Design of a Fuel Processor System for Generating Hydrogen for Automotive Applications

Authors

  • Panini K. Kolavennu Florida State University and Florida A & M University
  • John C. Telotte Florida State University and Florida A & M University
  • Srinivas Palanki Florida State University and Florida A & M University

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to design a train of tubular reactors that use a methane feed to produce hydrogen of the desired purity so that it can be utilized by a fuel cell for automotive applications. Reaction engineering principles, which are typically covered at the undergraduate level, are utilized to design this reactor train. It is shown that the design equations can be solved via numerical integration in MATLAB as well as in the process simulator CHEMCAD.

Author Biographies

Panini K. Kolavennu, Florida State University and Florida A & M University

Panini K. Kolavennu has a B. Tech in chemical engineering with specialization in biotechnology from Andhra University, Visakhapatnam, India. He is currently pursuing his Ph.D. in chemical engineering at FAMU-FSU College of Engineering, Tallahassee, Fla. His research interests include fuel cell and fuel processor design and analysis, model predictive control, and adaptive control.

John C. Telotte, Florida State University and Florida A & M University

John C. Telotte has a B.S. and M.S. in chemical engineering from Tulane University. He also received a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from the University of Florida. He was a memberofthe chemical engineering faculty at the University of Wisconsin and Louisiana Tech University before joining the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering in 1985. He is currently associate professor of chemical and biomedical engineering. His current research focuses on hydrogen storage problems and design of fuel cell systems.

Srinivas Palanki, Florida State University and Florida A & M University

Srinivas Palanki received his B.Tech. in chemical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, and his M.S. and Ph.D. in chemical engineering from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. He joined the faculty of the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering in 1992. He is currently a professor of chemical and biomedical engineering. His current research interests are in real-time optimization and nonlinear robust control with applications in the fuel cell and biomedical areas.

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Published

2006-07-01

Issue

Vol. 40 No. 3 (2006): Summer 2006

Section

Class and Home Problems