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US 9,290,426 B2Granted
Method of making oxygenates from a non-catalytic chemical reaction
AssigneeStranded Solutions, LLC
InventorNathan Pawlak
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A system and a method for forming oxygenates from a non-catalytic reaction. A hydrocarbon gas and an oxygen-containing gas are fed into a mixer and then heated to form a reactant gas stream. The reactant gas stream is fed into a fluidized bed reactor where the reaction of the gases occurs by oxidization to produce oxygenates. The oxygenate products are then removed from the reactor.
Claims42
A method for making oxygenates using a non-catalytic reaction, said method comprising the steps of:
- mixing a first stream of hydrocarbon gas with a second stream of gas including oxygen in a mixer;
- outputting a reactant stream from the mixer including the hydrocarbon gas of the first stream and the second stream of gas including oxygen;
- providing a heat exchanger having a first portion and a second portion, wherein the second portion is at least partially located in a reaction chamber of a fluidized bed reactor;
- heating the reactant stream to a predetermined temperature of at least 300° C. and a pressure of from 40 to 85 atm to form a heated reactant stream in the heat exchanger and feeding the heated reactant stream to the fluidized bed reactor from the first portion of the heat exchanger at a temperature of 300 to 372° C. at a point of entry into the fluidized bed reactor;
- inputting the heated reactant stream into the fluidized bed reactor and wherein the fluidized bed reactor reaction chamber includes a plurality of inert reactor particles in the reaction chamber;
- distributing the heated reactant stream into the reaction chamber of the fluidized bed reactor by sending the heated reactant stream through a distributor plate,
- fluidizing the inert reactor particles in the reaction chamber by feeding the heated reactant stream vertically through the reaction chamber and suspending the inert reactor particles in the reaction chamber of the fluidized bed reactor;
- oxidizing in the reaction chamber of the fluidized bed reactor the hydrocarbon gas in the heated reactant stream with the gas including oxygen in the heated reactant stream to produce oxygenates comprising at least one of methanol, ethanol and propanol;
- maintaining the fluidized bed reactor at an isothermal condition of ±10% of a desired operating temperature range of from 300 to 900° C. and a desired operating pressure of 40 to 85 atm to facilitate the production of the oxygenates and further including a step of cycling inert reactor particles from the reaction chamber through the heat exchanger thereby allowing the fluidized bed reactor to complete said step of heating said reactant stream and to further perform a step of cooling the fluidized bed reactor with minimal energy expenditure as part of said step of maintaining the fluidized bed reactor at an isothermal condition;
- and
- outputting a product stream including the oxygenates, byproducts, and unreacted hydrocarbon gas from the fluidized bed reactor.
8 more elements
A method for making oxygenates using a non-catalytic reaction, said method comprising the steps of:
- feeding a first stream of hydrocarbon gas into a mixer;
- feeding a recycle stream from a recovery system into the mixer;
- mixing the first stream and the recycle stream in the mixer to output a combined stream;
- heating the combined stream to a first predetermined temperature of from 300 to 372° C. by feeding the combined stream through a heat source and wherein the combined stream is fed to the heat source at a pressure of 40 to 85 atm;
- inputting the heated combined stream from the heat source into a fluidized bed reactor having a reaction chamber and a plurality of inert reactor particles in the reaction chamber;
- inputting a second stream of gas including oxygen at a second predetermined temperature which is lower than the first predetermined temperature to the fluidized bed reactor separately from the heated combined stream;
- controlling the volume of the second stream inputted into the fluidized bed reactor based on the internal temperature of the fluidized bed reactor;
- distributing the heated reactant stream into the reaction chamber of the fluidized bed reactor by sending the heated reactant stream through a distributor plate,
- fluidizing the inert reactor particles in the fluidized bed reactor by feeding the heated combined stream and the second stream through the reaction chamber and suspending the inert reactor particles in the reaction chamber of the fluidized bed reactor;
- oxidizing the hydrocarbon gas in the heated combined stream with the second stream of gas including oxygen in the reaction chamber of the fluidized bed reactor to produce oxygenates comprising at least one of methanol, ethanol, and propanol;
- varying the flow rate of the second stream to maintain the fluidized bed reactor at an isothermal condition of ±10% of a desired operating temperature between 300° C. and 900° C. and an operating pressure of 40 to 85 atm to facilitate with the production of the oxygenates;
- outputting a product stream including the oxygenates, byproducts, and unreacted hydrocarbon gas from the fluidized bed reactor;
- isolating the oxygenates from the product stream by sending the product stream through the recovery system, the recovery system configured to separate the oxygenates in the product stream from the recycle stream which includes the byproducts and the unreacted hydrocarbon gas;
- and
- cycling the byproducts and the unreacted hydrocarbon gas from the product stream by sending the recycle stream to the mixer.
12 more elements
A method for making oxygenates using a non-catalytic reaction, said method comprising the steps of:
- compressing a first stream including a hydrocarbons gas to a predetermined pressure of 40 to 85 atm;
- heating the compressed first stream to a first predetermined temperature of at least 300° C. by feeding the compressed first stream through a heat source;
- inputting the heated and compressed first stream from the heater into a first reactor having a first reaction chamber;
- inputting a gas including oxygen at a second predetermined temperature, said second predetermined temperature lower than said first predetermined temperature, into the first reaction chamber of the first reactor and separately from the heated stream;
- oxidizing the hydrocarbon gas of the heated and compressed first stream with the second stream of gas including oxygen in the first reaction chamber of the first reactor to produce oxygenates comprising at least one of methanol, ethanol, and propanol;
- outputting a product stream including the oxygenates, byproducts and unreacted hydrocarbon gas from the first reactor;
- isolating the oxygenates from the product stream with a recovery system separating the oxygenates from a recycle stream having the byproducts and the unreacted hydrocarbon gas;
- heating and compressing the recycle stream to a temperature of at least 300° C. and a pressure of from 40 to 85 atm and then inputting the recycle stream into a second reactor having a second reaction chamber;
- inputting a second stream of gas including oxygen at the second predetermined temperature to the second reactor separately from the recycle stream;
- oxidizing the unreacted hydrocarbon gas in the recycle stream with the second stream of gas including oxygen in the second reaction chamber of the second reactor under isothermal conditions of ±10% of a desired operating temperature range of from 300 to 900° C. in said second reaction chamber at a pressure of from 40 to 85 atm to produce oxygenates comprising at least one of methanol, ethanol, and propanol;
- outputting a second product stream including the oxygenates, byproducts and unreacted hydrocarbon gas from the second reactor;
- and
- isolating the oxygenates from the second product stream with the recovery system separating the oxygenates from the byproducts and the unreacted hydrocarbon gas of the second product stream.
10 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.