Hydrogen production by solar steam methane reforming with molten salts as energy carriers: Experimental and modelling analysis

An innovative steam methane reforming for pure hydrogen production with molten salts as heat transfer fluid has been analyzed validating experimental data by means of a mathematical model. The technology, developed in the project CoMETHy and realized on a pilot scale at the ENEA-Casaccia research center, is based on a steam-reforming reactor with a structured open foam catalyst and Pd-based membranes, both integrated in the reaction environment to improve the reactor performance. The pilot plant allowed the production of ≥3 Nm3/h of pure hydrogen, achieving an overall methane conversion of 60% at < 545 °C reactor temperature. The mathematical model, composed of a partial differential equations set, has been solved by numerical simulation. The effects on pilot plant performance of some operating conditions, such as steam-to-carbon ratio, molten salt inlet temperature and sweep gas flow rate, have been investigated. The results obtained from model simulations have been compared to the available experimental data to validate the model. The average absolute error of the model is less than 2%.