Performance of large Pd/ceramic membranes during separation of reformate and H2/N2 mixtures

The performance of Pd/ceramic composite membranes with 220 cm2 separation area was studied in H2/N2 and dry reformate mixtures containing similar amounts of H2. Permeation rates were significantly reduced in reformate compared to N2 mixtures at 673 K. Control experiments with H2/CO2 mixtures show that the inhibition is caused by small amounts of CO in the reformate. Still, the membranes exhibited excellent stability during up to 500 h long tests in reformate.