(97b) Hydrogen Production from Dimethyl Ether Steam Reforming (DME-SR)

Dimethyl ether (DME) is, by many performance and cost metrics, the best multipurpose renewable fuel and hydrogen carrier. DME boasts a hydrogen gravimetric capacity of 13 wt.% and a volumetric capacity of 87 kg H₂/m³ and is ideally suited to be used as a hydrogen carrier in support of the hydrogen economy. We developed a novel structural catalyst as a micro-reactor to improve hydrogen selectivity (95%) and yield from dimethyl ether-steam reforming under 300 °C. The process had been demonstrated in lab-scale and supported by TEA/LCA analysis. Long-term strategies to produce DME from sequestered CO₂ offer a promising approach to develop DME as a carbon neutral hydrogen carriers.