Process and apparatus for cracking ammonia
AssigneeAir Products and Chemicals, Inc.
InventorsAndrew Shaw, Simon Craig Saloway
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Abstract
The present invention concerns a process and apparatus for cracking ammonia gas at super-atmospheric pressure in catalyst-filled reactor tubes in a furnace. The tubes each have an upstream layer of a first catalyst and a downstream layer of a second catalyst, the first catalyst being more active than the second catalyst. Having the more active catalyst upstream reduces the temperature of the outer walls of the tubes in the region of the burner flames and the temperature of the inner walls of the tubes in the region with the highest mole fraction of ammonia. Nitriding of the metal of the tubes in this region is thereby reduced.
Claims13
A process for cracking ammonia comprising:
- providing a heated ammonia gas at super-atmospheric pressure;
- combusting fuel with an oxidant gas in a furnace to heat catalyst-containing reactor tubes, each tube comprising an upstream layer of a first catalyst and a downstream layer of a second catalyst, and produce a flue gas;
- feeding the heated ammonia gas, or a partially cracked ammonia gas derived therefrom, to the catalyst-containing reactor tubes to cause cracking of ammonia and produce a cracked gas comprising hydrogen gas, nitrogen gas and residual ammonia gas, wherein the first catalyst is more active for cracking ammonia than the second catalyst.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.