Pressure swing reforming
AssigneeExxonMobil Research and Engineering Company
InventorsFrank Hershkowitz, Harry W. Deckman
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Synthesis gas is produced though a cyclic method where the first step of the cycle includes reforming a hydrocarbon feed over a catalyst to synthesis gas in a first zone of a bed and the second step reheats this first zone. A hydrocarbon feed is introduced to a bed along with CO2 and optionally steam where it is reformed into synthesis gas. The synthesis gas is collected at a second zone of the bed and an oxygen-containing gas is then introduced to this second zone of the bed and combusted with a fuel, thereby reheating the first zone to sufficient reforming temperatures. Additionally, a non-combusting gas can also be introduced to the second zone to move heat from the second zone to the first zone.
Claims15
A cyclic reforming and re-heating process comprising:
- (a) reforming a hydrocarbon by introducing at least a portion of said hydrocarbon along with steam and optionally CO2, through a first end of a first zone having a first volume containing bed packing materials and catalyst to produce a synthesis gas product;
- (b) passing at least a portion of the product of step (a) to a second zone having a second volume containing bed packing materials, and transferring sensible heat from the product to the packing materials;
- (c) removing substantially all of the product from said second zone;
- (d) introducing an oxygen-containing gas into a first end of said second zone;
- and
- (e) contacting said oxygen-containing gas with a fuel and combusting said gas and fuel within said zones, thereby re-heating said first zone to reforming temperatures and creating a fluegas which exits through the first end of said first zone, where each of steps (a) and (b) are done at a space velocity C1GHSV of at least 500 hr−1 as calculated using a combined volume of the first and second zones.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.