TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - MECHANICAL ENGINEERING - Preferred Method: The carbon dioxide (CO2) reduction is cooled with water stream. The CO reduction zone comprises water gas shift reaction zone. The hydrogen product is passed to a separator to remove CO2 before passing to fuel cell zone. The feed stock is passed to a preparation module to form conditioned feed stocks before passing to pre-reforming zone which contains a catalyst. The prereforming zone is in thermal contact with first heat exchanger at steady state temperature to form effluent containing H, CO, CO2 and water (H2O). The effluent stream and first water stream are passed to CO reduction zone containing water gas shift catalyst. The water gas shift reaction zone is thermally connected with second heat transfer zone to cool water gas shift reaction zone to form hydrogen stream which is passed to anode side of fuel cell. The fuel cell contains cathode into which oxygen stream is contacted to produce electric power and anode waste gas comprising H is removed. The anode waste gas and second air stream are passed to burner to form flue gas.Preferred Condition: The temperature of the flue gas is 400-800degreesC and prereforming temperature is 300-700degreesC and the reforming zone exit temperature is less than 700degreesC.Preferred Feedstock: The feedstock is natural gas, liquid petroleum gas (LPG), butane, gasoline, oxygenates, biogas or naphtha. The feedstock comprises natural gas stream containing sulfur compound. The preparation module contains compressor and sorbent zone to remove sulfur compounds.Preferred Zone: The sorbent zone is zeolite, activated carbon, activated alumina, zinc oxide, magnesium oxide or their mixtures.Preferred Unit: The apparatus has control system for reforming the effluent by increasing or decreasing the second flow rate of second air stream to heat the flue gas at 500-800degreesC. The combined partial oxidation burner also comprises first inert layer on the oxidation catalyst and second inert layer on reforming catalyst. The oxidation burner contains top annular screen disposed in the burner zone and the screen is rigidly disposed between the wall and the inner cone. A bottom annular screen is supported by the outer and inner support ring. The outer support ring is placed on the wall and the inner support ring is placed within the burner zone. The second oxidation catalyst is placed between top and bottom annular screen. The oxidation burner reactor also contains third inert layer on second oxidation catalyst.Preferred Material: The reaction chamber is made of carbon steel or stainless steel. The side wall, top, bottom head, center sleeve and inner cone of combined partial oxidation burner reactor is made of stainless steel. The oxidation burner reactor comprises porous particle retainer rigidly disposed in the upper core zone within the center sleeve.