Steam reforming is a method for
producing hydrogen, carbon monoxide, or other useful products from
hydrocarbon fuels such as
natural gas. This is achieved in a processing device called a reformer which reacts steam at high temperature with the fossil fuel. The steam
methane reformer is widely used in industry to make
hydrogen. There is also interest in the development of much smaller units based on similar technology to produce
hydrogen as a feedstock for
fuel cells. Small-scale steam reforming units to supply
fuel cells are currently the subject of research and development, typically involving the reforming of
methanol, but other fuels are also being considered such as
propane,
gasoline,
autogas,
diesel fuel, and
ethanol.