Design optimization of a molten salt heated methane/steam reforming membrane reactor by universal design analysis and techno-economic assessment

Nowadays, the studied flowing molten salt heated methane/steam reforming membrane reactors are of roughly the same structure and vastly different sizes, which needs to be further explored with the consideration of reactor design optimization and system economy. This research investigates the effect of catalyst bed thickness, membrane tube configuration and reactor length on reactor performance under a series of operation conditions. The impact of concentrated solar thermal cost and methane cost on the levelized cost of hydrogen are focused to provide reference for the reactor design from an economic perspective. The results show that the catalyst bed thickness of 10 mm and the membrane diameter of 20 mm are appropriate for reactor design. Long membrane tube with big flow rate is more economical than the short one and its advantages in economy will be further reflected with the decreasing CST cost.