Water gas shift membrane reactor

A water gas shift ceramic membrane reactor is being investigated. The reactor can be applied to control CO2 emission from a coal based power plant. Ceramic membranes with a perm-selectivity of at least 15 at 325C for H2-CO2 have been prepared. Through model calculations it has been shown that these membranes can enhance the conversion of the reaction and realize an acceptable separation in H2 and CO2 for this application. When the membrane selectivity can be increased, it does not seem to be necessary to surpass approximately 40 because then the gain in reactor performance is marginal. Bench-scale membrane reactor experiments at elevated temperatures and pressures will be conducted in order to proof the principle on a considerable scale. Therefore, tubular shaped membranes with a length up to 70 cm and special dedicated catalysts are being fabricated. Development of this process shows that full scale implementation aspects have to be considered in an early stage. 6 figs., 4 tabs., 6 refs