Experiments using a model gas mixture which is chosen to represent hydrocarbon fuel from hydrothermal gasification of biomass were carried out under gas-phase conditions similar to those expected in the anode channel of a solid-oxide fuel cell (SOFC). Ethane conversion and product formation were evaluated from the measurements at various temperatures ranging from 610 degrees C to 860 degrees C and at a total pressure of 1.2 bar. The employed reactor was simulated using a plug-flow model coupled to a detailed gas-phase reaction mechanism. The measured temperature profile along the reactor was imported in the calculation routine. A satisfying agreement in both ethane conversion and product composition was reached between the model predictions and the experimental data. In order to determine which reactions were responsible for much of the observed kinetics a sensitivity analysis based on the rate of production (ROP) principle was performed. The results from the sensitivity analysis show that there are only six elementary reactions whose rates significantly affect the consumption or formation of the four species of interest, i.e. H(2), CH(4), C(2)H(4) and C(2)H(6). (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.