Fuel cell electric power production

A process for generating electricity from a fuel cell means, said fuel cell means comprising a stack of anodes and cathodes and having an anode side and a cathode side, each side dimensioned and configured for the passage of respective gas streams therethrough, said fuel cell means being fueled by a hydrogen-rich gas derived by treating a normally liquid hydrocarbon feed at an elevated reformer pressure in a reformer having first and second catalyst zones as defined below, the process comprising:

• (a) preheating an inlet stream comprising a normally liquid hydrocarbon feed, H.sub.2 O and a first air stream to a preheat temperature of about 1200.degree. F. to 1400.degree. F. (699.degree. C. to 760.degree. C.) and introducing the preheated inlet stream at the elevated reformer pressure into the first catalyst zone comprising a monolithic body having a plurality of gas flow passages extending therethrough and containing a catalytically effective amount of palladium and platinum catalytic components dispersed therein, the amounts of hydrocarbon feed, H.sub.2 O and air introduced into said first catalyst zone being controlled to maintain an H.sub.2 O to C ratio of from about 0.5 to 5 and an O.sub.2 to C ratio of from about 0.3 to 0.4 in said inlet stream;
• (b) contacting the preheated inlet stream within said first catalyst zone with said platinum group metal catalyst at a volumetric hourly rate of at least about 100,000 volumes of throughput per volume of catalyst per hour to initiate and sustain therein catalytic oxidation of said hydrocarbon feed to produce hydrogen and carbon oxides therefrom, and oxidizing in said first catalyst zone a quantity, less than all, of said hydrocarbon feed, which quantity is sufficient (i) to attain a temperature within said first catalyst zone sufficiently high to crack substantially all unoxidized C.sub.5 or heavier hydrocarbons therein to C.sub.1 to C.sub.4 hydrocarbons, and (ii) to heat such first zone effluent to an elevated temperature of from about 1600.degree. F. to 2,400.degree. F. (871.degree. C. to 1,316.degree. C.);
• (c) passing the first zone effluent, while still at said elevated temperature, from said first catalyst zone to the second catalyst zone containing a platinum group metal steam reforming catalyst therein, and contacting the first zone effluent in said second catalyst zone with said reforming catalyst at an hourly volumetric rate of from about 2,000 to 20,000 volumes of throughput per volume of catalyst, to react hydrocarbons therein with H.sub.2 O to produce hydrogen and carbon oxides therefrom;
• (d) withdrawing the effluent of said second catalyst zone as a hydrogen-rich gas and passing said hydrogen-rich gas into the anode side of said fuel cell means;
• (e) introducing a second air stream at an elevated fuel cell pressure into the cathode side of said fuel cell means;
• and
• (f) operating said fuel cell means at the elevated fuel cell pressure to generate therefrom output electricity, a hydrogen-containing anode vent gas, and a cathode vent gas.