Design, Scale-Up, and Dynamic Simulation of a Patented Bayonet Reactor for Commercial Hydrogen Production via Sulfur-Iodine Water Splitting

Abstract

The sulfuric acid decomposition reactor is a key component of the iodine-sulfur thermochemical cycle process. The design of the sulfuric acid decomposition reactor requires excellent corrosion resistance and mechanical strength performance. In this work, a patented reactor on a pilot scale was scaled up to an industrial scale. A plant equipment design for an industrial-scale reactor was performed. Based on an integrated inherent safety design approach, it was determined that the optimal thickness was 110 mm, and the design passed all stress analysis tests. With a minimum targeted hydrogen production rate of 1000 kg/h, the process design yielded a reactor with a diameter of 7 m and a height of 30 m, while silicon carbide was chosen as the construction material. The scaled-up reactor was dynamically simulated in MATLAB. Simulink demonstrated that both the reactor temperature and product flow rates successfully produced a stable response within 1.8 and 4 h of operation, respectively.