CFD Simulation of Syngas Combustion in a Two-Pass Oxygen Transport Membrane Reactor for Fire Tube Boiler Application

The oxygen transport membrane reactor technology enables the stable combustion of syngas and reduction in NOx emission. Applying the syngas combustion membrane reactor to fire tube boiler can integrate oxygen separation, syngas combustion, and steam generation in a single apparatus. In this study, a CFD model for oxygen permeation and syngas combustion in a two-pass LSCoF-6428 tubular membrane reactor for fire tube boiler application was developed to study the effects of the inlet temperature, the sweep gas flow rate, and the syngas composition on the reactor performance. It is shown that the inlet temperature has a strong effect on the reactor performance. Increasing the inlet temperature can efficiently and significantly improve the oxygen permeability and the heat production capacity. A 34-times increase of oxygen permeation rate and a doubled thermal power output can be obtained when increasing the inlet temperature from 1073 to 1273 K. The membrane temperature, the oxygen permeation rate, and the thermal power output of the reactor all increase with the increase of sweep gas flow rate or H2/CO mass ratio in syngas. The feasibility of the syngas combustion membrane reactor for fire tube boiler application was elucidated.

Effects of Bi Substitution on the Cobalt-Free 60wt.%Ce0.9Pr0.1O2−δ-40wt.%Pr0.6Sr0.4Fe1−xBixO3−δ Oxygen Transport Membranes

The mixed ionic-electronic conducting (MIEC) oxygen transport membrane (OTM) can completely selectively penetrate oxygen theoretically and can be widely used in gas separation and oxygen-enriched combustion industries. In this paper, dual-phase MIEC OTMs doped with Bi are successfully prepared by a sol-gel method with high-temperature sintering, whose chemical formulas are 60wt.%Ce0.9Pr0.1O2−δ-40wt.%Pr0.6Sr0.4Fe1−xBixO3−δ (60CPO-40PSF1−xBxO, x = 0.01, 0.025, 0.05, 0.10, 0.15, 0.20). The dual-phase structure, element content, surface morphology, oxygen permeability, and stability are studied by XRD, EDXS, SEM, and self-built devices, respectively. The optimal Bi-doped component is 60wt.%Ce0.9Pr0.1O2−δ-40wt.%Pr0.6Sr0.4Fe0.99Bi0.01O3−δ, which can maintain 0.71 and 0.62 mL·min−1·cm−2 over 50 h under He and CO2 atmospheres, respectively. The oxygen permeation flux through these Bi-doped OTMs under air/CO2 gradient is 12.7% less than that under air/He gradient, which indicates that the Bi-doped OTMs have comparable oxygen permeability and excellent CO2 tolerance.

Structure Optimization of a High-Temperature Oxygen-Membrane Module Using Finite Element Analysis

The oxygen transport membrane (OTM) is a high-density ion-conducting ceramic membrane that selectively transfers oxygen ions and electrons through the pressure differential across its layers. It can operate at more than 800 °C and serves as an economical method for gas separation. However, it is difficult to predict the material properties of the OTM through experiments or analyses because its structure contains pores and depends on the characteristics of the ceramic composite. In addition, the transmittance of porous ceramic materials fluctuates strongly owing to their irregular structure and arbitrary shape, making it difficult to design such materials using conventional methods. This study analyzes the structural weakness of an OTM using CAE software (ANSYS Inc., Pittsburgh, PA, USA). To enhance the structural strength, a structurally optimized design of the OTM was proposed by identifying the relevant geometric parameters.

Phase formation and performance of solid state reactive sintered Ce0.8Gd0.2O2−δ - FeCo2O4 composites

Reactive sintering of dual phase composites for the use as oxygen transport membrane is a promising method enabling lower sintering temperatures as well as low cost raw materials. Ce0.8Gd0.2O2−δ -...

Oxygen Transport Membranes for Efficient Glass Melting

Glass manufacturing is an energy-intensive process in which oxy-fuel combustion can offer advantages over the traditional air-blown approach. Examples include the reduction of NOx and particulate emissions, improved furnace operations and enhanced heat transfer. This paper presents a one-dimensional mathematical model solving mass, momentum and energy balances for a planar oxygen transport membrane module. The main modelling parameters describing the surface oxygen kinetics and the microstructure morphology of the support are calibrated on experimental data obtained for a 30 μm thick dense La0.6Sr0.4Co0.2Fe0.8O3-δ (LSCF) membrane layer, supported on a 0.7 mm porous LSCF structure. The model is then used to design and evaluate the performance of an oxygen transport membrane module integrated in a glass melting furnace. Three different oxy-fuel glass furnaces based on oxygen transport membrane and vacuum swing adsorption systems are compared to a reference air-blown unit. The analysis shows that the most efficient membrane-based oxyfuel furnace cuts the energy demand by ~22% as compared to the benchmark air-blown case. A preliminary economic assessment shows that membranes can reduce the overall glass production costs compared to oxyfuel plants based on vacuum swing adsorption technology.