US 9,637,433 B2 · Systems and methods for manufacture of methanol from natural gas and flare gas feedstock

Abstract

A mobile system and method that reform flare gas, methane, or natural gas, using air without steam, to directly produce methanol, a clean burning gasoline blend, component, and/or substitute are disclosed. The system first reforms the air-methane mixture at ambient atmospheric pressure, then compresses the resulting CO-hydrogen-nitrogen gas mixture to 600 psi, and feeds it through a methanol reactor which reacts the gas mixture directly into methanol. The nitrogen is returned by the system back to the atmosphere. Methanol is a clean burning gasoline substitute, and can be used to displace significantly costlier and dirtier petroleum-based fuel, while solving a critical problem with flaring. For example, the over 120 billion cubic feet per year that was flared in North Dakota in 2014 could be converted into over 6 million tons of methanol.

Claims36

Dependent claims

A mobile system for converting raw natural gas into methanol, comprising:

a syngas generator for generating syngas from the raw natural gas and air;
a syngas compressor for compressing the syngas;
a reactor for converting carbon monoxide and hydrogen in the syngas to methanol, wherein energy is exchanged between streams entering and exiting a catalyst bed of the reactor to reduce duties on preheating and cooling of the syngas;
and
a power generator for using unreacted carbon monoxide and hydrogen to generate power, wherein some of the power is used to power the syngas compressor.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application

15/043,558Filed 13 Feb 2016 · continuation in part

Priority

28 Nov 2014

Published

US 2016/0152537 A19 Jun 2016

Granted

2 May 2017

Term ends

Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification32 codes

C07C 29/1518
Multisteps: one step being the formation of initial mixture of carbon oxides and hydrogen for synthesis
B01J 8/02
Chemical or physical processes in general, conducted in the presence of fluids and solid particles; Apparatus for such processes: with stationary…
B01J 8/0278
With stationary particles, e.g. in fixed beds: feeding reactive fluids
B01J 8/0492
The fluid passing successively through two or more beds: feeding reactive fluids

Family

Application62/085,391Us provisional application · filed 28 Nov 2014

Application14/953,268Parent of this continuation-in-part · filed 27 Nov 2015

US 2016/0159714 A1Pre-grant publication · published 9 Jun 2016

US 2016/0152537 A1Published application

US 9,643,906 B2Related patent

US 9,637,433 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.

Systems and methods for manufacture of methanol from natural gas and flare gas feedstock

Life of this patent

Systems and methods for manufacture of methanol from natural gas and flare gas feedstock

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims36