Catalytic reactor

一种催化反应器(40)，包括多个片材(42)，在它们之间形成了流体通道(44)。在每一个流体通道(44)内，具有波纹材料的箔片，在它的不与所述片材(44)接触的表面上涂有催化材料。在反应器(40)的每一个末端具有集流管，以便向所述流体通道(44)输送气体混合物。所述集流管与独立的相邻的通道连通。反应器(40)可以将不同的气体混合物输送到相同的通道(44)中，所述气体混合物可能具有不同的压力，并且相应的化学反应也可能是不同的。当其中的一种反应是吸热反应时，另一种反应是放热反应，热能通过分隔所述相邻通道(44)的片材(42)从放热反应传送到吸入反应。反应器(40)可用于小型设备中，以便实施蒸汽/甲烷重整，或催化甲烷燃烧，获得必须的热能，并且还可用于Fischer-Tropsch合成，这样，所述整个过程涉及甲烷向长链烃的重整。 A catalytic reactor (40) comprising a plurality of flat metal sheets (42) arranged as a stack and bonded together, the sheets being shaped so as to define first flow channels (44) between adjacent sheets and to define second flow channels between adjacent sheets, first flow channels alternating with second flow channels in the stack, and such that there is good thermal contact between fluids in the first and the second flow channels; headers to supply fluids to the flow channels, the headers enabling different fluids to be supplied to the first and the second flow channels; wherein a permeable metal heat-transfer layer is provided within each flow channel, the metal heat-transfer layers (42)being removable and incorporating a catalytic coating; the catalytic coating in the second flow channels comprising a combustion catalyst, such that a gas mixture flowing in the second flow channels undergoes catalytic combustion, and wherein the combustion catalyst at least at the start of the channel is coated with a thin porous inert ceramic layer to restrict the contact of the gas mixture with the catalyst and so restrict the reaction rate.