Economic feasibility study of hydrogen production from biomass gasification for PEM fuel cell applications

Although hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe, it is not possible to find it in its purest state in nature. In this study, two-stage experimentation was carried out. The first stage was hydrogen production. The second stage was an electrochemical process to hydrogenate soybean oil in a PEM fuel cell. In the fist stage a Zirfon Perl UTP 500 membrane was used in an alkaline hydrolizer of separated gas to produce hydrogen, achieving 9.6 L/min compared with 5.1 L/min, the maximum obtained using a conventional membrane. The hydrogen obtained was used in the second stage to feed the fuel cell hydrogenating the soybean oil. Hydrogenated soybean oil showed a substantial diminished iodine index from 131 to 54.85, which represents a percentage of 58.13. This happens when applying a voltage of 90 mV for 240 min, constant temperature of 50 °C and one atm. This result was obtained by depositing 1 mg of Pt/cm 2 in the cathode of the fuel cell. This system represents a viable alternative for the use of hydrogen in energy generation.

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Hydrogen Production for PEM Fuel Cells via Oxidative Steam Reforming of Methanol Using Cu-Al Catalysts Modified With Ce and Cr

ASME 2006 Fourth International Conference on Fuel Cell Science, Engineering and Technology, Parts A and B ◽

10.1115/fuelcell2006-97209 ◽

2006 ◽

Author(s):

Sanjay Patel ◽

K. K. Pant

Keyword(s):

Fuel Cell ◽

Hydrogen Production ◽

Surface Area ◽

Steam Reforming ◽

Pem Fuel Cell ◽

Oxide Catalysts ◽

Molar Ratio ◽

X Ray ◽

Steam Reforming Of Methanol ◽

Al Oxide

The performance of Cu-Ce-Al-oxide and Cu-Cr-Al-oxide catalysts of varying compositions prepared by co-precipitation method was evaluated for the PEM fuel cell grade hydrogen production via oxidative steam reforming of methanol (OSRM). The limitations of partial oxidation and steam reforming of methanol for the hydrogen production for PEM fuel cell could be overcome using OSRM and can be performed auto-thermally with idealized reaction stoichiomatry. Catalysts surface area and pore volume were determined using N2 adsorption-desorption method. The final elemental compositions were determined using atomic absorption spectroscopy. Crystalline phases of catalyst samples were determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) technique. Temperature programmed reduction (TPR) demonstrated that the incorporation of Ce improved the copper reducibility significantly compared to Cr promoter. The OSRM was carried out in a fixed bed catalytic reactor. Reaction temperature, contact-time (W/F) and oxygen to methanol (O/M) molar ratio varied from 200–300°C, 3–21 kgcat s mol−1 and 0–0.5 respectively. The steam to methanol (S/M) molar ratio = 1.4 and pressure = 1 atm were kept constant. Catalyst Cu-Ce-Al:30-10-60 exhibited 100% methanol conversion and 152 mmol s−1 kgcat−1 hydrogen production rate at 300°C with carbon monoxide formation as low as 1300 ppm, which reduces the load on preferential oxidation of CO to CO2 (PROX) significantly before feeding the hydrogen rich stream to the PEM fuel cell as a feed. The higher catalytic performance of Ce containing catalysts was attributed to the improved Cu reducibility, higher surface area, and better copper dispersion. Reaction parameters were optimized in order to maximize the hydrogen production and to keep the CO formation as low as possible. The time-on-stream stability test showed that the Cu-Ce-Al-oxide catalysts subjected to a moderate deactivation compared to Cu-Cr-Al-oxide catalysts. The amount of carbon deposited onto the catalysts was determined using TG/DTA thermogravimetric analyzer. C1s spectra were obtained by surface analysis of post reaction catalysts using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) to investigate the nature of coke deposited.

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Review of fuel processing catalysts for hydrogen production in PEM fuel cell systems

Current Opinion in Solid State and Materials Science ◽

10.1016/s1359-0286(02)00108-0 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 6 (5) ◽

pp. 389-399 ◽

Cited By ~ 512

Author(s):

Anca Faur Ghenciu

Keyword(s):

Fuel Cell ◽

Hydrogen Production ◽

Pem Fuel Cell ◽

Fuel Processing ◽

Cell Systems

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A Novel Biomass Gasifier for Producing Tar-Free and Hydrogen-Rich Syngas

Advanced Materials Research ◽

10.4028/www.scientific.net/amr.105-106.709 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 105-106 ◽

pp. 709-712 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Zhi Guo Tang ◽

P.Y. Ma ◽

J.P. Cheng ◽

Y.L. Li ◽

Q.Z. Lin

Keyword(s):

Fuel Cell ◽

Hydrogen Production ◽

Excess Enthalpy ◽

Biomass Gasification ◽

Structure Characteristic ◽

Gasification Process ◽

Conversion Characteristic ◽

The Future

Hydrogen from biomass gasification is reviewed as one of the promising clean energies approaches in the future for fuel cell. However, the syngas from biomass gasification usually contains a certain amount of tar, which could not only decrease the efficiency of gasification process and hydrogen production, but also condense as a dense mixture and impose a series of serious problems. So “Excess Enthalpy Gasification (EEG)” is put forward and applied into biomass gasification and a novel biomass gasifier is presented for the purpose of tar-free and hydrogen-rich syngas in this work. The structure characteristic of the gasifier and tar conversion characteristic are analyzed detailedly to prove the feasibility and excellence performance for producing tar-free and hydrogen-rich syngas from biomass gasification.

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