Numerical Modeling and Performance Prediction of COS Hydrolysis Reactor in an Integrated Gasification Fuel Cell in terms of Thermo-Chemical Transport Phenomena

Abstract

During the recent decades, global warming by greenhouse gas evolution has attracted worldwide attention and ever increasing strict regulations thereon have become institutionalized as international policies. In the process, more environment-friendly power generation technologies have been developed utilizing fossil fuels with a view to timely commercialization. As one such “clean coal” technology, an Integrated Gasification Fuel Cell system is a promising power generation means where a carbonyl sulfide (COS) hydrolysis reactor is installed downstream of coal syngas to remove acidic gas constituents such as H2S and COS. The most significant design parameters affecting performance of the COS hydrolysis reactor were selected to be gas hourly space velocity (GHSV), reaction temperature, and length ratio, and numerical modeling was performed considering heat and fluid flow transfer as well as chemical reaction kinetics. Effect of the selected design parameters on the variation of conversion rate and reactant gas mixture concentration were comprehensively investigated to predict performance of the COS hydrolysis reactor. Stochastic modeling of reactor performance was finally performed using Monte Carlo simulation and linear regression fitting.