Simulation System for Structure Optimization of Hydrogen Separation Membrane Module

Abstract

In the hydrogen production through the steam reforming reaction of the methane, the technology of the separation and purification influences the production cost of hydrogen directly. We have developed the simulation system concerning the structure design of the separation module in order to take out hydrogen with high purity. This system uses computational fluid dynamics (CFD) engine developed for the simulation of gas permeation through membranes. It can simulate the performance of the separation membrane module by considering the calculated gas stream with the aid of CFD at the stage of complex modular design. The purpose of this system is to propose the modular structure parameter set in order to attain the best separation performance of the module at the design stage of the separation membrane module. The calculated results showed that the optimization of the structural parameter combined with CFD simulation was important for the design of the separation membrane module with high efficiency.