Scrubber for methanol production system
AssigneeGas Technologies LLC
InventorsNathan Pawlak, Robert Carr
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An apparatus and method of producing methanol is provided that reacts a methane-containing gas and an oxygen-containing gas in a reactor to provide a product stream comprising methanol and formaldehyde. The product stream is scrubbed using a process component absorbent. After scrubbing the product stream, unprocessed methane gas is mixed with the methane-containing gas for reprocessing through the reactor while methanol and formaldehyde is sent to a rectification process for removal.
Claims29
A system for producing methanol, comprising:
- a reactor having first and second methane-containing gas inputs, an oxygen-containing gas input, and an output for a reactor product stream, the reactor being configured to facilitate a direct partial oxidation reaction of heated methane-containing gas by oxygen from an oxygen-containing gas to form the reactor product stream;
- a first methane-containing gas supply coupled to the first methane-containing gas input;
- a second methane-containing gas supply coupled to the second methane-containing gas input;
- an oxygen-containing gas supply coupled to the oxygen-containing gas input;
- an absorbent comprising recycled reactor process components;
- and
- a scrubber configured to use the absorbent to remove and recycle unreacted methane gas from the reactor product stream for use in at least one or both of the first and second methane-containing gas inputs.
A method for recycling unreacted methane gas from a reaction product gas stream of a direct partial oxidation methane reactor, the method comprising:
- feeding the reaction product gas stream into a scrubber;
- passing an absorbent through the scrubber;
- removing unreacted methane gas from the product gas stream using the absorbent;
- recycling the unreacted methane gas for use in the reactor, and
- recycling the absorbent for reuse in the scrubber,
- wherein the absorbent comprises process components of the product gas stream.
A method for producing methanol using a direct partial oxidation reactor, the method comprising:
- feeding the reactor with a methane-containing gas and an oxygen containing gas;
- carrying out the partial oxidation reaction of methane to form a product gas comprising a mixture of methanol and formaldehyde;
- directing the product gas to a scrubber;
- scrubbing the product gas using an absorbent comprising process components of the product gas;
- removing methanol, water, carbon dioxide, and formaldehyde from the product gas to form a spent solvent;
- recycling unreacted methane-containing gas from the product gas into to the reactor;
- and
- recycling the spent solvent for reintroduction into the scrubber as the absorbent.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.