cleaning reformer walls. The
system will be compact and inexpensive, and will operate stably. In
Phase I, catalysts were designed for the partial oxidation of diesel fuel into
synthesis gas, using oxides with high conductivity of both electrons and oxygen
anions. Some 40 catalyst
formulations were evaluated. The
preferred self-cleaning catalysts showed stable reforming activity without
carbon deposition for pump-grade diesel fuel. In
Phase II, the catalysts will be incorporated into self-cleaning reformer walls,
and the system will be optimized and tested.
A design for a commercial prototype diesel fuel reformer will be
completed and a techno-economic analysis, leading to commercialization in Phase
III, will be performed.
Commercial Applications and other Benefits as described by the awardee: The sulfur-tolerant fuel reformer, which should cost less than $90 per kW and have an overall efficiency greater than 80%, would enable the wide-spread adoption of diesel-based solid oxide fuel cell systems. Such reformers also would allow conversion of very-high-sulfur military fuel and bottom-of-the-barrel petroleum reserves into synthesis gas. The synthesis gas from the latter could be used to run turbines or to produce alternative fuels, including low-sulfur diesel, methanol, and synthetic natural gas.