Patent ID: 8034135

Claim:
A fuel reforming apparatus for reforming a reforming fuel to produce a hydrogen rich fuel gas, said fuel reforming apparatus comprising: an evaporator for evaporating the reforming fuel by heat exchange with a heating fluid, the evaporator comprising: a plurality of reforming fuel channels extending in a longitudinal direction of the evaporator, and a plurality of heating channels for a heating fluid other than the reformed gas, the heating channels extending in the longitudinal direction of the evaporator, wherein each of the reforming fuel channels is disposed adjacent to one or more of the heating channels; a superheater for raising the temperature of the evaporated reforming fuel to a temperature required for a reforming reaction, the superheater comprising a fuel inlet formed at a lower part of the superheater and a plurality of horizontal partition plates extending in the superheater so as to form a serpentine heating channel; a reformer for reforming the reforming fuel, after the temperature of the reforming fuel has been raised, in order to produce a reformed gas; a plurality of supply pipes for supplying a plurality of fluids to a ring member, the ring member attached to an outer casing disposed around the evaporator; wherein the ring member, evaporator, and superheater are arranged to form a fluid flow path such that: the plurality of fluids enter the ring member through the supply pipes before flowing to the evaporator, the plurality of fluids are mixed in the evaporator to form the reforming fuel, and the mixed reforming fuel flows from the evaporator to the superheater and through the serpentine heating channel to allow the mixed and evaporated reforming fuel to repeatedly move horizontally and upwardly, wherein said evaporator is disposed around said superheater and the evaporator and the superheater are concentrically disposed about an axis extending through the superheater, wherein said superheater and said reformer are coaxially connected together in series such that the reformer is arranged directly above said superheater, and the reformer is in an axially exterior location relative to the evaporator.