Development of a Multichannel Membrane Reactor with a Solid Oxide Cell Design

In this study, we aim to adapt a solid oxide cell (SOC) to a membrane reactor for general chemical reactions to leverage the readily available multichannel design of the SOC. As a proof-of-concept, the developed reactor is tested for syngas production by the partial oxidation of methane using oxygen ion transport membranes (ITMs) to achieve oxygen separation and permeation. A La_0.6Sr_0.4Co_0.2Fe_0.8O_3-δ (LSCF) membrane and Ni/MgAl₂O₄ catalyst are used for oxygen permeation and the partial oxidation of methane, respectively. ANSYS Fluent is used to assess the reactor performance with the help of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. The membrane permeation process is chemical kinetics achieved by user-defined functions (UDFs). The simulation results show that the oxygen permeation rate depends on the temperature, air, and fuel flow rates, as well as the occurrence of reactions, which is consistent with the results reported in the literature. During isothermal operation, the product composition and the species distribution in the reactor change with the methane flow rate. When the molar ratio of fed methane to permeated oxygen is 2.0, the methane conversion and CO selectivity reach a high level, namely 95.8% and 97.2%, respectively, which agrees well with the experimental data reported in the literature. Compared to the isothermal operation, the methane conversion of the adiabatic operation is close to 100%. Still, the CO selectivity only reaches 61.6% due to the hot spot formation of 1491 K in the reactor. To reduce the temperature rise in the adiabatic operation, reducing the methane flow rate is an approach, but the price is that the productivity of syngas is sacrificed as well. In conclusion, the adaption of the SOC to a membrane reactor is achieved, and other reaction applications can be explored in the same way.