Process For The Production Of Hydrogen With Intermediate-Pressure Purging

PATENT
Process For The Production Of Hydrogen With Intermediate-Pressure Purging
United States Patent Application 20120017511
Inventors:
Fischer, Beatrice (Lyon, FR)
Giroudiere, Fabrice (Orlienas, FR)
Ambrosino, Jean-louis (Ternay, FR)
Thomas, Michel (Lyon, FR)
Application Number:
13/187844
Publication Date:
01/26/2012
Assignee:
IFP Energies nouvelles (Ruel-Malmaison Cedex, FR)
Abstract:
This invention relates to a process for the production of hydrogen from a hydrocarbon feedstock and water vapor comprising: A stage for the production of a synthetic gas in a vapor reforming unit of the hydrocarbon feedstock in the presence of water vapor, with a fuel that provides the heat that is necessary to the reaction, A stage for conversion to vapor of the synthetic gas that is obtained in the preceding stage producing a hydrogen stream that contains methane and carbon dioxide, A stage for recovering carbon dioxide that is present in the stream that is obtained in the stage for conversion to vapor, making it possible to separate the carbon dioxide from the hydrogen stream, A stage for recovery and recycling to the vapor reforming stage of impurities that are present in the hydrogen stream, comprising a decompression phase.
Description:
This invention relates to the field of the production of hydrogen and more particularly a process for the production of hydrogen with total recovery of CO2, recycling of unconverted methane and intermediate purging.

Global warming of the planet, observed since the industrial era according to the international scientific community, could dramatically modify the climates and ecosystems of numerous regions of the globe. Emission of greenhouse gas and especially carbon dioxide (CO2) seems to be responsible for this warming.

Fossil energy (natural gas, petroleum, carbon) constitutes a large part of the energy that is readily available on the planet. This fossil energy, however, when it is used, produces CO2 (generally during a combustion stage) and is thus implicated in global warming.

One of the solutions that is recommended for fighting against global warming by greenhouse gas emissions is to recover the CO2 that is produced and then to store it underground. Several methods are explored, including recovery by precombustion that consists in converting fossil energy into hydrogen with recovery and storage of the CO2 that is co-produced. Hydrogen, an energy vector, can then be burned freely with no greenhouse gas emissions.

There are currently several means for producing hydrogen industrially based on fossil energy. The most widely used means is the vapor reforming of natural gas that is implemented in a furnace (in English: SMR: Steam Methane Reforming) that offers the advantage of using a feedstock that has a high hydrogen/carbon ratio, taking into account the high methane content in its composition
Free Full Text Source: http://www.freepatentsonline.com/y2012/0017511.html