received by the International Bureau on 15 September 2015 (15.09.2015)

1. A liquid fuel CPOX reformer comprising:

an array of spaced-apart CPOX reactor units, each CPOX reactor unit comprising an elongate tube having a gas-permeable wall with an internal surface and an external surface, the gas-permeable wall enclosing an open gaseous flow passageway and defining an inlet and an outlet of the CPOX reactor unit,

wherein a CPOX reactor unit is in thermal communication with at least the adjacent CPOX reactor unit(s) in the array, and

at least a section of the gas-permeable wall comprises a CPOX catalyst;

a vaporizer in fluid communication with inlets of the CPOX reactor units; and

an igniter in thermal communication with at least a section of the gas permeable wall comprising a CPOX catalyst of at least one CPOX reactor unit.

2. The liquid fuel CPOX reformer of claim 1, wherein a hydrogen barrier is associated with the external surface of at least the CPOX catalyst-containing wall section of a CPOX reactor unit.

3. The liquid fuel CPOX reformer of claim 1 or 2, wherein the maximum distance between adjacent CPOX reactor units is that distance beyond which a CPOX reaction fails to be initiated in an adjacent CPOX reactor unit by the heat from a CPOX reaction in an operating CPOX reactor unit and/or during a steady-state mode of operation, the temperature of the array of spaced-apart CPOX reactor units falls below a predetermined minimum array temperature; and the minimum distance between adjacent CPOX reactor units is that distance below which the temperature at an outlet of a CPOX reactor unit is greater than a predetermined maximum temperature.

4. The liquid fuel CPOX reformer of any one of claims 1 -3, wherein the CPOX catalyst is disposed within the wall of the CPOX reactor unit, disposed on an internal surface of the wall of the CPOX reactor unit, partially or completely forms the structure of the wall of the CPOX reactor unit, or combinations thereof.

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5. The liquid fuel CPOX reformer of any one of claims 1-4, comprising a first source of oxygen-containing gas in fluid communication with the vaporizer and a second source of oxygen-containing gas in fluid communication with a mixing zone downstream of the vaporizer.

6. The liquid fuel CPOX reformer of any one of claims 1-5, comprising an oxygen- containing gas conduit having a branch conduit, the oxygen-containing gas conduit providing fluid communication between a source of oxygen-containing gas and the vaporizer and the branch conduit providing fluid communication between the source of oxygen-containing gas and a mixing zone downstream of the vaporizer, wherein the oxygen-containing gas conduit and the branch conduit divide the delivery of an oxygen-containing gas from the source of oxygen- containing gas to the vaporizer and the mixing zone downstream of the vaporizer.

7. The liquid fuel CPOX reformer of any one of claims 1-6, comprising:

a conduit comprising an oxygen-containing gas inlet and a gaseous CPOX reaction mixture outlet located downstream from an outlet of the vaporizer, wherein the conduit provides fluid communication between the oxygen-containing gas inlet and the gaseous CPOX reaction mixture outlet, and the gaseous CPOX reaction mixture outlet is in fluid communication with the inlets of the CPOX reactor units;

an inlet for gaseous reformable fuel in fluid communication with the oxygen-containing gas inlet of the conduit; and

a CPOX catalyst-containing section downstream from the gaseous reformable fuel inlet and the oxygen-containing gas inlet and upstream from the outlet of the vaporizer.

8. The liquid fuel CPOX reformer of any one of claims 1-7, wherein the vaporizer comprises or is a fuel spreader.

9. A method of CPOX reforming a liquid reformable fuel to a hydrogen-rich reformate employing the liquid fuel CPOX reformer of claim 1, the method comprising:

introducing a gaseous CPOX reaction mixture comprising a vaporized liquid reformable fuel into inlets of CPOX reactor units;

initiating catalytic partial oxidation of the gaseous CPOX reaction mixture to begin production of a hydrogen-rich reformate in at least one CPOX reactor unit; and,

88 maintaining catalytic partial oxidation of the gaseous CPOX reaction mixture in the at least one CPOX reactor unit, wherein the gas-permeable CPOX catalyst-containing wall section of the at least one CPOX reactor unit allows gaseous CPOX reaction mixture to diffuse therein and product hydrogen-rich reformate to diffuse therefrom.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein a hydrogen barrier is associated with the external surface of at least the CPOX catalyst-containing wall section of a CPOX reactor unit.

1 1. The method of claim 9 or 10, wherein initiating catalytic partial oxidation comprises:

initiating a CPOX reaction in one CPOX reactor unit; and

transferring heat from the CPOX reaction to an adjacent CPOX reactor unit to initiate a CPOX reaction therein.

12. The method of any one of claims 9-1 1 , wherein oxygen-containing gas is introduced to the gaseous CPOX reaction mixture downstream from the vaporizer and upstream from inlets of CPOX reaction units.

13. The method of any one of claims 9-12, wherein initiating CPOX comprises initiating more than a single igniter to initiate CPOX of the gaseous CPOX reaction mixture in each of the CPOX reactor units,

wherein the number of igniters is less than the number of CPOX reactor units.

14. The method of any one of claims 9-13, comprising:

heating and/or cooling upstream of the outlet of the vaporizer the stream of oxygen- containing gas and/or the stream of heated oxygen-containing gas with a thermally-regulating assembly disposed in and/or in thermal communication with the conduit.

15. A method of CPOX reforming a gaseous reformable fuel to a hydrogen-rich refom ate employing the liquid fuel CPOX reformer of claim 7, the method comprising:

introducing a gaseous CPOX reaction mixture comprising a gaseous reformable fuel into the conduit upstream from the CPOX catalyst-containing section;

89 initiating catalytic partial oxidation of the gaseous CPOX reaction mixture comprising the gaseous reformable fuel to begin production of a hydrogen-rich reformate in at least one CPOX reactor unit; and

maintaining catalytic partial oxidation of the gaseous CPOX reaction mixture comprising the gaseous reformable fuel.

16. The method of claim 15 carried out prior to, concurrently with or following CPOX reforming of a liquid reformable fuel in the same CPOX reformer.

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