Ethanol Steam Reforming for Hydrogen Production in Microchannel Reactors: Experimental Design and Optimization

In this investigation, an experimental design procedure using prior literature information has been used to guide the localization of optimal points for reaction kinetics study. Three kinetic models were identified and the Pareto domain was circumscribed for a set of three decision variables and two objective functions to find an optimal solution. From the range of Pareto-optimal solutions obtained, the kinetic model considered to be the most reliable was used to explore the optimal operating region. Finally, the experimental design points were chosen to ensure a sufficient range of operating conditions to identify the reaction kinetics.