Design of a catalytic converter for co removal from hydrogen streams by oxygen-enhanced water gas shift reaction (OWGS)

Résumé

Development of efficient catalysts for their use in purification of hydrogen from reforming processes (mainly WGS and CO-PROX) is a key factor to advance in hydrogen technology as a way to avoid the environmental problems arising from the massive use of fossil fuels, with special impact in transportation. In order to minimize the required reactor size, both WGS and CO-PROX stages can be carried out in a single stage, known as Oxygen-enhanced WGS (OWGS).In this PhD Thesis, monometallic and bimetallic catalysts containing gold, copper or cobalt, supported on ceria, have been prepared and studied. Au CuO/CeO2 has been found to be the optimal catalyst, besides being suitable to be deposited on monolithic substrates. It efficiently catalyzes the OWGS reaction, allowing the elimination of CO to levels ready for feeding the PEM fuel cell. In addition to removing CO, this catalyst produces hydrogen without the requirement of an exhaustive control of the fed oxygen.