Fabrication and characterization of integrated ceramic microreactors for hydrogen production

Typical challenges encountered in the development of reactors to reform fuels into hydrogen are: avoiding coking of the catalyst by operating at > 800°C; achieving high conversion in a small reactor volume; and minimizing pressure drop across the reactor. To meet these requirements, highly porous inverted beaded catalyst support structures made from silicon carbide (SiC) and silicon carbonitride (SiCN) were fabricated, and have integrated these structures within high- density alumina housings. These structures showed excellent thermal and chemical stability up to 1200°C in air, and the SiC or SiCN support structures exhibited a low pressure drop and have geometric surface areas between up to 108 sq m/cu m. This is an abstract of a paper presented at the 231st ACS National Meeting (Atlanta, GA 3/26-30/2006).