Process and apparatus for producing hydrogen by cracking methane and low co2 emission hydrocarbons

A hydrocarbon cracking reactor (4) for producing gaseous hydrogen and solid carbon in a medium consisting of a pool of molten metals and/or salts contained in said reactor, characterized in that the heat required for the cracking reaction is provided by the direct application of a voltage to said molten pool and, therefore, by the circulation of an electric current directly in said molten pool, said electric current being obtained by applying an electric field by means of electrodes immersed in said molten pool, said metal reactor being internally coated with refractory material and said metal reactor being suitable to operate at temperatures below 1500° C., preferably between 900° C. and 1300° C., and comprising:

• at least one distributor (6) of the hydrocarbon feed at the bottom of said reactor which collects the fresh feed and the unconverted recycle gas;
• at least one system for preheating such a feed;
• a system of anode (2) and cathode (8) electrodes inserted in the molten metal pool which allows the heating thereof and supplies the heat to the hydrocarbon cracking reaction;
• a converted gas collection system (14);
• a system for separating/removing the carbon from the surface of the molten pool;
• a system for emptying and accumulating the molten metal/salt;
• wherein said feed preheating system is suitable to obtain the feed preheating by both cooling the anode and cooling the converted gas before the purification step (16) and cooling the carbon produced (17),
• and wherein
• said converted gas collection system is installed in the reactor vault and allows moving away the converted gas, mainly consisting of H2 and CH4, and directing it towards a subsequent purification step, after appropriate cooling.