Microemulsion compositions for fuel cell reformer start-up
OwnerRamesh Varadaraj, Paul Joseph Berlowitzinventors
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Abstract
The present invention relates to microemulsion compositions for starting a reformer of a fuel cell system. In particular, the invention includes microemulsion compositions comprising hydrocarbon fuel, water and alkyl ethoxylated amine-alkyl salicylic acid complex surfactants for starting a reformer of a fuel cell system.
Claims21
In a fuel cell system comprising a reformer to produce a hydrogen containing gas for use in a fuel cell stack, the improvement comprising:
- feeding to the reformer, at start-up, an emulsion composition comprising,
- at least 40 wt % of hydrocarbon,
- from 30 to 60 wt % of water, and
- from 0.01 to 15 wt % of at least one surfactant selected from the group consisting of
- alkyl ethoxylated amine-alkyl salicylic acid complex, monoethanol amine-alkyl salicylic acid complex and mixtures thereof and represented by the respective formulae
- 4
- wherein R is a methyl group, n is an integer from about 2 to 25, x and y are integers and x+y is from about 2 to 50.
A method to prepare a bicontinuous microemulsion comprising a coexisting mixture of at least 90 vol % of a water-in-hydrocarbon microemulsion and from 1 to 10 vol % of a hydrocarbon-in-water microemulsion the method comprising:
- mixing at mixing energy in the range of 0.15×10−5 to 0.15×10−3 kW/liter of fluid,
- at least 40 wt % of hydrocarbon,
- from 30 to 60 wt % of water, and
- from 0.01 to 15 wt % of at least one surfactant selected from the group consisting of
- alkyl ethoxylated amine-alkyl salicylic acid complex, monoethanol amine-alkyl salicylic acid complex and mixtures thereof and represented by the respective formulae,
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- wherein R is a methyl group, n is an integer from about 2 to 25, x and y are integers and x+y is from about 2 to 50.
A bicontinuous microemulsion comprising a coexisting mixture of at least 90 vol % of a water-in-hydrocarbon microemulsion and from 1 to 10 vol % of a hydrocarbon-in-water microemulsion, prepared by mixing at mixing energy in the range of 0.15×10−5 to 0.15×10−3 kW/liter of fluid,
- at least 40 wt % of hydrocarbon,
- from 30 to 60 wt % of water, and
- from 0.01 to 15 wt % of at least one surfactant selected from the group consisting of
- alkyl ethoxylated amine-alkyl salicylic acid complex, monoethanol amine-alkyl salicylic acid complex and mixtures thereof and represented by the respective formulae,
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- wherein R is a methyl group, n is an integer from about 2 to 25, x and y are integers and x+y is from about 2 to 50.
A method for preventing corrosion of a metal surface comprising contacting the metal surface with a microemulsion comprising
- at least 40 wt % of hydrocarbon,
- from 30 to 60 wt % of water, and
- from 0.01 to 15 wt % of at least one surfactant selected from the group consisting of,
- alkyl ethoxylated amine-alkyl salicylic acid complex, monoethanol amine-alkyl salicylic acid complex and mixtures thereof and represented by the respective formulae,
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- wherein R is a methyl group, n is an integer from about 2 to 25, x and y are integers and x+y is from about 2 to 50, for a time period ranging from 1 second to 3 hours, and at temperatures in the range of −20° C. to 100° C.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.