Nitrotec Corporation

Mark Huber

David R King

Kent S Knaebel

Herbert E Reinhold, Iii

Herbert W Reinhold, Iii

The invention is a pressure swing adsorption system. The pressure swing adsorption system has a plurality of primary adsorbent beds and at least one secondary adsorbent bed. The feed gas stream is flowed to a primary adsorbent bed loaded with an adsorbent that will preferentially adsorb certain components in the feed gas. Non-preferentially adsorbed components flow from the adsorbent bed during this time. Upon saturation of the adsorbent with the adsorbed components, the flow of feed gas is ceased. The adsorbent is fully loaded with the preferentially adsorbed component and there is feed gas in the void space between the adsorbent particles. This primary adsorbent bed undergoes regeneration by partial depressurization through the secondary adsorbent bed followed by a complete depressurization to a final lower pressure. There can be two or more primary adsorbent beds and there will be at least one secondary adsorbent bed. The preferred separation is the separation of carbon dioxide from a hydrocarbon containing stream.

Pressure swing system with auxiliary adsorbent bed

A natural gas feed stream containing significant quantities of nitrogen and/or carbon dioxide can be increased to a content of greater than 95 percent by volume of natural gas, and preferably greater than about 98 percent, by passing the natural gas feed stream sequentially through three adsorbent beds that are cycled through seven phases comprising: an adsorption phase to adsorb a first gas, a first depressurization phase to remove feed gas from the voids in the adsorbent bed, a recycle phase to remove a second gas from the adsorbent by the passage of a second depressurization gas therethrough and to produce a recycle gas, a second depressurization phase to reduce the adsorbent bed pressure to about ambient and to produce the second depressurization gas, an evacuation phase where the pressure in the adsorbent is further reduced and an enriched primary gas product stream recovered, a pressurization phase where the pressure in the adsorbent bed is increased using secondary product gas from a bed in an adsorption phase, and further pressurizing the adsorbent bed in a pressurization phase by the flow of the recycle gas and feed gas into the adsorbent bed. Various gases can be separated using this process. Nitrogen can be removed from natural gas (adsorbed gas) and carbon dioxide (adsorbed gas) can be removed from natural gas.

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Andrews, TX, United States of America

Mark Huber