Techno-economic assessment of hydrogen production via dimethylether steam reforming and methanol steam reforming

The present work reports the techno-economic analysis of hydrogen generation using Dimethyl Ether Steam Reforming (DMESR) and Methanol Steam Reforming (MSR) processes. For both processes, steady-state simulation models were developed using Aspen Plus. The two processes are analysed by taking into account the kinetics of the Cu/ZnO/Al2O3 catalyst for MSR and Cu–Ni/γ-Al2O3 catalyst for DMESR in an RPLUG model simulated as a Fixed Bed Reactor (FBR) at a temperature of 250°C and pressure 20 bar. The work dives into heat integration opportunities to reduce the operating cost of the two processes. The article also provides a gist of the approximate cost to produce hydrogen by the two processes by taking into consideration the cost of equipment and utilities involved. It is found that the TAC for DMESR is marginally higher than MSR mainly because of the higher cost of utilities involved. It was also found that NPV for MSR is comparatively higher than DMESR. The article also provides TAC for Selective Methanation of Carbon Monoxide (SMC) for both processes with the purpose of minimising CO.