Numerical Study of Self-Heating Maintenance Performance of an Integrated Regenerative Catalytic Reactor

Fangdong Zhu, Mingming Mao (), Youtang Wang and Qiang Chen
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Fangdong Zhu: School of Transportation and Vehicle Engineering, Shandong University of Technology, Zibo 255000, China
Mingming Mao: School of Transportation and Vehicle Engineering, Shandong University of Technology, Zibo 255000, China
Youtang Wang: School of Transportation and Vehicle Engineering, Shandong University of Technology, Zibo 255000, China
Qiang Chen: School of Transportation and Vehicle Engineering, Shandong University of Technology, Zibo 255000, China

Energies, 2025, vol. 18, issue 17, 1-24

Abstract: Efficient utilization of low-calorific-value gases reduces emissions but remains challenging. Self-heat-maintained combustion uses fuel’s exothermic heat to sustain stability without external heat, yet the feed gas typically requires preheating (typically 573–673 K). This study innovatively proposes a compact regenerative catalytic reactor featuring an integrated helical heat-recovery structure and replaces empirical preheating with a user-defined function (UDF) programmed heat transfer efficiency model. This dual innovation enables self-sustained combustion at 0.16 vol.% methane, the lowest reported concentration for autonomous operation. Numerical results confirm stable operation under ultra-lean conditions, with significantly reduced preheating energy demand and accelerated thermal response. Transient analysis shows lower space velocities enable self-maintained combustion across a broader range of methane concentrations. However, higher methane concentrations require higher inlet temperatures for self-heat maintenance. This study provides significant insights for recovering energy from low-calorific-value gases and alleviating global energy pressures.

Keywords: low-calorific-value gas; catalytic reactor; self-sustained combustion; regenerative reactor (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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