Simulation And Optimization Of Hydrogen Production By Steam Reforming Of Natural Gas

Abstract

Hydrogen (H2) production through natural gas steam reforming is widely adopted due to its cost-effectiveness and energy efficiency. A simulation and optimization study was performed on an industrial natural gas steam reforming system using Aspen Hysys V12 software to optimize this process. The study focused on optimizing various parameters, including the Reformer Reactor, Water Gas Shift Reactor, and purification units such as the Separator and Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA). The Reformer and Water Gas Shift reactors were set at 900 °C and 300 °C, respectively, to maximize hydrogen production. Under specific conditions of 5 atm pressure and a steam-to-carbon ratio (S/C) of 2.5, the process achieved a hydrogen production rate of 402.2 kg/h. The treatment zone effectively eliminated ~ 100% of undesirable CO2 and CO gases, with only trace amounts of CH4 and H2 remaining in the waste gases. Additionally, the PSA unit efficiently removed ~ 100% of the water from the separator, ensuring water-free dry gases were sent to the PSA unit. The integration of heating and cooling heat exchange units reduced energy consumption by approximately 51.6%. After the removal of undesired gases in our PSA unit, the production yield for the final product (H2, based on dry gas inlet to PSA) is 77.83%, resulting in 100% pure dry H2. In the waste gas outlet (tail gas) of PSA a composition (22.17%), includes CO, CO, H2O, and CH4. Resulting high-quality hydrogen is well-suited for a wide range of applications, including fuel cells, petroleum refining, natural gas refineries, and petrochemical processes.

Keywords

• Natural Gas Steam Reforming
• Hydrogen Production Process Simulation
• Process Optimization
• Reformer
• Water Gas Shift (WGS)

References

1. Alves, H. J., Bley Junior, C., Niklevicz, R. R., Frigo, E. P., Frigo, M. S., & Coimbra-Araújo, C. H. (2013). Overview of hydrogen production technologies from biogas and the applications in fuel cells. In International Journal of Hydrogen Energy (Vol. 38, Issue 13, pp. 5215–5225). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2013.02.057.
2. Cherbanski R, Molga E., (2018). Sorption-enhanced steam methane reforming (SE-SMR) a review: rector types, catalyst adsorbent characterization, process modeling. Chem Process Eng 2018;39(4):427e48. https://doi: 10.24425/122961.
3. Ding, Y., & Alpay, E. (2000). Adsorption-enhanced steam-methane reforming. In Chemical Engineering Science, 55 (18), 3929–3940.
4. Dejong, M., Reinders, A.(2009). Optimizing a steam-methane reformer for hydrogen production. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy
5. El-Shafie, M., Kambara, S., & Hayakawa, Y. (2019). Hydrogen Production Technologies Overview. Journal of Power and Energy Engineering, 07(01), 107–154. https://doi.org/10.4236/jpee.2019.71007
6. Goswami, D. Y., Mirabal, S. T., Goel, N., & Ingley, H. A. (2003). A Review of Hydrogen Production Technologies. In ASME 2003 1st International Conference on Fuel Cell Science, Engineering and Technology, FUELCELL 2003 (pp. 61–74). https://doi.org/10.1115/FUELCELL2003-1701
7. Global Hydrogen Review 2021. (2021). In Global Hydrogen Review 2021. https://doi.org/10.1787/39351842-en
8. Ihoeghian N.D., et al.(2018). STEADY-STATE SIMULATION AND OPTIMIZATION OF HYDROGEN PRODUCTION BY STEAM REFORMING OF NATURAL GAS Design of bio reactor View project Simulation of the Fluid catalytic cracking using aspen hysys View project. journal of Nigerian association.

9. Leonzio G., (2018). Methanol synthesis: optimal solution for better efficiency of the process. Processes 2018;6(3):20. https:// doi.org/10.3390/pr6030020.
10. Lemus, R. G., & Martínez Duart, J. M. (2010). Updated hydrogen production costs and parities for conventional and renewable technologies. In International Journal of Hydrogen Energy (Vol. 35, Issue 9, pp. 3929–3936). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2010.02.034
11. Madon, R. H., Osman, S. A., Mustaffa, N., & Fawzi, M. (2015). Akademia Baru Review of Yield Intensification on Steam Methane Reforming through Micro Reactor and Rare Earth Catalyst. In Journal of Advanced Review on Scientific Research, 7 (1), 32–37.
12. Mokheimer E, Hussain MI, Ahmed S,Habib MA, Al-Qutub A., (2015).On the modeling of steam methane reforming. J Energy ResourTechnol 2014;137(1):012001. https://doi:10.1115/1.4027962.
13. Olateju II, Gibson-Dick C, Egede SCO, Giwa A., (2017). Process development for hydrogen production via water-gas shift reaction using Aspen HYSYS. Int J Eng Res Afr 2017;30:144e53. https://doi.org/10.4028/www.scientific.net/JERA.30.144.
14. Ramachandran, R., & Menon, R. K. (1998). An overview of industrial uses of hydrogen. In International Journal of Hydrogen Energy (Vol. 23, Issue 7, pp. 593–598). https://doi.org/10.1016/s0360-3199(97)00112-2
15. Riachi, B., El Hajj Chehade, A. M., Daher, E. A., Assaf, J. C., & Hamd, W. (2020). Simulation and optimization of hydrogen production by steam reforming of natural gas for refining and petrochemical demands in Lebanon. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, 45 (58), 1–12.
16. Sarkarzadeh M, Farsi M, Rahimpour MR., (2019). Modeling and optimization of an industrial hydrogen unit in a crude oil refinery. Int J Hydrogen Energy 2019;44(21):10415e26. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2019.02.206.
17. Speight JG., (2011). Handbook of industrial hydrocarbon processes. In: Speight JG, editor. Boston: Gulf Professional Publishing is an imprint of Elsevier; 2011.
18. Vozniuk, O., Tanchoux, N., Millet, J. M., Albonetti, S., Di Renzo, F., & Cavani, F. (2019). Spinel Mixed Oxides for Chemical-Loop Reforming: From Solid State to Potential Application. In Studies in Surface Science and Catalysis (Vol. 178, pp. 281–302). https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-444-64127-4.00014-8