Statistical Method of Deducting Activation Energies for the Steam Methane Reforming Reactions

Abstract

In this paper, a method of deducting activation energies for heterogeneous reactions of steam methane reforming is presented. The essence of the method lies in iterative evaluation of kinetic parameters, namely activation energies of reactions, for a given reactor. The novelty of the method lies in utilizing a statistical approach to reduce computational effort of numerical simulation. The method produces multivariable correlations between activation energies and operational parameters of the process: pressure, temperature, steam-to-methane ratio, residence time, and catalyst properties. These correlations can be used for numerical simulations of steam methane reforming to yield methane conversion rate, spatial and temporal distribution of reaction products, temperature and pressure within the reactor. An average computational effort is equal to a batch of 18 ([Formula: see text]) simulations for [Formula: see text] variables. The method was demonstrated by evaluating two-variable correlations of activation energies with pressure and temperature. The developed numerical model was validated against adopted experimental data.