Foster Wheeler USA Corporation

Foster Wheeler Energy Corporation

Other

David L Banquy

A process starting from a hydrocarbon feedstock, and aiming to produce a synthesis gas suitable either for methanol synthesis or for other applications requiring a low H.sub.2 /CO ratio. In this process, the feedstock, supposed to be desulfurized, is divided into two fractions; a first fraction undergoes a primary steam reforming at high pressure and moderate temperature; the gas effluent from said primary steam reforming, as well as the second fraction of the feedstock, are combined and subsequently undergo a secondary reforming by reaction with a free-oxygen rich gas in a reactor operating under essentially adiabatic conditions. The synthesis gas, obtained as effluent from said secondary reforming, has a composition adjustable at will in a wide range, and therefore can be made as close as necessary to the stoichiometric composition required for methanol synthesis, or it can be made with a low H.sub.2 /CO ratio for other applications. The synthesis gas is available at high pressure, and can therefore feed directly, without compression, the synthesis loops downstream. The process of the present invention is particularly suitable for methanol production on a very large scale.

Process for the production of synthesis gas

A process starting from a hydrocarbon feedstock, and aiming to produce a synthesis gas suitable either for methanol synthesis or for other applications requiring a low H.sub.2 /CO ratio. In this process, the feedstock, supposed to be desulfurized, is divided into two fractions; a first fraction undergoes a primary steam reforming at high pressure and moderate temperature; the gas effluent from said primary steam reforming, as well as the second fraction of the feedstock, are combined and subsequently undergo a secondary reforming by reaction with an oxygen-containing gas in a reactor operating under essentially adiabatic conditions. The synthesis gas, obtained as effluent from said secondary reforming, has a composition adjustable at will in a wide range, and therefore can be made as close as necessary to the stoichiometric composition required for methanol synthesis, or it can be made with a low H.sub.2 /CO ratio for other applications. The synthesis gas is available at high pressure, and can therefore feed directly, without compression, the synthesis loops downstream. The process of the present invention is particularly suitable for methanol production on a very large scale.

A process for producing an organic compound from a hydrocarbon containing feedstock. The feedstock is divided into two fractions. The first is subject to a primary steam reforming reaction. The reaction product is then combined with the second fraction and reacted with a free oxygen-rich gas in a secondary reforming reactor to form a synthesis gas having a ratio of

A process for the production of an oxygenated organic product, such as methanol, from a feedstock containing carbon, comprising the steps of: (a) gasifying the feedstock with high purity oxygen to obtain a raw synthesis gas stream comprising methane, hydrogen, and carbon oxides; (b) mixing the raw synthesis gas stream with a hydrogen-rich gas stream to form a final synthesis gas stream; (c) injecting the final synthesis gas stream into a synthesis loop, forming the oxygenated organic product in the loop and extracting from the loop a purge gas stream; (d) separating the purge gas cryogenically to form the hydrogen-rich gas stream, an argon-rich gas stream, and a methane-rich gas stream; and (e) recycling the hydrogen-rich gas stream to step (b).

Process for the production of oxygenated organic compounds such as

A process for the production of ammonia, comprising the steps of: (a) gasifying a feedstock containing carbon and a source of hydrogen with air as the only source of free oxygen, to produce a raw synthesis gas comprising nitrogen, hydrogen, carbon oxides, and methane; (b) subjecting the raw synthesis gas to a shift conversion reaction; (c) removing the carbon oxides from the shift converted raw synthesis gas to produce a purified synthesis gas; (d) mixing the purified synthesis gas with a hydrogen-rich gas to form a final synthesis gas; (e) injecting the final synthesis gas into an ammonia synthesis loop to produce ammonia and a purge gas; (f) separating the purge gas cryogenically, to produce a methane-rich gas, a nitrogen-rich gas, and the hydrogen-rich gas; and (g) recycling the hydrogen-rich gas to step (d). The methane-rich stream is at least partially recycled to step (a). Sulfur compounds, if necessary, may be removed from the raw synthesis gas.

Process for the production of ammonia

A process to produce ammonia from a hydrocarbon feedstock, involving basically the following steps:

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Paris, France

David L Banquy