Simulation of Multi-Component Mass Diffusion Pellet Model Using Least Squares Spectral Element Method for Steam Methane Reforming Process

Mass based pellet model has been solved using least-squares formulation to describe the evolution of species composition, pressure, velocity, total concentration, mass diffusion flux in porous pellets for the steam methane reforming (SMR) process. The diffusion-reaction problems are computationally intensive, requiring efficient numerical methods for dealing with them. This paper presents formulation and algorithm of least-squares spectral element method (LS-SEM) for solving multicomponent mass diffusion pellet models. The mass diffusion flux is described according to the rigorous Maxwell Stefan model. The effectiveness factors have been calculated for the SMR process and compared with the literature data. The model evaluations revealed that the least-squares method is well suited for solving the multicomponent mass diffusion pellet models for the SMR process, achieving exponential convergence.