Method and apparatus for producing a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen
AssigneeL'Air Liquide, Societe Anonyme pour l'Etude et l'Exploitation des Procedes Georges Claude
InventorsAngela Fernandez, Antoine Hernandez, Jean-Marc Tsevery
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Abstract
In a method for producing a gaseous mixture of CO and H2, a first gas comprising at least 50% CO is compressed in a first compressor to form a first compressed gas cooled to a first temperature and mixes with a second gas comprising at least 50% hydrogen in order to form the gaseous mixture, at least one of the first and second gases originating from a cryogenic distillation separation unit in which a feed gas containing H2 and CO cools in a first heat exchanger and is separated in at least one distillation column and at least one part of the second gas heats in the separation unit to a third temperature lower than the first temperature and is then sent to mix with the first gas.
Claims7
A process for the production of a gas mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen in which:
- i) compressing a first gas comprising at least 50% of carbon monoxide in a first compressor in order to form a first compressed gas;
- ii) cooling the first compressed gas using a water cooler to a first temperature to form a cooled first compressed gas;
- iii) mixing a second gas comprising at least 50% of hydrogen with the cooled first compressed gas in order to form the gas mixture;
- wherein at least one of the first and second gases originates from a unit for separation by cryogenic distillation in which a feed gas containing hydrogen and carbon monoxide is cooled in a first heat exchanger and is separated in at least one distillation column;
- wherein the process further includes a step of reducing the temperature of the gas mixture selected from the group consisting of:
- a) a part of the cooled first compressed gas is sent to the separation unit, where the part of the cooled first compressed gas is cooled down to a second temperature, which is less than the first temperature and is subsequently, without being heated within the first heat exchanger of the separation unit, mixed with the gas mixture or the second gas;
- b) at least a part of the second gas is reheated in the first heat exchanger of the separation unit up to a third temperature, which is less than the first temperature and is less than a temperature of a warm end of the first heat exchanger, and is subsequently sent to be mixed with the cooled first compressed gas without being further heated within the first heat exchanger of the separation unit, and
- c) combinations thereof.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.