Reformer for Conversion of Diesel Fuel into CO and Hydrogen
DOE Phase I Contract DE-FG02-05ER84394
The U. S. Department of Energy has requested development of reformers for converting diesel fuel into a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen which can be consumed in a solid oxide fuel cell. The fuel cells are to be used as auxiliary electric power supplies for diesel vehicles.
A catalytic converter will be designed to react commercial diesel fuel with oxygen and steam. Special refractory catalysts with the perovskite crystal structure and refractory catalyst supports will be designed to be compatible with reactor temperatures of up to 1273 K and concentration of sulfur in the fuel feed of 50 ppmv of sulfur in the diesel fuel.
Refractory oxides with the perovskite crystal structure will be synthesized and dispersed onto refractory oxide supports designed for compatibility with high concentrations of sulfur. Commercial diesel fuel, steam and oxygen will be fed into the reactor, and the amount of hydrogen, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and methane exiting the reactor will be quantified using gas chromatography. In Phase II, the oxygen will be supplied using oxygen transport membranes.
The U.S. Military, as evidenced by repeated solicitations for development of diesel fuel and JP-8 fuel reformers, has need of fuel reformers similar to those requested by the U.S. Department of Energy. The U.S. Military would likely provide the largest market for such devices. The U.S. Department of Energy has made a considerable investment in the development of solid oxide fuel cells over the last decades, but such devices will not likely become commercially viable until reliable fuel reformers are developed. A market for diesel fuel reformers could materialize from producers of solid oxide fuel cells.