A comprehensive CFD and experimental investigations are performed on the integrated hotbox components to determine its compactness and suitability for 1 kW-class SOFC stack system. CFD model was first implemented on the standalone reformer to determine the heat energy required for desired reformate composition; then in the second step, simulations using validated model have been performed on the real-scale integrated hotbox components to ascertain the performance and effectiveness of the design. Anode and cathode off-gases are burnt in the combustor to provide the necessary energy. Numerical calculations on different heat exchanger designs are also performed separately by fixing the boundary conditions obtained from experiments. From the numerical calculations on the full-scale system, it is found that SOFC operating at a temperature of 750°C and S/C of 2.75, a combined mole fraction of H_2 and CO ～0.80 (methane conversion of 76%) is obtained which is comparable to the electrically-heated reformer results.
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