Kim reformer
The Kim reformer is a type of syngas plant invented by Dr. Kim, Hyun Yong. It is a high temperature furnace (as shown in figure 1), filled with steam and/or carbon dioxide gas and maintaining a thermal equilibrium at a temperature just above 1200°C, in which the reforming reaction is at its thermodynamic equilibrium and carbonaceous substance is reformed with the highest efficiency.
Dr.Kim, Hyun Yong discovered, in December 2000, that the reforming reaction (C + H2O ↔ CO + H2) proceeds at a temperature just above 1200°C, but not below it. This work was published in International Journal of Hydrogen Energy 28 (2003) 1179–1186 / 32 (2007) 5088-5093 and registered in KR patent 0391121 (2003/06/30) and US patent 6,790,383B2 (2004/09/14).[1]
Overview
The reformer reforms all carbon atoms of carbonaceous feedstock to produce just syngas, no other hydrocarbons. The high temperature furnace is packed with castables to minimize heat loss in such a way as to maintain the inner temperature of a reduction reactor filled with steam and carbon dioxide (CO2) gas at a temperature just above 1200°C (aka Kim temperature, see figure 2),[2] and it reforms all carbonaceous substances most efficiently to produce syngas. The produced syngas exits from the reduction reactor at a temperature of 1200°C. The reduction chamber is heated by super-hot gases (steam and CO2) generated in the syngas burner with oxygen gas. The reduction chamber must be constructed to withstand, physically and chemically, the reforming reaction at 1200°C.
Advantages
Both steam reforming and dry reforming are carried out in this reformer; therefore, it is possible to configure the H2/CO ratio by adjusting the H2O/CO2 ratio in the reduction chamber. The reforming reaction is a very specific elementary reaction; all carbon atoms on the left are reformed into carbon monoxide and all hydrogen atoms are reduced to hydrogen gas. The mixture of two product gases is called syngas. These reforming reactions are an endothermic reduction reaction. In contrast, the conventional gasification reaction is a combination of several reactions operating below 1200°C and the product is a mixture of many gases.
History of reforming reactions
The process for producing water gas (C + H2O → CO + H2) has been known since the 19th century and it was later found that it is applicable to all carbonaceous substances. Reactions C + H2O ↔ CO + H2 and (-CH2) + H2O → CO + 2H2 are called steam reforming and reactions C + CO2 → 2CO and (-CH2) + CO2 → 2CO + H2, carbon dioxide or dry reforming. The oil industry has used the reforming reactions extensively for the cracking process and to generate hydrogen gas.
References
- ↑ Wagatec, patent list no.1 & no.2 (http://www.wagatec.com/bbs/zboard.php?id=wag1&PHPSESSID=a38e11226d690fbd6d4497512cd53d43)
- ↑ Kim Hyun Yong, Method of gasification in IGCC system, INT J HYDROGEN ENERG 32:5088-5093, 2007
Postscript
Kim reformer has been constructed for the purpose of laboratory testing, and it is limited to an hourly capacity of 100m3 syngas production while kim reformer-XT has extended it's hourly capacity to 500m3 syngas. A single -XT unit operating 20hr a day can produce 2.5tons of H2 gas per day. We can produce syngas from all sorts of carbon source, such as Coal having very low heat content, biomass and wastes having a large water content. There are specific pretreatments for these carbon feedstocks. For the low heat content coal it is pyrolyzed into flue gas, oil/tar, and cokes. And the flue gas is used as a carrier gas to carry oil and tar and grounded cokes into the reformer. The key is that heat required to pyrolyze them comes from the cooling of syngas output(at 1200℃) of the reformer. Food wastes stuff collected, comes as a biomass containing 85% water. It's treated with high temperature hydrolysis for two hours, and then the water content is reduced to 35%. The liquid section contains large amount of organic acids, and it's hydrogenated to yield the hydrocarbons, diesel oil, which is so readily reformed. therefore, there are large source of forest goods, palm oil, palm crusts, and the likes of vegetable oil are good carbon source for the reformer, and enough H2 gas fuel and some leftover for SNG production.