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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><b><span style='font-size:16.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>PhD Dissertation Defense<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center;line-height:150%'><b><span style='font-size:14.0pt;line-height:150%;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>A Compact and Efficient Steam Methane Reformer for Hydrogen Production</span></b><span style='font-size:14.0pt;line-height:150%;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal align=center style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;text-align:center;line-height:150%'><b><span style='font-size:14.0pt;line-height:150%;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>Willard Quon</span></b><b><span style='font-size:12.0pt;line-height:150%;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'><o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class=MsoNormal align=center style='margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:center;line-height:normal'><b><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Date:</span></b><span style='font-size:12.0pt'> <b>Thursday, July 26, 2012</b><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal align=center style='margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:center;line-height:normal'><span style='font-size:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal align=center style='margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:center;line-height:normal'><b><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Location:</span></b><span style='font-size:12.0pt'> Chemical Engineering Conference Room, S234<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal align=center style='margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:center;line-height:normal'><b><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Time:</span></b><span style='font-size:12.0pt'> 2:00 PM<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal align=center style='margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:center;line-height:normal'><span style='font-size:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal align=center style='margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:center;line-height:normal'><b><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Committee Chair: </span></b><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Dr. J. Richardson<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal align=center style='margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:center;line-height:normal'><span style='font-size:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal align=center style='margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:center;line-height:normal'><span style='font-size:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height:normal'><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Development of economical sources of hydrogen for transportation and manufacturing needs is driven by requirements to reduce hydrocarbon and green-house gas emissions from current fossil fuels and reduce dependence on imported petroleum. Small hydrogen generating units have been promoted by the U.S. Department of Energy as a means of accelerating market acceptance of hydrogen as a transportation fuel. They also provide a transitional distributed production supply infrastructure until large scale centralized production and distribution networks can be created. Additionally, such units can also provide economical hydrogen supplies for non-transportation markets such as:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:0in;margin-left:.25in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-indent:-.25in;line-height:normal;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1'><![if !supportLists]><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><span style='mso-list:Ignore'>(1)<span style='font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"'> </span></span></span><![endif]><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Small-scale food processors and specialty chemical manufacturers far removed from the large centralized hydrogen production units, and<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:0in;margin-left:.25in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-indent:-.25in;line-height:normal;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1'><![if !supportLists]><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><span style='mso-list:Ignore'>(2)<span style='font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"'> </span></span></span><![endif]><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Stationary fuel cells, such as those used as backup power supplies in hospitals or telecommunications towers. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height:normal'><span style='font-size:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height:normal'><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>A small-scale steam-methane reforming system for localized, distributed production of hydrogen offers improved performance and lower cost by integrating the following technologies developed at the University of Houston; <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:0in;margin-left:.25in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-indent:-.25in;line-height:normal;mso-list:l1 level1 lfo2'><![if !supportLists]><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><span style='mso-list:Ignore'>(1)<span style='font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"'> </span></span></span><![endif]><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Catalyzed steam-methane reforming on ceramic foam catalyst substrates.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:0in;margin-left:.25in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-indent:-.25in;line-height:normal;mso-list:l1 level1 lfo2'><![if !supportLists]><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><span style='mso-list:Ignore'>(2)<span style='font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"'> </span></span></span><![endif]><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Coupling of reformers to remote heat sources via heat pipes instead of heating by direct-fired heaters.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:0in;margin-left:.25in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-indent:-.25in;line-height:normal;mso-list:l1 level1 lfo2'><![if !supportLists]><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><span style='mso-list:Ignore'>(3)<span style='font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"'> </span></span></span><![endif]><span style='font-size:12.0pt'> Catalytic combustion of methane with air on ceramic foam substrates as the heat source.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height:normal'><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Each of these three technologies confer benefits improving the efficiency, reliability, or cost of an integrated compact steam-methane reforming system. Key parameters of the catalytic processes were evaluated to arrive at an optimum design for a more cost-effective hydrogen fueling station. Using U.S. Department of Energy hydrogen system economic modeling tools, this system was found to be superior to existing demonstrated options for small-scale hydrogen production.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height:normal'><span style='font-size:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div></body></html>