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ABSTRACT
In this study, two different designs for a reactor to reform methane into hydrogen are examined. The two reactors were identical except the porous media in one was yttria stabilized zirconia (YZA) reticulated ceramic with 3.9 pores per centimeter (ppc), and in the other it was a packed bed consisting of 3 mm diameter aluminum oxide pellets. Exhaust gas concentrations and temperatures were measured for experiments over an equivalence ratio range of 2 to 5. Hydrogen production and percent conversion were significantly better for the reticulated ceramic reactor than the packed bed reactor when compared based on interstitial velocity. Material properties of the porous media were responsible for the greater percent conversion in the reticulated ceramic reactor. The largest effect was due to the lower volumetric heat transfer coefficient in the reticulated ceramic.