Steam-hydrocarbon process

A process of treating hydrocarbons which comprises:

• a. reacting a normally gaseous hydrocarbon with steam endothermically over a catalyst at an outlet temperature in the range 700.degree. to 900.degree. C. in a reaction zone heated by a combustion furnace, to give a process gas stream containing hydrogen, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide;
• b. recovering heat by cooling the combustion gases discharged from said furnace in heat exchange, in a boiler raising steam at a pressure 60 to 120 ata. and then with feed water for said boiler, until the temperature of the combustion gas has fallen to 150.degree. to 300.degree. C.;
• c. transferring heat contained in said cooled combustion gas at 150 to 300.degree. C. to water under pressure;
• and
• d. bringing the resulting hot water under pressure into direct heat exchange with the normally gaseous hydrocarbon to be reacted in step (a), to provide 10 to 30% of the steam to be reacted in step (a).

A process of treating hydrocarbons which comprises:

• a. reacting a normally gaseous hydrocarbon with steam endothermically over a catalyst at an outlet temperature in the range 700.degree. to 900.degree. C. in a reaction zone heated by a combustion furnace, to give a process gas stream containing hydrogen, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide;
• b. recovering heat by cooling the combustion gases discharged from said combustion furnace in heat exchange in a boiler raising steam at a pressure in the range of 60 to 120 ata. and then with feed water for said boiler, until the temperature of the combustion gas has fallen to 150.degree. to 300.degree. C.;
• c. transferring heat contained in said cooled combustion gas at 150.degree. to 300.degree. C. to water under pressure;
• and
• d. bringing the resulting hot water under pressure into indirect heat exchange with air to be fed to the burners of the combustion furnace in step (a).

A process of treating hydrocarbons which comprises:

• a. reacting a normally gaseous hydrocarbon with steam endothermically over a catalyst at an outlet temperature in the range 700.degree. to 900.degree. C. in a reaction zone heated by a combustion furnace, to give a process gas stream containing hydrogen, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide;
• b. recovering heat by cooling the process gas stream resulting from said reaction of a hydrocarbon with steam in heat exchange in a boiler raising steam at the pressure in the range of 60 to 120 ata. and then with feed water for said boiler, until the temperature of said process gas stream has fallen to 150.degree. to 300.degree. C.;
• c. transferring heat contained in said process gas stream at 150.degree. to 300.degree. C., to water under pressure;
• and
• d. bringing the resulting hot water under pressure into indirect heat exchange with air to be fed to the burners of the combustion furnace in step (a).