Effect of microwave double absorption on hydrogen generation from methanol steam reforming

Hydrogen generation from steam reforming of methanol (SRM) with a CuO/ZnO/Al(2)O(3) catalyst was investigated in the study, particular emphasis was placed on the reactions of SRM exposed to an environment with microwave irradiation By virtue of the double absorption of microwaves by both the reagents and the catalyst, the experiments suggested that the SRM could be heated and triggered rapidly within a short time, and the methanol conversion from SRM with microwave heating was high compared to that with conventional heating. The obtained results also indicated that, when the reaction temperature was as high as 250 degrees C, thermodynamic equilibrium governed the SRM, whereas the reaction was kinetically controlled for the temperature lower than 250 degrees C Contrary to Le Chatelier's principle, it was noted that an increase in S/C ratio decreased methanol conversion This can be explained by the fact that water absorbs microwave irradiation stronger than methanol The performance of the SRM was evaluated based on the carbon conservation method and the nitrogen tracer method It was found that the latter was also capable of providing an accurate prediction on methanol conversion, even though the flow rate of the product gas was not measured. (C) 2009 Professor T. Nejat Veziroglu Published by Elsevier Ltd All rights reserved