A partial oxidation methanol micro reformer (POM-mu Reformer) with finger-shaped channels for low operating temperature and high conversing efficiency is proposed in this study. The micro reformer employs POM reaction for low temperature operation (less than 200 degrees C), exothermic reaction, and quick start-up, as well as air feeding capability; and the finger type reaction chambers for increasing catalyst loading as well as reaction area for performance enhancement. In this study, centrifugal technique was introduced to assist on the catalyst loading with high amount and uniform distribution. The solid content (S), binder's ratio (B), and channel design (the ratio between channel's length and width, R) were investigated in detail to optimize the design parameters. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), gas chromatography (GC), and inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometer (ICP-MS) were employed to analyze the performance of the POM-mu Reformer. The result depicted that the catalyst content and reactive area could be much improved at the optimized condition, and the conversion rate and hydrogen selectivity approached 97.9% and 97.4%, respectively, at a very low operating temperature of 180 C with scarce or no binder in catalyst The POM-mu Reformer can supply hydrogen to fuel cells by generating 2.23 J/min for 80% H-2 utilization and 60% fuel cell efficiency at 2 ml/min of supplied reactant gas, including methanol, oxygen and argon at a mixing ratio of 12.2%, 6.1% and 81.7%, respectively. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.