Hydrogen production from partial oxidation of dimethyl ether

Self-made experiment equipment for reforming hydrogen was developed. The equipment was set up to produce hydrogen-rich gas from partial oxidation of DME. The effects of temperature, air/DME ratio, DME inlet velocity, mass of catalyst and inner diameter of reformer tube on partial oxidation of DME were investigated. At atmospheric pressure, when the temperature increased from 300°C to 500°C, both DME conversion and H₂ yield increased. The maximum of DME conversion was near to 100%, and the maximum of H₂ yield was about 95%. In the product gas, the concentration of H₂, CO and CH₄ increased, but the concentration of CO₂ and DME decreased. When air/DME ratio increased from 0.5 to 3.0, both DME conversion and H₂ yield increased, and the concentration of H₂ and CO in the product gas increased first and then reduced. When increasing DME inlet velocity, DME conversion and H₂ yield and the concentration of H₂ and CO in the product gas all reduced. Increasing the amount of the catalyst and reducing the inner diameter of the reformer tube increased DME conversion and H₂ yield.