Effects of Various Reactions on the Gas Flow and Heat Transfer in an Anode Duct of ITSOFCs

Recently, there has been considerable interest in the internal reforming reactions of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) using methane or natural gas via. The internal reforming and electrochemical reactions appear in the porous anode layer, and may lead to inhomogeneous temperature and gas species distributions according to the reaction kinetics. A three-dimensional calculation method has been further developed to simulate and analyze the internal reforming and the electrochemical reactions, and the effects on various transport processes in a thick anode duct. In this study, the composite duct consists of a porous anode, fuel flow duct and solid current connector. Momentum, heat transport and gas species equations have been solved by coupled source terms and variable physical properties (density, viscosity, specific heat, etc.) of the fuel gas mixture. The combined thermal boundary conditions on solid walls, mass balances (generation and consumption) associated with the various reactions and gas permeation to/from the porous electrode are applied in the analysis. Simulation results show that the internal reforming and the electrochemical reactions, and operating conditions are significant for fuel gas transport and heat transfer in the anode.