Thermal device and method for production of carbon monoxide and hydrogen by thermal dissociation of hydrocarbon gases
AssigneeBechtel BWXT Idaho, LLC
InventorsBrent A. Detering, Peter C. Kong
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Carbon monoxide is produced in a fast quench reactor. The production of carbon monoxide includes injecting carbon dioxide and some air into a reactor chamber having a high temperature at its inlet and a rapidly expanding a reactant stream, such as a restrictive convergent-divergent nozzle at its outlet end. Carbon dioxide and other reactants such as methane and other low molecular weight hydrocarbons are injected into the reactor chamber. Other gas may be added at different stages in the process to form a desired end product and prevent back reactions. The resulting heated gaseous stream is then rapidly cooled by expansion of the gaseous stream.
Claims23
A method for thermally converting one or more carbon-containing reactants in a thermodynamically stable high temperature gaseous stream to at least one reaction product, comprising the following steps:
- introducing a reactant stream that provides a source of carbon atoms and a source of oxygen atoms at one axial end of a reaction chamber containing an ionized gas, the reaction chamber comprising an inlet end and an outlet end;
- heating the reactant stream in the reaction chamber to form a carbon monoxide containing reaction product stream;
- the reaction chamber having a predetermined length sufficient to effect heating of the reactant stream to a temperature at which carbon monoxide is available as a reaction product stream at a location adjacent the outlet end of the reaction chamber;
- expanding the reaction product stream through the outlet end of the reaction chamber to cool the gaseous stream by converting thermal energy to kinetic energy as the reaction product stream expands;
- and
- collecting the reaction product.
A method for thermal conversion of a carbon atom source in a thermodynamically stable high temperature gaseous stream to carbon monoxide, comprising the following steps:
- introducing a stream of plasma arc gas between the electrodes of a plasma torch including at least one pair of electrodes positioned at the inlet end of an axial reactor chamber, the stream of plasma arc gas being introduced at a selected plasma gas flow while the electrodes are subjected to a selected plasma input power level to produce a plasma within the reactor chamber and extending toward its outlet end;
- thoroughly mixing an incoming reactant stream into the plasma by injecting at least a carbon atom source and an oxygen atom source into the reactor chamber at or adjacent to its inlet end at a selected injection angle and at a selected reactant input rate to progressively effect heat transfer between the plasma and the resulting gaseous stream as it flows axially toward the outlet end of the reactor chamber;
- the length of the reactor chamber being sufficient to effect heating of the gaseous stream to a selected equilibrium temperature at which carbon monoxide end product is available as a thermodynamically unstable reaction product within the gaseous stream at a location adjacent to the outlet end of the reactor chamber;
- directing the gaseous stream through a coaxial convergent-divergent nozzle positioned in the outlet end of the reactor chamber to rapidly cool the gaseous stream by converting thermal energy to kinetic energy as a result of adiabatic and isentropic expansion as it flows axially through the nozzle, the nozzle having a converging section and a diverging section respectively leading to and from a restrictive open throat;
- and
- cooling the gaseous stream exiting the nozzle by reducing its velocity while removing heat energy at a rate sufficient to prevent increases in its kinetic temperature.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.