Systems and processes for operating fuel cell systems

A process of operating a molten carbonate fuel cell, comprising:

• providing a hydrogen-containing stream comprising molecular hydrogen to an anode portion of a molten carbonate fuel cell;
• controlling a flow rate of the hydrogen-containing stream to the anode such that molecular hydrogen utilization in the anode is less than 50%;
• mixing anode exhaust comprising molecular hydrogen from the molten carbonate fuel cell with a hydrocarbon stream comprising hydrocarbons, wherein the anode exhaust mixed with the hydrocarbon stream has a temperature from 500° C. to 700° C.;
• contacting at least a portion of the mixture of anode exhaust and the hydrocarbon stream with a catalyst to produce a stream comprising one or more gaseous hydrocarbons, molecular hydrogen, and at least one carbon oxide;
• separating at least a portion of the molecular hydrogen from the stream comprising one or more gaseous hydrocarbons, molecular hydrogen, and at least one carbon oxide steam reforming feed;
• and
• providing at least a portion of the separated molecular hydrogen to the molten carbonate fuel cell anode as at least a portion of the hydrogen-containing stream comprising molecular hydrogen.