Oxy-combustion of liquid fuel in an ion transport membrane reactor

The present work aims at investigating oxy-fuel combustion of liquid fuels in a concentric parallel tube oxygen transport reactor (OTR) using BSCF ion transport membrane (ITM) for oxygen separation. A computational model was developed and validated utilizing the available experimental results. It is assumed that the same model will be sufficient to capture reasonable results with liquid fuel oxy-combustion. The use of ITMs to produce oxygen for the conversion of liquid fuels into thermal energy in an oxygen transport reactor (OTR) while capturing CO2 is presented. In this case, the OTR has two functions: O2 separation and reaction of evaporated liquid fuel with oxygen. A parametric study of the influence of parameters such as oxygen pressure in the feed and the permeate sides on the performance of the OTR is conducted. The effect of the rates of the feed flow and sweep flow on the permeation of oxygen permeation has been evaluated. Subsequently, the effects of flow rates of feed and sweep on temperature and reaction characteristics are also explored. The optimal flow rates and flammability limits for the present geometry model to obtain maximum output are suggested. The feasibility of using liquid fuels as potential fuel to be used in near future oxygen transport reactors is presented. © 2017, The Author(s).