US 12,753,073 B2 · Kinetic enhancements for thermal pyrolysis process, hybrid thermal-electric pyrolysis, and associated systems and methods

Abstract

Systems and methods that incorporate a kinetic booster component into thermal pyrolysis systems are disclosed herein. For example, a method according to the present technology can include receiving an input flow of the hydrocarbon reactant from a supply of a hydrocarbon reactant, then modifying the input flow to generate a modified input flow. The modified input flow can have a lower activation energy than an unmodified flow and/or can include one or more catalysts for a pyrolysis reaction. The method can then include heating the modified input flow within a pyrolysis chamber of a pyrolysis reactor. The hearting process can drive a pyrolysis reaction in the modified input flow that generates solid carbon and hydrogen gas. The method can then include removing at least a portion of the solid carbon from the hydrogen gas in an output flow from the pyrolysis reactor.

Claims14

Dependent claims

A pyrolysis system, comprising:

a combustion component;
a feedstock mixing component fluidly couplable to a supply of a reaction feedstock and a kinetic booster component, wherein the reaction feedstock includes a hydrocarbon reactant, and wherein the feedstock mixing component is configured to mix the reaction feedstock with a supplementary flow from the kinetic booster component to generate an input flow, wherein the supplementary flow is configured to provide a kinetic boost to the reaction feedstock;
a pyrolysis reactor chamber fluidly coupled to the feedstock mixing component and thermally coupled to the combustion component, wherein the pyrolysis reactor chamber is configured to transfer heat from combustion by the combustion component to the input flow to generate an output flow comprising hydrogen gas and solid carbon;
and
a carbon separation component coupled to the pyrolysis reactor chamber to separate at least a portion of the solid carbon from the hydrogen gas in the output flow.

2 more elements

A multi-stage pyrolysis system, comprising:

a plasma booster component fluidly couplable to a supply of a hydrocarbon feedstock, wherein the plasma booster component is configured to receive an input flow of the hydrocarbon feedstock and generate an intermediate input flow;
and
a thermal pyrolysis component fluidly coupled to the plasma booster component to receive the intermediate input flow, wherein the thermal pyrolysis component comprises:
a combustion component fluidly couplable to a supply of combustion feedstock and configured to generate heat via a combustion of the combustion feedstock;
and
a pyrolysis reactor chamber thermally coupled to the combustion component, wherein the pyrolysis reactor chamber is configured to transfer the heat from the combustion to hydrocarbons in the intermediate input flow to generate an output flow comprising hydrogen gas and solid carbon.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Kinetic enhancements for thermal pyrolysis process, hybrid thermal-electric pyrolysis, and associated systems and methods

Life of this patent

Kinetic enhancements for thermal pyrolysis process, hybrid thermal-electric pyrolysis, and associated systems and methods

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims14