Systems and methods for nuclear-powered petrochemical production systems

Abstract

Systems and methods for producing petrochemical products with nuclear energy are disclosed. Some such systems include a nuclear reactor that generates thermal energy; a dehydrogenation plant adapted to use some of the thermal energy to produce petrochemical products; a power plant adapted to use some of the thermal energy to generate electricity and produce steam; an electric steam methane reforming furnace that uses the generated electricity to produce hydrogen; and a cracking reactor adapted to burn hydrogen. Some such methods include using nuclear generated thermal energy in a dehydrogenation plant to add thermal energy to a dehydrogenation process to produce petrochemical products; using, in a power plant, nuclear generated thermal energy to generate electricity and produce steam; powering, with generated electricity, an electric steam methane reforming (SMR) based hydrogen plant to generate hydrogen, and processing hydrocarbon feedstock in a cracking reactor to produce petrochemical products.

Description

SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR NUCLEAR-POWERED PETROCHEMICAL PRODUCTION SYSTEMSFIELD OF DISCLOSURE

[0001] The present disclosure generally relates to petrochemical production. More specifically, but not by way of limitation, the present disclosure relates to petrochemical production using nuclear energy as an energy source.BACKGROUND

[0002] Chemical synthesis plants are utilized to provide a variety of chemicals. Often, a dedicated fuel is burned or combusted to provide heat of reaction for chemical synthesis, energy to heat one or more process streams, energy to vaporize liquids (e.g., boil water used as a diluent), energy to do work (e.g., drive a compressor or pump), or energy for other process operations throughout the chemical synthesis plant. Such burning or combustion of fuels results in the production of flue gases that contain CO2, which can be harmful to the environment, and also results in a loss of energy efficiency of the process. Likewise, steam is often conventionally utilized as a plant-wide heat and / or energy transfer fluid within chemical synthesis plants. The steam utilized for the heat and / or energy transfer is often produced via the combustion of a fuel, resulting in the production of additional flue gas and further energy efficiency losses during the chemical synthesis.

[0003] One strategy for reducing emissions associated with burning fuel is the electrification of chemical synthesis plants, but electrification of certain components in chemical synthesis plants presents additional issues and challenges. For example, in steam cracking, electric furnaces pyrolysis reactors may present issues or may be subject to considerations that are different than and / or not necessarily present in combustion-driven furnace pyrolysis reactors.

[0004] It is generally more expensive to provide heat from electricity than to provide heat directly from the combustion of fuel. Moreover, sources of carbon free electricity tend to be unreliable and intermittent. The production of power from solar and wind varies with time of day and weather conditions — e.g., night hours and overcast time periods reduce or interrupt the generation of electricity by solar panels. Likewise, during periods when wind is slower or nonexistent, generation of electricity by wind turbines is reduced or interrupted. Commercially, however, it is important for a chemical plant to maintain consistent throughput, and thereforetypically requires a continuous power source. Stored energy can be used to compensate for the gaps associated with intermittent power production, but energy storage is typically expensive and has limitations with respect to capacity. Thus, while useful, stored energy is not effective in compensating for extended gaps in power production.SUMMARY

[0005] One of many factors to be addressed in the decarbonization of certain petrochemical production processes involves the selection of an appropriate energy source in view of the demands, opportunities, and economics presented by those processes. Although a low carbon energy source is desirable, not all such energy sources are technically and ultimately economically feasible. For example, the selected energy source should be reliable and its implementation into industrial application (e.g., changes to equipment in existing industrial plants) should be practicable. Petrochemical production processes, for example steam cracking to make olefins, steam methane reforming to make syngas and hydrogen, catalytic reforming to make aromatics, and various other dehydrogenation reactions consume thermal energy that typically comes from the burning of natural gas, which results in carbon emissions. Thus, replacing the burning of natural gas with a carbon free energy source is desirable. The most popular carbon free energy sources are wind and solar, but these energy sources are intermittent and unreliable, which can be difficult to use in a petrochemical plant that requires continuous power every hour of the day and every day of the week. With low carbon footprint and reliability being driving factors, the present inventor has discovered systems and methods for producing petrochemicals with nuclear energy — the most reliable continuous form of carbon free energy.

[0006] Embodiments of the disclosure include providing various energy modes from a nuclear energy source and using the various energy modes to process petrochemicals according to process temperature requirements. In this way, thermodynamic efficiency can be maximized, thus reducing costs. Embodiments of the disclosure also involve utilizing byproducts of some processes as raw material and / or fuel for other processes so as to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and reduce the carbon footprint of operating the petrochemical plant as a whole, where some of those byproducts might otherwise become a greenhouse gas.

[0007] In some configurations, the present system comprises a nuclear reactor configured to generate thermal energy and a dehydrogenation plant adapted to use a first portion of the generated thermal energy to add thermal energy directly to a dehydrogenation reaction for removing hydrogen from a first hydrocarbon feedstock to produce one or more of the petrochemical products. The system further comprises a power plant adapted to use a second portion of the generated thermal energy to generate electricity and produce steam and an electric steam methane reforming (SMR) based hydrogen plant adapted to receive and be powered by at least a first portion of the generated electricity to produce hydrogen. The system still further comprises a cracking reactor adapted to process a second hydrocarbon feedstock to produce one or more of the petrochemical products, the cracking reactor adapted to receive and burn hydrogen from at least one source selected from the list of hydrogen sources consisting of the electric SMR based hydrogen plant, the dehydrogenation plant, and the cracking reactor.

[0008] In some such configurations, the one or more petrochemical products comprise a product selected from the group of products consisting of an olefin, an aromatic, propylene, butadiene, isobutylene, benzene, toluene, xylene, and hydrogen.

[0009] In some configurations, the second hydrocarbon feedstock comprises one or more elements selected from the list of elements consisting of alkanes, condensate, LPG, naphtha, and gas oil, and the one or more petrochemical products comprise a product selected from the group of products consisting of one or more olefins, ethylene, propylene, butylenes, aromatics, benzene, toluene, and xylene, pyrolysis gas (PyGas) and pyrolysis oil (PyOil), hydrogen, and methane.

[0010] In some configurations, the system further comprises a plastic production plant adapted to use at least one of the petrochemical product(s) from the cracking reactor, a third portion of the thermal energy, a second portion of the generated electricity, and / or at least a portion of the produced steam to produce one or more plastics.

[0011] In certain optional variations, the nuclear reactor is adapted to be cooled by gas. In certain optional variations, the nuclear reactor is adapted to be cooled by a molten salt or a molten metal.

[0012] In some configurations, the further comprises a gas / gas heat exchanger adapted to transfer the first portion of the generated thermal energy to the dehydrogenation plant.

[0013] In certain optional variations, hydrogen of the one or more petrochemical products from the dehydrogenation plant is used as fuel to deliver thermal energy by combustion.

[0014] In certain optional variations, the electric SMR based hydrogen plant is configured so that CO2 made by reforming in the electric SMR based hydrogen plant is sequestered or used as raw material.

[0015] In certain optional variations, a feed to the electric SMR based hydrogen plant is, at least in part, comprised of methane byproduct from the cracking reactor.

[0016] In some configurations of the system, the electric (SMR) based hydrogen plant is adapted to provide at least some of the produced hydrogen to one or more of the group consisting of: the cracking reactor for use as fuel, an ammonia plant for making ammonia, to a methanol plant for making methanol, to a gas to liquids plant, and to a plant that converts carbon dioxide to other products.

[0017] Some implementations of the present method comprises using, in a dehydrogenation plant, a first portion of thermal energy generated by a nuclear reaction to add thermal energy to a dehydrogenation reaction for removing hydrogen from a first hydrocarbon feedstock to produce one or more of the petrochemical products, and using in a power plant a second portion of the thermal energy to generate electricity and produce steam. The method further comprises powering with at least a portion of the generated electricity an electric steam methane reforming (SMR) based hydrogen plant to generate hydrogen, and processing a second hydrocarbon feedstock in a cracking reactor to produce one or more of the petrochemical products, where thermal energy is added to a cracking reaction in the cracking reactor by burning hydrogen from at least one source selected from the list of hydrogen sources consisting of: the SMR based hydrogen plant, the dehydrogenation plant, and the cracking reactor.

[0018] In some configurations, the method includes removing of hydrogen from the first hydrocarbon feedstock is a dehydrogenation reaction that produces H2 and one or more petrochemical products selected from: an aromatic, propylene, butadiene, isobutylene, benzene, toluene, xylene, and hydrogen.

[0019] In some configurations, the second hydrocarbon feedstock comprises one or more elements selected from the list of elements consisting of: alkanes, condensate, LPG, naphtha, orgas oil; and the one or more petrochemical products comprise a product selected from the group of products consisting of: olefins, ethylene, propylene, and butylenes; aromatics, benzene, toluene, and xylene; pyrolysis gas (PyGas), and pyrolysis oil (PyOil).

[0020] In some configurations, the method comprises providing to a plastic production plant, at least one of the petrochemical product(s) from the cracking reactor, a second portion of the generated electricity, and / or at least a portion of the produced steam, and producing one or more plastics, in the plastic production plant, from the at least one petrochemical product.

[0021] The term “coupled” is defined as connected, although not necessarily directly, and not necessarily mechanically; two items that are “coupled” may be unitary with each other. The terms “a” and “an” are defined as one or more unless this disclosure explicitly requires otherwise. The term “substantially” is defined as largely but not necessarily wholly what is specified (and includes what is specified; e.g., substantially 90 degrees includes 90 degrees and substantially parallel includes parallel), as understood by a person of ordinary skill in the art. In any embodiment of the present apparatuses, kits, and methods, the term “substantially” may be substituted with “within [a percentage] of’ what is specified, where the percentage includes 0.1, 1, 5, and / or 10 percent.

[0022] The terms “comprise” (and any form of comprise, such as “comprises” and “comprising”), “have” (and any form of have, such as “has” and “having”), “include” (and any form of include, such as “includes” and “including”) and “contain” (and any form of contain, such as “contains” and “containing”) are open-ended linking verbs. As a result, an apparatus or kit that “comprises,” “has,” “includes” or “contains” one or more elements possesses those one or more elements, but is not limited to possessing only those elements. Likewise, a method that “comprises,” “has,” “includes” or “contains” one or more steps possesses those one or more steps, but is not limited to possessing only those one or more steps.

[0023] Further, an apparatus, device or system that is configured in a certain way is configured in at least that way, but it can also be configured in other ways than those specifically described.

[0024] Any embodiment of any of the present apparatuses and methods can consist of or consist essentially of - rather than comprise / include / contain / have - any of the described steps, elements, and / or features. Thus, in any of the claims, the term “consisting of’ or “consistingessentially of’ can be substituted for any of the open-ended linking verbs recited above, in order to change the scope of a given claim from what it would otherwise be using the open-ended linking verb.

[0025] The term “primarily,” as that term is used in the specification and / or claims, means greater than any of 50 wt.%, 50 mol.%, and 50 vol.%. For example, “primarily” may include 50.1 wt.% to 100 wt.% and all values and ranges there between, 50.1 mol.% to 100 mol.% and all values and ranges there between, or 50.1 vol.% to 100 vol.% and all values and ranges there between.

[0026] A disclosure of a numerical range in the specification and / or claims, is a disclosure of any range or value within the disclosed range. For example, a disclosure of a range of 1 to 10 includes ranges 1 to 5, 5 to 10, 3 to 8, 5 to 6, 5.5 to 6.4 and so on; and includes values 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 1.1 2.2, 3.3, 4.9, 5.8, 6.7, and so on.

[0027] Details associated with the embodiments described above and others are presented below.

[0028] Some details associated with the aspects of the present disclosure are described above, and others are described below. Other implementations, advantages, and features of the present disclosure will become apparent after review of the entire application, including the Brief Description of the Drawings, Detailed Description, and the Claims.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0029] The following drawings illustrate by way of example and not limitation. For the sake of brevity and clarity, every feature of a given structure is not always labeled in every figure in which that structure appears. Identical labels or reference numbers do not necessarily indicate an identical structure. Rather, the same reference number may be used to indicate a similar feature or a feature with similar functionality, as may non-identical reference numbers.

[0030] FIG. 1 depicts a schematic diagram of an example of the present nuclear-powered systems for producing petrochemicals.

[0031] FIG. 2 depicts conceptual flowchart of an example of the present methods of producing petrochemicals.

[0032] FIG. 3 depicts a schematic diagram of an example of dehydrogenation plant that may be included in the present systems.

[0033] FIG. 4 depicts a schematic diagram of an example of a steam cracking plant that may be included in the present systems.

[0034] FIG. 5 depicts a schematic diagram of an example of an electric steam methane reforming (SMR) plant that may be included in the present systems.

[0035] FIG. 6 depicts a conceptual flowchart of another example of the present methods of producing petrochemicals.

[0036] FIG. 7 depicts a schematic diagram of another example of an implementation of a nuclear powered propane dehydrogenation plant to make propylene.

[0037] FIG. 8 depicts a schematic diagram of an example of an implementation of a nuclear powered catalytic reforming plant to make aromatics.

[0038] FIG. 9 depicts a schematic diagram of an example of a power system design of a nuclear powered petrochemical production plant.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0039] According to embodiments of the disclosure, a petrochemical production plant is powered by nuclear derived thermal energy which is delivered to various production processes in several ways that comprise the following: (1) via direct heating with a nuclear heat medium, (2) via steam that is generated from thermal energy of the nuclear heat medium, and (3) via electricity that is made from a portion of the generated steam. This approach maximizes thermal efficiency in the utilization of the nuclear generated thermal energy and its subsequent modes by matching these different modes of energy to process units according to energy demands of the process units; for example, based on the temperature range required for each process.Systems for producing petrochemicals in a nuclear powered petrochemical plant

[0040] Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to FIGs. 1 and 2, FIG. 1 depicts a system 10 that is adapted to produce petrochemicals, and FIG. 2 depicts a method 20 that is adapted to producing petrochemicals and that can be implemented using system 10.

[0041] As shown in FIG. 1, system 10 comprises a nuclear reactor 100 that is adapted to carry out nuclear reactions and thereby convert nuclear energy to thermal energy. Nuclear reactor 100 can comprise one or more nuclear core reactors and / or one or more small modular reactors. Nuclear reactor 100 is adapted to heat coolant 102 to form heating medium 103 (which consists of heated coolant 102). Heating medium 103 may, for example, have a temperature in a range of from 500°C to 1000°C. In implementations, nuclear reactor 100 can be cooled by different means. For example, nuclear reactor 100 can be molten salt cooled, molten metal cooled, and / or gas cooled. In the depicted configuration, system 10 is adapted to separate heating medium 103 into a first portion 103-1 (having a first portion of generated thermal energy) and second portion 103-2 (having a second portion of generated thermal energy). In some configurations, system 10 can comprise one or more gas-gas heat exchangers adapted to transfer the thermal energy of first portion 103-1 to dehydrogenation plant 30. In some implementations, from 5% to 15% of heating medium 103 is directed to first portion 103-1, and from 85% to 95% of heating medium 103 is directed to second portion 103-2. System 10, in the depicted example, further comprises power plant 104, which is adapted to use the second portion of the generated thermal energy (thermal energy of second portion 103-2) to generate electricity 105 and produce steam 106.

[0042] System 10, as depicted in FIG. 1, includes petrochemical plant 101, which comprises one or more plants adapted to process hydrocarbons. For example, in the depicted configuration, petrochemical plant 101 includes a dehydrogenation plant 30, a cracking reactor 40, an electric SMR based hydrogen plant 50, a plastic production plant 115 (e.g., for polyethylene production), a polypropylene production plant 112, an ethylene oxide / ethylene glycol production plant 118, and a separator 111. FIG. 1 also depicts how various production processes of petrochemical plant 101 can be configured to utilize energy from nuclear reactor 100 via first portion 103-1 of heating medium 103, electricity 105, and steam 106, as well as how various components of product streams can be routed to production plants as fuel and / or process feed material so as to operate the various plants in a manner that minimizes the carbon footprint of petrochemical plant 101 overall (where some components might otherwise becoming greenhouse gases). It should be noted that although system 10 is described as including a polyethylene and a polypropylene plant, certain implementations may include other or additional plastic plants. Further, although system 10 is disclosed as including dehydrogenation plant 30 for producing propylene it shouldbe noted that system 10 can include other dehydrogenation plants for producing other olefins or aromatics. Thus, the dehydrogenation plants in some implementations can be configured to produce one or more of an olefin, an aromatic, propylene, butylenes, butadiene, isobutylene, benzene, toluene, xylene, and hydrogen.

[0043] Dehydrogenation plant 30 is adapted to dehydrogenate hydrocarbons such as alkanes. In the example of FIG. 3, dehydrogenation plant 30 is adapted to dehydrogenate propane present in first hydrocarbon feed 300 to produce first product stream 304, which comprises propylene. Dehydrogenation, as the name suggests, involves the removal of hydrogen atoms from a compound. In the dehydrogenation of propane, hydrogen is removed from propane to form propylene according to the following reaction:C3H8^ C3H6+ H2

[0044] The dehydrogenation reaction of propane to form propylene is typically carried out in the presence of a catalyst in dehydrogenation reactors. The effluent from the dehydrogenation reactors include primarily propylene (C3H6, the main product), propane (C3H8, unreacted portion of the propane feed that may be recycled back to the dehydrogenation reactor in a further attempt to dehydrogenate it to produce propylene), hydrogen (H2, the main byproduct resulting from the dehydrogenation reaction), and often a small methane byproduct stream. Both propylene and hydrogen are valuable components of the dehydrogenation reactor effluent. For example, hydrogen is an energy carrier, and can be used as fuel or as raw material to make products such as ammonia.

[0045] In the example shown in FIG. 3, propane comprised in first hydrocarbon feed 300 is provided to dehydrogenation reactor 301, which, for example, may comprise one or more fixed bed reactors. Dehydrogenation reactor 301 dehydrogenates propane to form a dehydrogenation reactor effluent 302, which comprises propylene, hydrogen, unreacted propane, and often a small amount of methane. Dehydrogenation reactor effluent 302 can then be separated by product splitter 303 to form first product stream 304 (comprising primarily propylene), propane stream 305 comprising primarily propane, first hydrogen stream 306, and first methane stream 307. Propane stream 305 can be recirculated to dehydrogenation reactor 301 for further processing. It should be noted that other designs of dehydrogenation plant 30 can be used in the present systems.

[0046] Cracking reactor 40, in the depicted example, is adapted to process alkanes in second hydrocarbon feed 400 to produce second product stream 408, which comprises olefins. Referring to FIG. 4, shown there is a block flow diagram of an example of a generalized steam cracking plant or process, which includes one or more of the following process sections for converting second hydrocarbon feed 400 into a desired olefin product stream (second product stream 408): a feed pretreatment section 401, a pyrolysis reaction section 403, a primary fractionation and compression section 405, a product fractionation (separation) and compression section 407, or a combination thereof. Such sections will be described briefly in the next few paragraphs, and in more detail hereinbelow.

[0047] Feed pretreatment section 401 can be configured to adjust the pressure of second hydrocarbon feed 400, possibly remove undesirable components (e.g., carbon dioxide (CO2), mercury, water) from a feed, combine an incoming feed with a stored feed to minimize variations in the feed to the pyrolysis reaction section 403, and / or preheat the second hydrocarbon feed 400, to provide a pretreated feed stream 402.

[0048] Pyrolysis reaction section 403 can comprise at least one steam cracker or ‘pyrolysis’ furnace configured to crack hydrocarbons in the presence of steam to produce a cracked gas stream and a transfer line exchanger (TLE) or other heat transfer device to quench (and optionally harvest heat from) the cracked gas stream to provide a cooled cracked gas stream 404. Conventionally, the furnaces of a steam cracking plant create a high temperature environment by the combustion of fuels that are at least in part carbon based, such as methane, which produces carbon dioxide emissions from a conventional steam cracking plant / process. However, in the present systems, the furnace can be fired, in some implementations, exclusively by hydrogen (from various sources) thus completely decarbonizing the furnace whist introducing a minimum of design and operational changes.

[0049] The primary fractionation and compression section 405 can be configured to provide further heat recovery from and quenching of the cooled cracked gas stream 404, remove one or more components (e.g., fuel oil, hydrogen sulfide, carbon dioxide, water, or a combination thereof) from the cooled cracked gas stream 404, and / or compress the cooled cracked gas stream 404, thus providing a compressed cracked gas stream 406.

[0050] The product fractionation or separation section 407 can be configured to fractionate the compressed cracked gas stream 406, selectively hydrogenate one or more streams produced during the fractionation, and provide one or more olefin (e.g., ethylene, propylene) in second product stream 408. The product fractionation or separation section 407 may also provide one or more byproduct streams 409, such as, without limitation, a Ci stream, a C2 saturate stream, a C3 saturate stream, a C4 saturate stream, an acetylene stream, a butadiene stream, a 1-butene stream, an isobutylene stream, an aromatics stream, a hydrogen stream, a pyrolysis gasoline stream, and / or a fuel oil stream, or streams comprising a combination of these components. Some of these streams may be recycled to one or more sections of the steam cracking plant. For example, without limitation, the C2, C3, and / or C4 saturates streams may be recycled to one or more of the pyrolysis furnaces of the pyrolysis reaction section 403, hydrogen may be purified (e.g., via a pressure swing adsorption unit (PSA) and a methanation reactor to remove CO) and recycled to a hydrogenation reactor (e.g., a C2, C3, acetylene, or di-olefin hydrogenator) and / or utilized as a fuel source (e.g., via fuel cell or by simple combustion). Combusting hydrogen in this way contributes to the decarbonization of the cracking process. The Ci stream may be used as a chemical feedstock (e.g. for methanol production in a methanol plant) and can be used indirectly as a fuel by feeding it to an electric SMR based hydrogen plant 50, which produces second hydrogen stream 501 that can be burnt and byproduct CO2 506, which can be sequestered or used as raw material. Significantly, byproduct CO2 506 from electric SMR based hydrogen plant 50 is easier and cheaper to capture and sequester as compared with the capture of flue gas CO2 as done in conventional processes. It should be noted that other designs of cracking reactor 40 can be used in the present systems.

[0051] The electric SMR based hydrogen plant 50, in the present systems, is adapted to use generated electricity 105 to power the electric SMR furnace 507, which is central to the hydrogen (H2) process. This produced hydrogen can be provided to cracking reactor 40, which is adapted to burn the produced hydrogen, according to embodiments of the disclosure, and thereby provide heat for processing second hydrocarbon feed 400 to produce second product stream 408, which comprises olefins. Referring to FIG. 5 shown there is a block diagram of electric SMR based hydrogen plant 50 configured for steam methane reforming. As shown in FIG. 5, electric SMR based hydrogen plant 50 comprises electric SMR furnace 507, water gas shift reactors 508, and separator 504. Electric SMR furnace 507 can be a radiative, impedanceheated, induction heated, synthetic flames, etc. As depicted in FIG. 1, electric SMR furnace 507 generally includes a fluid inlet 5000 (for third hydrocarbon feed 500) and a fluid outlet 5001 (for electric furnace effluent 502, which comprises synthesis gas (CO and H2), H2O, and unreacted CH4). Electric furnace effluent 502 is provided to one or more water gas shift reactors 508 where CO and H2O are reacted to form CO2 and additional H2. Thus, water gas shift reactors effluent 503 comprises CO2, H2, and unreacted CEE. Water gas shift reactors effluent 503 is provided to separator 504 (e.g., a distillation column), where it is separated into second hydrogen stream 501, unreacted CEE stream 505, and byproduct CO2 506.

[0052] In the example depicted in FIG. 1, petrochemical plant 101 comprises polypropylene production plant 112, which is adapted to process first product stream 304, comprising primarily propylene to produce polypropylene. In the depicted example, petrochemical plant 101 comprises plastic production plant 115 and / or ethylene oxide / ethylene glycol production plant 118. Plastic production plant 115 can be adapted to process at least a portion of fourth hydrocarbon feed 116, which comprises ethylene, to produce fifth product stream 117, which comprises polyethylene. Ethylene oxide / ethylene glycol production plant 118 can be adapted to process at least a portion of fourth hydrocarbon feed 116, which comprises ethylene, to produce sixth product stream 119, which comprises ethylene oxide or ethylene glycol. In the depicted example, petrochemical plant 101 comprises product splitter 303 and separator 111, which are adapted to separate chemical streams into components. Product splitter 303 and separator 111 can comprise, for example, any combination of one or more distillation column(s), cold box(es), a PSA(s), or other unit operations well known to those skilled in the art for affecting the desired separation.Methods for producing petrochemicals in a nuclear powered petrochemical plant

[0053] In the exemplary process depicted in FIG. 2, method 20 comprises, at block 200, generating thermal energy by nuclear reaction (e.g., in nuclear reactor 100), for example, where a nuclear core reactor causes a nuclear reaction that generates thermal energy. This thermal energy can then be transferred to coolant 102 and thereby form heat medium 103 (which consists of heated coolant 102) at a temperature in a range of from 500°C to 1000°C. Block 201, of method 20, can involve providing a first portion of the generated thermal energy to a first processing unit, for example by separating heating medium 103 into first portion 103-1 andsecond portion 103-2, and providing first portion 103-1 to dehydrogenation plant 30. In the depicted example, one or more gas-gas heat exchangers transfers the thermal energy of first portion 103-1 to dehydrogenation plant 30. Method 20 can include, at block 202, processing first hydrocarbon feed 300, which comprises one or more alkanes to produce one or more olefins and / or one or more aromatics. For example, block 202 can include processing dehydrogenation plant 30 first hydrocarbon feed 300, comprising propane, to produce propylene and hydrogen comprised in first product stream 304. Certain implementations can include other dehydrogenation plants that can produce other olefin or aromatic, plus a hydrogen byproduct. The olefins can comprise propylene, butadiene, and isobutylene; and the aromatics can comprise benzene, toluene, and xylene. In some implementations, the process conditions for the processing of first hydrocarbon feed 300 in dehydrogenation plant 30 includes a temperature in a range of from 400°C to 650°C (e.g., from 450°C to 600°C, from 500°C to 600°C, from 400°C to 550°C, from 400°C to 450°C, from 450°C to 500°C, from 500°C to 550°C, from 550°C to 600°C, or from 600°C to 650°C).

[0054] In the depicted example, block 203 of method 20 involves providing a second portion of the generated thermal energy to a power plant, for example, by flowing second portion 103-2 of heating medium 103 to power plant 104. And, at block 204, power plant 104 can use the second portion of the generated thermal energy to generate electricity 105 and produce steam 106. The temperature and pressure of steam 106 can vary depending on the temperature of the nuclear heat and the needs of the downstream processes. In some cases, it can be superheated steam at 1,600 PSIG to 2,500 PSIG, which can be used to do shaft work to turn compressor and pumps and can be used for various heating needs throughout petrochemical plant 101. Method 20 can include, at block 205, producing hydrogen in the electric SMR based hydrogen plant 50 using generated electricity 105 as an energy source. And method 20 can further involve, at block 206, burning hydrogen from various sources (the dehydrogenation plant, the cracking plant, and / or the hydrogen plant) to thereby provide thermal energy to a second processing unit, such as cracking reactor 40.

[0055] In the depicted example, block 207 includes processing second hydrocarbon feed 400, in cracking reactor 40, to produce one or more of the petrochemical products. For example, block 207 can include processing in cracking reactor 40 second hydrocarbon feed 400 that comprises alkanes, condensate, LPG, naphtha, and gas oil; and the one or more petrochemicalproducts comprise a product selected from the group of products consisting of: an olefin, one or more olefins, like ethylene, propylene, and butylenes, aromatics, like benzene, toluene, and xylene, heavier byproducts pyrolysis gas (PyGas) and pyrolysis oil (PyOil), hydrogen, and methane. In some implementations, the process conditions for the processing of second hydrocarbon feed 400 in the cracking reactor 40 includes a temperature in a range of from 500°C to 900°C, including ranges of 500°C to 550°C, 550°C to 600°C, 600°C to 650°C, 650°C to 700°C, 700°C to 750°C, 750° to 800°C, 800°C to 850°C, and 850° to 900°C.

[0056] In the depicted example of method 20, block 208 includes providing generated thermal energy (via first portion 103-1 of heating medium 103), generated electricity 105, and / or produced steam 106 to plastic production plant 115, which processes the one or more olefins to produce one or more plastics. The one or more plastics can, for example, comprise polyethylene and / or polypropylene. In block 209, includes processing a portion of the one or more petrochemical products (for example methane from cracking reactor 40 that is comprised in third hydrocarbon feed 500) in the electric SMR based hydrogen plant 50 to produce a second hydrogen stream 501, which comprises hydrogen. The produced hydrogen can be used for fuel (for example in the cracking plant) or as a raw material to make, for example, ammonia (in an ammonia plant).

[0057] FIG. 6 shows a method 60 and depicts how various product streams are routed to serve as raw materials and / or fuel in various processes so as to reduce the overall carbon footprint of petrochemical plant 101. Method 60, in the depicted example and as implemented using system 10, includes, at block 600, processing first hydrocarbon feed 300 in dehydrogenation plant 30 to produce dehydrogenation reactor effluent 302. At block 601, method 60 includes separating, at product splitter 303, dehydrogenation reactor effluent 302 into (a) first methane stream 307, comprising primarily methane; (b) first product stream 304, comprising primarily propylene; and (c) first hydrogen stream 306, comprising primarily hydrogen. Method 60 can involve at block 602, providing first hydrogen stream 306 to be burned as fuel to heat the cracking reactor 40, providing first product stream 304 to polypropylene production plant 112, and providing first methane stream 307 to electric SMR based hydrogen plant 50 to be processed to produce hydrogen.

[0058] At block 603, method 60 can involve electric SMR based hydrogen plant 50 receiving generated electricity 105 and using it to process third hydrocarbon feed 500 to produce second hydrogen stream 501. The amount of methane flowing from cracking reactor 40 to electric SMR based hydrogen plant 50 depends on the feed slate making up second hydrocarbon feed 400 and can vary from <5% for ethane, about 20% for LPG, and about 15% for naphtha. Thus, the second hydrocarbon feed slate to cracking reactor 40 can determine the amount of hydrogen produced in the electric SMR based hydrogen plant 50. If the produced hydrogen falls short of the heating needs at the cracking plant or if additional hydrogen is needed as a raw material, additional methane can be added to the feed to electric SMR based hydrogen plant 50 via additional CP stream 509. If hydrogen is in excess, it can be used as a raw material elsewhere (for example, to make ammonia in an ammonia plant). It should be noted that light stream 108, which comprises various light hydrocarbon vent streams (e.g., those with four carbon atoms and or below), can also be routed to electric SMR based hydrogen plant 50 for processing.

[0059] At block 604, second hydrogen stream 501 from electric SMR based hydrogen plant 50 is separated into a first hydrogen portion 501-1 and a second hydrogen portion 501-2. First hydrogen portion 501-1 of second hydrogen stream 501 is conveyed to cracking reactor 40, to be burned as fuel along with first hydrogen stream 306 to provide thermal energy for processing second hydrocarbon feed 400 to produce second product stream 408. Second hydrogen portion of 501-2 of second hydrogen stream 501 can be conveyed as excess to storage, effectively storage of energy since hydrogen is considered a carrier of energy, for offtake and / or sale as fuel, for producing ammonia in an ammonia plant and then urea in a process that can also consume a portion of byproduct carbon dioxide formed in petrochemical plant 101 (and thereby further reduce the carbon dioxide that may otherwise become a greenhouse gas or go to sequestration), for producing methanol in a methanol plant, for processing in a gas to liquids plant, and / or for processing in any plant that converts carbon dioxide to other products. Method 60 can also include, at block 605, separating a second product stream 408 into a third hydrocarbon feed 500, comprising primarily methane; a third hydrogen stream 107, comprising primarily hydrogen; and a fourth hydrocarbon feed 116, comprising primarily ethylene. In the depicted example, block 606 includes flowing third hydrocarbon feed 500 to electric SMR based hydrogen plant 50 for processing to produce hydrogen. In the depicted example, block 607 involves flowing fourth hydrocarbon feed 116 to plastic production plant 115 for processing to produce fifth productstream 117. Method 60 can include, at block 608, flowing third hydrogen stream 107 to cracking reactor 40 to be burned as fuel with first hydrogen stream 306 and first hydrogen portion 501-1 of second hydrogen stream 501 to provide thermal energy for cracking reactor 40 to produce second product stream 408.

[0060] The use of various hydrogen streams (first hydrogen stream 306, first hydrogen portion 501-1, and third hydrogen stream 107) as fuel in cracking reactor 40 has a positive effect on the carbon footprint of operating petrochemical plant 101. Likewise, routing methane from cracking reactor 40 as third hydrocarbon feed 500 to electric SMR based hydrogen plant 50 utilizes this byproduct in petrochemical plant 101 instead of, in some scenarios, burning it, which produces carbon emissions and thus the current method positively affects the carbon footprint of petrochemical plant 101 as compared with conventional methods. Moreover, powering with nuclear-derived energy the following equipment: (1) dehydrogenation plant 30 (which produces methane processed in electric SMR based hydrogen plant 50), (2) cracking reactor 40 (which produces methane processed in electric SMR based hydrogen plant 50), and (3) electric SMR based hydrogen plant 50 (which produces some of the hydrogen used as fuel in cracking reactor 40), compounds the decarbonization effect of the above described relationships of routing raw materials and fuel.

[0061] FIG. 7 depicts an example of an implementation of a nuclear powered petrochemical production plant, specifically a nuclear powered propane dehydrogenation plant 70. As shown in FIG. 7, nuclear powered propane dehydrogenation plant 70 includes nuclear reactor 100, return gas stream 700, hot gas stream 701, first gas-gas heat exchanger 703-1, second gas-gas heat exchanger 703-2, third gas-gas heat exchanger 703-3; first dehydrogenation reactor 704-1, second dehydrogenation reactor 704-2, third dehydrogenation reactor 704-3, and separator 706. In this example, nuclear reactor 100 is adapted to produce thermal energy and to transfer that thermal energy to return gas stream 700 having a temperature in a range of from 600°C to 700°C and thereby form hot gas stream 701 having a temperature in a range of from 700°C to 900°C. It should be noted that in certain implementations, return gas stream 700 stream and hot gas stream 701 may be at higher temperatures or lower temperatures, depending on operating parameters of the nuclear reactor 100. Hot gas stream 701 is used to heat one or more propane feeds comprising propane, in the depicted example a first propane feed 702-1, a second propane feed 702-2, and a third propane feed 702-3. In at least some implementations, each feed is heated to atemperature of at least 650°C by the heat exchangers. The dehydrogenation reactors — first dehydrogenation reactor 704-1, second dehydrogenation reactor 704-2, and third dehydrogenation reactor 704-3 — are adapted to dehydrogenate propane to form propylene and, thus, a relative proportion of propane will decrease and a relative proportion of propylene will increase as processing of the feed proceeds from first propane feed 702-1, to second propane feed 702-2, and to third propane feed 702-3. The dehydrogenation reaction that occurs in the dehydrogenation reactors is endothermic and equilibrium limited. As a result, the temperature will drop across each reactor and the reaction will slow, so heat is added in between the reactors to keep the reaction proceeding. A sufficiently high temperature is required to achieve a reasonable conversion (z.e., propylene is favored by the reaction equilibrium at high temperatures). Separator 706, which can comprise one or more distillation columns, is adapted to separate intermediate product stream 705 into first separator product stream 707, which comprises methane and light hydrocarbons; second separator product stream 708, which comprises propylene, third product stream 709, which comprises hydrogen, which can be used as fuel; and fourth product stream 710, which comprises unreacted propane that can be recycled back to the feed.

[0062] FIG. 8 depicts an example of an implementation of a nuclear powered petrochemical production plant, a nuclear powered reforming plant 80 for aromatics. As shown in FIG. 8, nuclear powered reforming plant 80 includes nuclear reactor 100, return salt 800, hot salt 801, first heat exchanger 803-1, second heat exchanger 803-2, third heat exchanger 803-3; first aromatization reactor 804-1, second aromatization reactor 804-2, and third aromatization reactor 804-3. According to this implementation of the disclosure, nuclear reactor 100 is adapted to produce thermal energy and to transfer that thermal energy to return salt 800 having a temperature in a range of from 500°C to 650°C and thereby form hot salt 801 having a temperature in a range of 550°C to 900°C. Hot salt 801 is used to heat one or more feeds — first reformer feed 802-1, second reformer feed 802-2, and third reformer feed 802-3 — all comprising light naphtha or components thereof. In at least some implementations, each feed is heated to a temperature of at least 500°C by the heat exchangers. Similar to the process described with respect to nuclear powered propane dehydrogenation plant 70, the aromatization reaction is endothermic and equilibrium limited. The temperature drops across each reactor so interstage heating is required to provide the heat of reaction and maintain a high temperature for goodconversion. The aromatization reactors — first aromatization reactor 804-1, second aromatization reactor 804-2, and third aromatization reactor 804-3 — are adapted to process the components of light naphtha to form aromatics and thus the relative proportion of light naphtha components will decrease and the relative proportion of aromatics will increase as processing proceeds from first aromatization reactor 804-1, to second aromatization reactor 804-2, and to third aromatization reactor 804-3. Reformed effluent 805 from third aromatization reactor 804-3 comprises (a) one or more aromatics such as benzene, toluene, and xylene; (b) a hydrogen byproduct; and (c) unreactive hydrocarbons. As depicted in FIG. 8, reformed effluent 805 is separated by separator 806 into hydrogen byproduct stream 807, methane byproduct stream 808, and aromatics rich hydrocarbon stream 809.

[0063] FIG. 9 depicts system 90, an example of a power system design of a nuclear powered petrochemical production plant. As shown in FIG. 9, system 90 includes nuclear reactor 100, propane dehydrogenation plant 901, SHP boiler 908, MP / LP Boiler 902, turbine 903, condenser 904; preheat heat exchanger 905, steam methane reforming plant 906, and equipment for utilities to distribute heat and electricity to the various process units 907. FIG. 9 shows the power generated or consumed by each of the components of system 90. The precise configuration of the power cycle can be optimized by those skilled in the art.

[0064] Although certain exemplary implementations of the present processes have been described with reference to blocks / steps of FIG. 2 and FIG. 6, it should be appreciated that operation of the systems is not limited to the particular steps or the particular order of the steps illustrated in FIG. 2 and FIG. 6. Accordingly, variations of the present processes may provide functionality as described herein using various blocks / steps, including those not depicted in and / or in a sequence different than that of FIG. 2 and FIG. 6.* * *

[0065] The above specification and examples provide a complete description of the structure and use of exemplary embodiments. Although certain embodiments have been described above with a certain degree of particularity, or with reference to one or more individual embodiments, those skilled in the art could make numerous alterations to the disclosed embodiments without departing from the scope of this invention. As such, the various illustrative embodiments of the present devices are not intended to be limited to the particular forms disclosed. Rather, theyinclude all modifications and alternatives falling within the scope of the claims, and embodiments other than the one shown may include some or all of the features of the depicted embodiment. For example, components may be combined as a unitary structure, and / or connections may be substituted. Further, where appropriate, aspects of any of the examples described above may be combined with aspects of any of the other examples described to form further examples having comparable or different properties and addressing the same or different problems. Similarly, it will be understood that the benefits and advantages described above may relate to one embodiment or may relate to several embodiments.

[0066] The claims are not intended to include, and should not be interpreted to include, means-plus- or step-plus-function limitations, unless such a limitation is explicitly recited in a given claim using the phrase(s) “means for” or “step for,” respectively.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A system for producing one or more petrochemical products, the system comprising: a nuclear reactor configured to generate thermal energy; a dehydrogenation plant adapted to use a first portion of the generated thermal energy to add thermal energy to a dehydrogenation reaction for removing hydrogen from a first hydrocarbon feedstock to produce one or more of the petrochemical products; a power plant adapted to use a second portion of the generated thermal energy to generate electricity and produce steam; an electric steam methane reforming (SMR) based hydrogen plant adapted to receive and be powered by at least a first portion of the generated electricity to produce hydrogen; and a cracking reactor adapted to process a second hydrocarbon feedstock to produce one or more of the petrochemical products, the cracking reactor adapted to receive and burn hydrogen from at least one source selected from the list of hydrogen sources consisting of: the SMR based hydrogen plant, the dehydrogenation plant, and the cracking reactor.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more petrochemical products comprise a product selected from the group of products consisting of: an olefin, an aromatic, propylene, butadiene, isobutylene, benzene, toluene, xylene, and hydrogen.

3. The system of any of claims 1 and 2, wherein the second hydrocarbon feedstock comprises one or more elements selected from the list of elements consisting of: alkanes, condensate, LPG, naphtha, and gas oil; and the one or more petrochemical products comprise a product selected from the group of products consisting of: one or more olefins, ethylene, propylene, butylenes, aromatics, benzene, toluene, and xylene, pyrolysis gas (PyGas) and pyrolysis oil (PyOil), hydrogen, and methane.

4. The system of any of claims 1 to 3, further comprising: a plastic production plant adapted to use at least one of the petrochemical product(s) from the cracking reactor, a third portion of the thermal energy, a second portion of the generated electricity, and / or at least a portion of the produced steam to produce one or more plastics.

5. The system of any of claims 1 to 4, wherein the nuclear reactor is adapted to be cooled by gas.

6. The system of any of claims 1 to 4, wherein the nuclear reactor is adapted to be cooled by a molten salt or a molten metal.

7. The system of any of claims 1 to 6, further comprising: a gas / gas heat exchanger adapted to transfer the first portion of the generated thermal energy to the dehydrogenation plant.

8. The system of any of claims 1 to 7, wherein hydrogen of the one or more petrochemical products from the dehydrogenation plant is used as fuel to deliver thermal energy by combustion.

9. The system of any of claims 1 to 8, wherein the SMR based hydrogen plant is configured so that CO2 made by reforming in the SMR based hydrogen plant is sequestered or used as raw material.

10. The system of any of claims 1 to 9, wherein a feed to the SMR based hydrogen plant is, at least in part, comprised of methane byproduct from the cracking reactor.

11. The system of any of claims 1 to 10, wherein the electric steam methane reforming (SMR) based hydrogen plant is adapted to provide at least some of the produced hydrogen to one or more of the group consisting of: the cracking reactor for use as fuel, an ammonia plant for making ammonia, to a methanol plant for making methanol, to a gas to liquids plant, and to a plant that converts carbon dioxide to other products.

12. A method of producing petrochemical products, the method comprising: using in a dehydrogenation plant a first portion of thermal energy generated by a nuclear reaction to add thermal energy to a dehydrogenation reaction for removing hydrogen from a first hydrocarbon feedstock to produce one or more of the petrochemical products; using in a power plant a second portion of the thermal energy to generate electricity and produce steam; powering with at least a portion of the generated electricity an electric steam methane reforming (SMR) based hydrogen plant to generate hydrogen; and processing a second hydrocarbon feedstock in a cracking reactor to produce one or more of the petrochemical products, where thermal energy is added to a cracking reaction in the cracking reactor by burning hydrogen from at least one source selected from the list of hydrogen sources consisting of: the SMR based hydrogen plant, the dehydrogenation plant, and the cracking reactor.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the removing of hydrogen from the first hydrocarbon feedstock is a dehydrogenation reaction that produces H2 and one or more petrochemical products selected from: an aromatic, propylene, butadiene, isobutylene, benzene, toluene, xylene, and hydrogen.

14. The method of any of claims 12 and 13, wherein the second hydrocarbon feedstock comprises one or more elements selected from the list of elements consisting of: alkanes, condensate, LPG, naphtha, or gas oil; and the one or more petrochemical products comprise a product selected from the group of products consisting of: olefins, ethylene, propylene, and butylenes; aromatics, benzene, toluene, and xylene; pyrolysis gas (PyGas), and pyrolysis oil (PyOil).

15. The method of any of claims 12 to 14, further comprising: providing to a plastic production plant: at least one of the petrochemical product(s) from the cracking reactor; a second portion of the generated electricity, and / or at least a portion of the produced steam; andproducing one or more plastics, in the plastic production plant, from the at least one petrochemical product.

Images