Patent ID: 7503946

Claim:
A self-oxidation internal heating steam reforming apparatus constructed so as to conduct self-oxidation of a raw material gas under the presence of oxygen and conduct steam reforming to generate a hydrogen-rich reformed gas, the self-oxidation internal heating steam reforming apparatus comprising: a steam generator comprising a combustion section for combusting an air-fuel mixture obtained by mixing a combustion air with a fuel, thereby heating water by a combustion gas generated in the combustion section to generate steam; a first sucking mixer for sucking the raw material gas into a steam stream coming from the steam generator to obtain a raw material-steam mixture; and a reformer for oxidizing the raw material gas in the raw material-steam mixture by an oxygen-containing gas supplied externally, thereby conducting steam reforming of the raw material gas using a reaction heat of the oxidation to generate a hydrogen-rich reformed gas, wherein: the reformer comprises a first reaction chamber and a second reaction chamber separated from each other by partition walls, a first portion of said partition walls being heat-conductive and a second portion of said partition walls being heat-insulating; the first reaction chamber is provided with a first reaction chamber raw material feed section for supplying the raw material-steam mixture at a first reaction chamber first end, and a first reaction chamber discharge section at a first reaction chamber second end, respectively, while a steam reforming catalyst bed is packed in said first reaction chamber; and the second reaction chamber is provided with a second reaction chamber raw material feed section communicating with the first reaction chamber discharge section, and a second reaction chamber discharge section, respectively, where the inside of the second reaction chamber is packed with a mixed catalyst bed at a second reaction chamber feed section side, and a shift catalyst bed at a second reaction chamber discharge section side; said heat-insulating second portion of said partition walls is in contact with the mixed catalyst bed in the second reaction chamber; and said mixed catalyst bed is prepared by mixing a steam reforming catalyst with an oxidation catalyst.