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AssigneeWalter Juda Associates, Inc.
InventorsWalter Juda, Charles W. Krueger
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A novel method and apparatus for one-step linking of membrane permeation of hydrogen to the generation by steam reforming of a methanol-like fuel that comprises bounding a longitudinal flow path of a methanol reformate stream comprising hydrogen, steam and the oxides of carbon and methanol, by a thin palladium-bearing membrane; promoting turbulence in the flow to cause a predominant amount, but not all, of the hydrogen in the stream transversely to permeate the membrane as substantially pure hydrogen passing transversely into a region external to the bounding membrane, thereby simultaneously generating and permeating the hydrogen; and maintaining the hydrogen in the external region at least at atmospheric pressure, but at a lower pressure than the partial pressure of the residual hydrogen in the resulting depleted reformate.
The method of producing pure hydrogen comprising generating impure hydrogen by steam reforming of methanol and carbon monoxide with or without admixed hydrogen wherein a reformate stream is formed containing primarily hydrogen and carbon dioxide, as well as some carbon monoxide and some excess steam, flowing said stream at a controlled elevated pressure and at a substantially non-poisoning temperature between about 150° C. and 350° C. longitudinally along an open-ended straight-through tortuous path bounded by a thin palladium-bearing membrane, said membrane being selected from the group consisting of a palladium alloy and a palladium-coated transition base metal, and said path being provided with turbulence-promoters, causing a predominant amount of the hydrogen in said stream, but not all, to permeate as substantially pure hydrogen, transversely through the membrane bounding the path into an external region, and collecting said permeated pure hydrogen from said external region at a pressure between at least atmospheric pressure and the partial pressure of the residual hydrogen in the resulting depleted reformate.
A method of one-step linking of membrane purification of hydrogen to the generation at an elevated pressure and a non-poisoning temperature between about 150° C. and 350 ° C. by steam reforming of methanol and carbon monoxide with or without admixed hydrogen that comprises bounding a longitudinal flow path of a methanol reformate stream comprising hydrogen, steam and the oxides of carbon and methanol by a membrane, selected from the group consisting of a palladium alloy and a palladium-coated transition base metal, promoting turbulence in the flow to cause a predominant amount, but not all, of the hydrogen in the stream transversely to permeate the membrane as substantially pure hydrogen passing transversely into a region external to the bounding membrane, thereby simultaneously generating and permeating the hydrogen;
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.