Beyond hydrogen: Process design of a biogas steam reformer for Fischer–Tropsch synthesis

Abstract We present an analysis of a pilot‐scale multi‐tubular biogas steam reforming reactor, part of a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) development project in Brazil. The novelty of this work is the application of a new, validated power law kinetic model, specifically developed for biogas reforming, to design a non‐isothermal fixed bed reactor. While the literature frequently explores general hydrogen production, our approach is novel in its focus on syngas tailored for Fischer–Tropsch synthesis. Our parametric study investigates the effects of temperature, pressure, effectiveness factor, feed conditions, and heat transfer on reactor performance. Two production scenarios are examined: SAF‐syngas () and ‐syngas (). For SAF‐syngas, up to 60% of the biogas carbon can be captured into the SAF chain, benefiting from partial carbon dioxide conversion. In contrast, maximizing production results in lower overall carbon conversion due to generation. These findings demonstrate that biogas‐to‐liquid technology offers a smaller carbon footprint than biogas‐to‐hydrogen and provides a valuable design framework for industrial‐scale reactors.