Patent application number | Description | Published |
20110014088 | COMPACT NATURAL GAS STEAM REFORMER WITH LINEAR COUNTERCURRENT HEAT EXCHANGER - The present invention is natural gas steam reforming apparatus for generating an output gas mixture of carbon dioxide and hydrogen. The apparatus is made from two enclosures. A first enclosure contains a source of water, superheated steam, and channels, located within a lower portion of the first enclosure, which contain a water-gas-shift catalyst for converting CO into CO | 01-20-2011 |
20110046244 | NATURAL GAS STEAM REFORMING METHOD WITH LINEAR COUNTERCURRENT HEAT EXCHANGER - The present invention is a natural gas steam reforming method for generating an output gas mixture of carbon dioxide and hydrogen, including the following steps. (1) Combusting a portion of the natural gas with an oxidizing agent to generate heat, superheated steam, and a gas mixture of carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and hydrogen. (2) Steam reforming the gas mixture with additional superheated steam under steam-rich conditions to transform a remaining portion of the natural gas into carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and hydrogen. (3) Water-gas-shifting any residual carbon monoxide into additional carbon dioxide and additional hydrogen by utilizing a water-gas-shift catalyst downstream of the steam reforming step, thereby producing an effluent gas mixture that is predominantly carbon dioxide and hydrogen. (4) Boiling water in a top-to-bottom linear countercurrent heat exchanger to generate the superheated steam by transferring heat released in the water-gas-shifting step, where as the water is gravitationally and thermally stratified from top to bottom with a top portion boiling into steam, the steam continues to rise and is additionally heated in the top-to-bottom linear countercurrent heat exchanger. (5) And, utilizing the superheated steam produced as a reactant in the steam reforming step and the water-gas-shifting step to assist in reformation of the natural gas into carbon dioxide and hydrogen. | 02-24-2011 |
20140366577 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR SEPARATING ALKANE GASES WITH APPLICATIONS TO RAW NATURAL GAS PROCESSING AND FLARE GAS CAPTURE - The present invention is a field-deployable system for separating methane and natural gas liquids (NGLs) from a raw gas stream comprising a compressor; a dehydrator; a refrigerator having one or more stages; and a separation subsystem adapted to separate the raw gas stream into three product streams including a methane stream that is at least 80% methane, an ethane-rich stream, and a NGLs stream having a vapor pressure of no more than 250 psia at 38° C. The methane stream is sufficiently lean to be useable in existing natural gas engines without modification. The NGLs stream has a sufficiently low vapor pressure to be transportable in standard propane containers. The ethane-rich stream may be utilized within the system itself to power its own operations. The system can be utilized to reduce flaring from liquids-rich gas production sites to an absolute minimum, produce natural gas liquids for transport, and provide dry methane gas suitable for use in portable field generators. | 12-18-2014 |