Staged modular hydrocarbon reformer with internal temperature management
First Claim
1. A hydrocarbon reformer for reforming hydrocarbon fuel and oxygen into a reformate, comprising:
- a) a housing having an inlet for conveying a flow stream of hydrocarbon fuel and oxygen into said reformer and an outlet for conveying a flow stream of said reformate out of said housing;
b) a first catalyst bed disposed in said housing; and
c) a second catalyst bed disposed in said housing downstream of said first catalyst bed in a flow direction of said streams through said housing.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A hydrocarbon reformer comprising a plurality of sequential reforming stages separated by non-reforming spaces. The first stage catalyst bed is an egg-crate structure divided into fully active, partially active, and inactive flow cells arranged such that fully active cells are adjacent only to partially active and inactive cells. Fuel and air flowing through the partially active and inactive cells cool the catalyst bed, thereby preventing thermal excess in the first stage and consequent bed erosion. Fuel and oxygen thus heated in the first stage are mixed at the end of the first stage with the reformate formed, and the mixture is provided to the next stage, which is fully catalytic, to yield a final reformate. Because the fuel and oxygen in the second stage are diluted with reformate from the first stage, insufficient heat is generated in the fully-catalytic second stage to cause thermal degradation thereof.
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Citations
13 Claims
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1. A hydrocarbon reformer for reforming hydrocarbon fuel and oxygen into a reformate, comprising:
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a) a housing having an inlet for conveying a flow stream of hydrocarbon fuel and oxygen into said reformer and an outlet for conveying a flow stream of said reformate out of said housing;
b) a first catalyst bed disposed in said housing; and
c) a second catalyst bed disposed in said housing downstream of said first catalyst bed in a flow direction of said streams through said housing. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A reformer substrate having an egg-crate structure, said structure comprising a first plurality of first spaced-apart parallel plates extending in a first direction and a second plurality of second spaced-apart parallel plates extending in a second direction substantially orthogonal to said first direction, wherein catalytic material is deposited on less than all of the surfaces of said first and second plates.
Specification