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US 12,404,171 B2Granted
Alternating fixed and fluidized bed reactor systems and processes
AssigneeChevron U.S.A. Inc.
InventorsHuping Luo, Lin Li, Alexander Kuperman, Xiaoying Ouyang
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Abstract
The present disclosure refers to systems and methods for producing hydrogen among other products. In some embodiments the methods comprise sequentially conducting a cracking step in a fixed bed mode and conducting a flowing step in a fluidized bed mode. Such sequential processes may result in a number of advantages including, for example, regenerating the catalyst during the fluidized bed mode in a manner such that beneficial heat is generated for use in the endothermic cracking step.
Claims24
A process for producing hydrogen and solid carbon comprising:
- cracking a light hydrocarbon stream in a reactor in the presence of a catalyst under conditions suitable to produce at least (1) hydrogen and (2) a carbon byproduct deposited on a surface of the catalyst, wherein the light hydrocarbon stream is flowing downward and wherein the reactor is in a fixed bed reactor mode;
- flowing a light hydrocarbon gas, a superheated steam, an inert gas, or a mixture thereof upward through the reactor wherein the reactor is in a fluidized reactor mode and wherein the conditions are suitable to detach at least a portion up to all of the deposited carbon byproduct from the surface of the catalyst;
- and
- regenerating the catalyst by reacting an oxidant with the carbon byproduct;
- wherein the process further comprises employing at least a portion of the heat from regenerating to the cracking.
2 more elements
A process for producing hydrogen and solid carbon comprising:
- cracking a light hydrocarbon stream in a reactor in the presence of a catalyst under conditions suitable to produce at least (1) hydrogen and (2) a carbon byproduct deposited on a surface of the catalyst, wherein the light hydrocarbon stream is flowing downward and wherein the reactor is in a fixed bed reactor mode;
- flowing a light hydrocarbon gas, a superheated steam, an inert gas, or a mixture thereof upward through the reactor wherein the reactor is in a fluidized reactor mode and wherein the conditions are suitable to detach at least a portion up to all of the deposited carbon byproduct from the surface of the catalyst;
- and
- regenerating the catalyst by reacting an oxidant with the carbon byproduct;
- wherein the process further comprises pre-treating unreacted light hydrocarbon gas to remove a substantial portion of catalyst poisoning impurities.
2 more elements
A process for producing hydrogen comprising:
- (1) sequentially conducting a cracking step in a fixed bed mode and conducting a flowing step in a fluidized bed mode in a first reactor;
- wherein the cracking step comprises cracking a light hydrocarbon stream comprising methane in a reactor in the presence of a catalyst under conditions suitable to produce at least (1) hydrogen and (2) a carbon byproduct deposited on a surface of the catalyst, wherein the light hydrocarbon stream comprising methane is flowing downward and wherein the reactor is in a fixed bed reactor mode;
- wherein the flowing step comprises flowing a light hydrocarbon gas comprising methane, a superheated steam, an inert gas, or a mixture thereof upward through the reactor wherein the reactor is in a fluidized reactor mode and wherein the superficial velocity of the flowing is sufficient to detach at least a portion up to all of the deposited carbon byproduct from the surface of the catalyst;
- and
- (2) regenerating the catalyst during the flowing step by reacting an oxidant with the carbon byproduct such that heat is generated for use in the cracking step.
2 more elements
A reactor system comprising:
- a reactor vessel comprising light hydrocarbon catalyst in a fixed bed configuration;
- wherein said reactor vessel is configured to receive light hydrocarbon feed flowing downward to produce hydrogen while allowing carbon byproduct to be deposited on catalyst surface;
- wherein said reactor vessel is configured to receive a light hydrocarbon gas, a superheated steam, or an inert gas flowing upward to fluidize the light hydrocarbon catalyst and thereafter receive an oxidizing agent to remove deposited carbon byproduct;
- wherein the reactor system is configured to sequentially alternate between a fixed bed reactor mode and a fluidized bed reactor mode.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.