Plant and hydrogen production method

Abstract

To provide a new technology for producing hydrogen from an organic hydride.SOLUTION: A plant 1 comprises a reforming raw material oil tank 8 for storing a reforming raw material oil, an organic hydride tank 16 for storing an organic hydride, and a catalytic reforming device 10 in which the reforming raw material oil in the reforming raw material oil tank 8 and the organic hydride in the organic hydride tank 16 are directly or indirectly supplied to produce a reformed product, a dehydrogenated product of the organic hydride, and hydrogen from the reforming raw material oil and the organic hydride by catalytic reaction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a plant and a method for producing hydrogen. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, organic hydrides have attracted attention as an energy carrier for large-scale transport and storage of hydrogen. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a hydrogen transport and storage system in which an aromatic compound is hydrogenated to produce an organic hydride, the produced organic hydride is transported to a dehydrogenation reactor, and the organic hydride is dehydrogenated in the dehydrogenation reactor to extract hydrogen. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-269522 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In conventional hydrogen transport and storage systems, a dedicated dehydrogenation reactor is used to extract hydrogen from organic hydrides, i.e., to produce hydrogen. However, after extensive research, the inventors have discovered a new technology for producing hydrogen from organic hydrides without using a dedicated dehydrogenation reactor.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a new technology for producing hydrogen from an organic hydride. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] One embodiment of the present invention is a plant comprising: a reformer feedstock tank for storing reformate feedstock, an organic hydride tank for storing organic hydride, and a catalytic reforming unit that receives the reformate feedstock in the reformer feedstock tank and the organic hydride in the organic hydride tank directly or indirectly and produces a reformate, a dehydrogenated organic hydride, and hydrogen from the reformate feedstock and the organic hydride through a catalytic reaction.

[0007] Another aspect of the present invention is a method for producing hydrogen, which includes directly or indirectly supplying an organic hydride to a catalytic reformer for reforming feedstock, and producing hydrogen by dehydrogenating the organic hydride through a catalytic reaction in the catalytic reformer.

[0008] Any combination of the above components, and conversion of the expression of the present disclosure into a method, device, system, etc., are also valid aspects of the present disclosure. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present invention, a new technique for producing hydrogen from an organic hydride can be provided. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram of a plant according to an embodiment; [Figure 2] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of a plant according to a modified example. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] The present invention will be described below based on preferred embodiments with reference to the drawings. The embodiments are illustrative and do not limit the invention, and all features and combinations thereof described in the embodiments are not necessarily essential to the invention. Identical or equivalent components, parts, and processes shown in each drawing are designated by the same reference numerals, and redundant description will be omitted where appropriate. The scale and shape of each part shown in each drawing are set for convenience to facilitate explanation and should not be interpreted as limiting unless otherwise specified. Furthermore, when terms such as "first" and "second" are used in this specification or claims, these terms do not indicate any order or importance, but are intended to distinguish one configuration from another. Furthermore, some components that are not important for explaining the embodiments are omitted from each drawing.

[0012] The inventors of the present invention have been exploring the possibility of using existing facilities instead of dedicated dehydrogenation reactors as a method for producing hydrogen from organic hydrides, and have come up with the idea of ​​using a catalytic reforming unit at an oil refinery. In the oil refining process, a catalytic reforming unit reforms feedstock such as naphtha to produce reformates such as high-octane reformed gasoline.

[0013] More specifically, in the catalytic reformer, cyclodehydrogenation of paraffins and dehydrogenation of naphthenes contained in the reformate feedstock occur. This produces a reformate containing reformate rich in aromatic compounds such as benzene, toluene, and xylene (so-called BTX), and hydrogen as a by-product. Therefore, by using the catalytic reformer, it is possible to carry out the dehydrogenation of organic hydrides while reforming the reformate feedstock.

[0014] Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of a plant 1 according to an embodiment. The plant 1 of this embodiment is an oil refinery plant, and includes a crude oil tank 2, an atmospheric distillation unit 4, a hydrodesulfurization unit 6, a reforming feedstock oil tank 8, a catalytic reforming unit 10, a hydrogen utilization unit 12, and a hydrogen production unit 14. Depending on the scale of the refinery, it is possible to omit some of the equipment and add other equipment. These pieces of equipment included in the plant 1 are well known, and therefore detailed explanations will be omitted where appropriate.

[0015] Crude oil is stored in the crude oil tank 2. The crude oil in the crude oil tank 2 is subjected to processes such as desalting, dehydration, and solids removal, heated to a predetermined temperature, and supplied to the atmospheric distillation unit 4. The atmospheric distillation unit 4 separates the supplied crude oil into fractions such as off-gas, LPG, naphtha, kerosene, light oil, and heavy oil. The naphtha fractionated in the atmospheric distillation unit 4 is supplied to the hydrodesulfurization unit 6. The naphtha supplied to the hydrodesulfurization unit 6 is mainly heavy naphtha.

[0016] The hydrodesulfurization unit 6 performs desulfurization treatment on the naphtha. The desulfurization treatment is carried out, for example, in the presence of hydrogen, at a reaction temperature of 280 to 350°C, a hydrogen partial pressure of 0.5 to 10 MPaG, and a liquid hourly space velocity (LHSV) of 1.0 to 8.0 h -1 For example, naphtha is brought into contact with a hydrotreating catalyst under reaction conditions of a hydrogen / oil ratio of 10 to 150 NL / L. The desulfurized naphtha is stored in a reforming feedstock tank 8 as a reforming feedstock.

[0017] The reformate feedstock stored in the reformate feedstock tank 8 may also contain catalytically cracked gasoline (CCG). Catalytically cracked gasoline includes light catalytically cracked gasoline with a boiling point range of approximately 30 to 100°C and heavy catalytically cracked gasoline with a boiling point range of approximately 100 to 200°C. Catalytically cracked gasoline can be produced, for example, by a fluid catalytic cracking unit connected to the atmospheric distillation unit 4 and supplied to the reformate feedstock tank 8. The method for producing catalytically cracked gasoline is not particularly limited, and known catalytic cracking units, feedstocks, operating conditions, etc. can be used. One example is a method of producing catalytically cracked gasoline by catalytically cracking petroleum fractions ranging from diesel to vacuum diesel, intermediately desulfurized diesel obtained from a heavy oil indirect desulfurization unit, directly desulfurized heavy oil obtained from a heavy oil direct desulfurization unit, atmospheric residue, etc., using a catalyst such as amorphous silica alumina or zeolite. Note that only catalytically cracked gasoline may be used as the reformate feedstock.

[0018] The reformate feedstock oil in the reformate feedstock tank 8 is supplied to the catalytic reformer 10. In this embodiment, the reformate feedstock oil is supplied directly to the catalytic reformer 10, i.e., without passing through other processing equipment. The reformate feedstock oil may also be supplied indirectly to the catalytic reformer 10, i.e., via other processing equipment. The catalytic reformer 10 subjects the reformate feedstock oil to a reforming process to produce reformates, hydrogen, and the like. The catalytic reformer 10 has a platinum-alumina catalyst or a bimetallic alumina catalyst in which a second metal such as rhenium, germanium, tin, or iridium is added to platinum. The reaction temperature in the reforming process is preferably 400 to 600°C, more preferably 450 to 550°C. The LHSV (liquid hourly space velocity) is preferably 0.5 to 5 h -1 , more preferably 1 to 2 hours -1 The reaction pressure is preferably 0.1 to 2 MPa, more preferably 0.2 to 1.5 MPa. The hydrogen / oil ratio (molar ratio) is preferably 0.5 to 10, more preferably 1 to 5. There are no particular limitations on the operating conditions of the catalytic reformer 10 and the type of catalyst.

[0019] The reformate produced in the catalytic reforming unit 10 contains aromatic compounds such as BTX. The reformate is used as a high-octane gasoline base material (reformed gasoline) or a chemical feedstock (aromatic compounds such as BTX) either directly or after a separation process. Furthermore, some of the aromatic compounds can also be used as a feedstock for organic hydrides, which will be described later.

[0020] The hydrogen produced in the catalytic reforming unit 10 is supplied to the hydrogen utilization unit 12. The hydrogen utilization unit 12 includes a hydrorefining unit, a hydrocracking unit, and the like. The hydrorefining unit includes a unit that removes impurities such as sulfur, nitrogen, and oxygen from the base material used in petroleum products. The base material may be naphtha, kerosene, diesel, or the like separated in the atmospheric distillation unit 4. In other words, the hydrogen utilization unit 12 may also include the hydrodesulfurization unit 6.

[0021] The hydrorefining unit may also include a unit for saturating unnecessary unsaturated hydrocarbons contained in the base material of a petroleum product to stabilize the properties of the base material, a unit for hydrogenating compounds other than the base material of a petroleum product, etc. The hydrocracking unit may include a unit for hydrocracking the heavy fraction separated in the atmospheric distillation unit 4 to convert it into light fractions, etc.

[0022] The hydrogen utilization device 12 may be provided outside the plant 1. Furthermore, the hydrogen produced in the catalytic reformer 10 may be used for hydrogen power generation or supplied to a hydrogen station. In other words, the hydrogen utilization device 12 may be a hydrogen power generation device, a hydrogen station, or the like. A hydrogen station is a facility that supplies hydrogen to fuel cell vehicles and the like that use hydrogen as fuel. When the hydrogen produced in the catalytic reformer 10 is supplied to a hydrogen station, the hydrogen obtained from the catalytic reformer 10 may be purified according to the required purity of hydrogen.

[0023] In addition, a portion of the hydrogen produced in the catalytic reformer 10 can be used in the catalytic reformer 10. The catalytic reforming reaction is a dehydrogenation reaction. Therefore, a low hydrogen partial pressure is advantageous for the progress of the reaction. However, by supplying hydrogen to the catalytic reformer 10, it is possible to suppress the deposition of coke on the reforming catalyst and prevent the catalyst from being deactivated. Note that fractions other than naphtha produced in the atmospheric distillation unit 4 are also subjected to various refining processes, including desulfurization, as necessary, and used as products as they are or as raw materials for other products (including reforming feedstock). In addition, as in the production of gasoline, multiple fractions (including those that have been subjected to refining processes, etc.) may be mixed to produce products with desired properties.

[0024] The hydrogen utilization device 12 is supplied with hydrogen not only from the catalytic reformer 10 but also from the hydrogen production device 14. The hydrogen production device 14 is supplied with off-gas, LPG, naphtha, etc. as raw materials, and with off-gas, etc. as fuel. The hydrogen production device 14 reforms the raw materials into hydrogen and carbon monoxide through a steam reforming reaction. The produced carbon monoxide is converted into carbon dioxide through a shift reaction, producing hydrogen in the process. The produced hydrogen is supplied from the hydrogen production device 14 to the hydrogen utilization device 12. This makes it possible to compensate for the shortage of hydrogen supply when the hydrogen consumption amount in the hydrogen utilization device 12 exceeds the hydrogen supply amount from the catalytic reformer 10. Alternatively, the supply of hydrogen from the catalytic reformer 10 to the hydrogen utilization device 12 can reduce the amount of hydrogen produced in the hydrogen production device 14.

[0025] The plant 1 of this embodiment also includes an organic hydride tank 16, an O2 stripper 18, and a raw material tank 20.

[0026] The organic hydride tank 16 stores an organic hydride. The organic hydride and its dehydrogenated product used in this embodiment are not particularly limited as long as they are organic compounds that can release / add hydrogen by reversibly causing a dehydrogenation reaction / hydrogenation reaction, and a wide range of organic compounds can be used, such as acetone-isopropanol, benzoquinone-hydroquinone, and aromatic hydrocarbons. Of these, aromatic hydrocarbons are preferred from the viewpoint of transportability during energy transportation.

[0027] The aromatic hydrocarbon compound as a dehydrogenated product of the organic hydride is a compound containing at least one aromatic ring, and examples thereof include benzene, alkylbenzene, naphthalene, alkylnaphthalene, anthracene, and diphenylethane.

[0028] Alkylbenzenes include compounds in which 1 to 4 hydrogen atoms on the aromatic ring are substituted with a linear or branched alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms. Examples of such compounds include toluene, xylene, mesitylene, ethylbenzene, and diethylbenzene. Alkylnaphthalenes include compounds in which 1 to 4 hydrogen atoms on the aromatic ring are substituted with a linear or branched alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms. Examples of such compounds include methylnaphthalene. The preferred dehydrogenated product is at least one of toluene and benzene.

[0029] Nitrogen-containing heterocyclic aromatic compounds such as pyridine, pyrimidine, pyrazine, quinoline, isoquinoline, N-alkylpyrrole, N-alkylindole, and N-alkyldibenzopyrrole can also be used as dehydrogenated products. The organic hydride may be used alone or in combination.

[0030] The organic hydride in the organic hydride tank 16 may contain a large amount of oxygen. In particular, when the organic hydride is supplied to the organic hydride tank 16 from outside the plant 1 by, for example, marine transport, there is a high possibility that the organic hydride will contain a large amount of oxygen. Oxygen can be a catalyst poison for the catalytic reforming catalyst. For this reason, the organic hydride is supplied to the catalytic reformer 10 after oxygen is removed in the O2 stripper 18. The O2 stripper 18 has a known structure. Therefore, in this embodiment, the organic hydride is supplied to the catalytic reformer 10 indirectly, that is, via the O2 stripper 18. Note that if the oxygen contained in the organic hydride is below the allowable amount, the O2 stripper 18 may be omitted. In this case, the organic hydride is supplied directly to the catalytic reformer 10.

[0031] In the plant 1 shown in FIG. 1, the organic hydride line (transport pipe) is connected to a line connecting a reformer feedstock tank 8 and a catalytic reformer 10. Therefore, the reformer feedstock and the organic hydride are mixed in the line by line blending and supplied to the catalytic reformer 10. For example, when the organic hydride is methylcyclohexane, the reformer feedstock also contains methylcyclohexane, but by supplying methylcyclohexane from the organic hydride tank 16 to the catalytic reformer 10, the proportion of methylcyclohexane in the reactants can be increased. Note that the method of mixing the reformer feedstock and the organic hydride is not limited to line blending.

[0032] The catalytic reformer 10 produces a reformate and hydrogen from the reforming feedstock oil through catalytic reactions, and also produces a dehydrogenated product and hydrogen from the organic hydride. The operating conditions of the catalytic reformer 10, including temperature, pressure, LHSV, etc., are adjusted as appropriate depending on the composition of the reactants supplied to the catalytic reformer 10 and the type of target product. The catalytic reformer 10 may also be operated such that the reaction temperature is adjusted by changing the amount of fuel gas supplied depending on the amount of organic hydride added from the organic hydride tank 16.

[0033] An organic hydride feedstock is produced by a catalytic reaction in the catalytic reformer 10. At least a portion of the organic hydride feedstock produced in the catalytic reformer 10 is recovered from the catalytic reformer 10 and stored in a feedstock tank 20 for use in producing organic hydrides. Note that a portion of the organic hydride feedstock stored in the feedstock tank 20 may be used as a gasoline base stock or a feedstock for chemical products. The organic hydride feedstock to be recovered can be recovered by subjecting the product obtained from the catalytic reformer 10 to known processes such as distillation separation, extraction separation, membrane separation, and adsorption separation.

[0034] An example of the organic hydride feedstock produced in the catalytic reforming unit 10 is a dehydrogenated organic hydride supplied from the organic hydride tank 16. Note that a portion of the dehydrogenated organic hydride supplied from the organic hydride tank 16 is not recovered in the feedstock tank 20, that is, it can be used as a gasoline base stock or a feedstock for chemical products without passing through the feedstock tank 20. Furthermore, the same compound as this dehydrogenated organic hydride can also be produced by a catalytic reforming reaction of reformed feedstock. In other words, the organic hydride feedstock can be produced not only by the dehydrogenation reaction of organic hydride but also by the catalytic reforming reaction of reformed feedstock.

[0035] For example, the organic hydride is methylcyclohexane, and the organic hydride feedstock to be recovered is toluene. In this case, toluene is produced in the catalytic reforming unit 10 through a dehydrogenation reaction of the organic hydride (methylcyclohexane) and a catalytic reforming reaction of the reforming feedstock. Therefore, the toluene derived from the organic hydride and the toluene derived from the reforming feedstock are stored in a mixed state in the raw material tank 20.

[0036] The organic hydride feedstock may be any compound that can be converted into an organic hydride by a hydrogenation reaction. Therefore, the organic hydride feedstock recovered in the feedstock tank 20 is not limited to the dehydrogenated organic hydride (referred to as compound A) supplied from the organic hydride tank 16 and the same compound A produced by the catalytic reforming reaction of the reformate feedstock. For example, if compound B, which is different from the dehydrogenated organic hydride (compound A) supplied from the organic hydride tank 16 and converts to an organic hydride by a hydrogenation reaction, is produced by the catalytic reforming reaction of the reformate feedstock, compound B may be recovered in the feedstock tank 20 alone or together with compound A. In other words, when methylcyclohexane is supplied from the organic hydride tank 16 as the organic hydride, the organic hydride feedstock recovered in the feedstock tank 20 is not limited to toluene (corresponding to compound A) derived from the organic hydride and the reformate feedstock, but may also include benzene, xylene (corresponding to compound B), and the like produced by the catalytic reforming reaction of the reformate feedstock. As described above, the organic hydride feedstock may contain a compound B that is different from the dehydrogenated organic hydride (compound A) supplied from the organic hydride tank 16 and the same compound (compound A) derived from the reformed feedstock, but it is preferable that the organic hydride feedstock recovered in the feedstock tank 20 is composed of the dehydrogenated organic hydride (compound A) supplied from the organic hydride tank 16 and the same compound (compound A) derived from the reformed feedstock.

[0037] The organic hydride raw material stored in the raw material tank 20 is supplied to the organic hydride production apparatus 22. The organic hydride production apparatus 22 produces organic hydride from the organic hydride raw material. Preferably, an amount of organic hydride raw material equivalent to the amount of organic hydride supplied to the catalytic reforming apparatus 10 is supplied from the raw material tank 20 to the organic hydride production apparatus 22 and used for producing organic hydride.

[0038] As the organic hydride production apparatus 22, a known apparatus capable of hydrogenating an organic hydride raw material can be used. For example, the organic hydride production apparatus 22 may be an apparatus that produces hydrogen by water electrolysis or the like and then produces organic hydride by a hydrogenation process such as chemical hydrogenation. The source of hydrogen used in the production of organic hydride is not particularly limited. For example, hydrogen may be derived from fossil fuels such as natural gas or coal. Alternatively, hydrogen may be by-product hydrogen generated in the steel production process, such as coke production, or by-product hydrogen generated in the caustic soda production process.

[0039] Another example of the organic hydride production apparatus 22 is an electrolytic reduction apparatus that hydrogenates an organic hydride raw material through an electrochemical reduction reaction. The electrolytic reduction apparatus includes an electrolyte membrane, a cathode, and an anode. The electrolyte membrane is disposed between the cathode and the anode and transfers protons from the anode side to the cathode side. The electrolyte membrane is formed, for example, of a proton-conductive solid polymer electrolyte membrane. The cathode has a cathode catalyst layer. The cathode catalyst layer hydrogenates the organic hydride raw material with protons to produce an organic hydride. The cathode catalyst layer contains platinum, ruthenium, or the like as a cathode catalyst. The anode oxidizes water to produce protons. The anode contains, for example, a metal such as iridium, ruthenium, or platinum, or an oxide of these metals, as an anode catalyst.

[0040] In an electrolytic reduction device, the reaction that occurs when toluene (TL) is used as an example of an organic hydride raw material is as follows. <Electrode reaction at the anode> 3H2O → 3 / 2O2 + 6H + +6e - <Electrode reaction at the cathode> TL+6H + +6e - →MCH

[0041] The electrode reactions at the cathode and anode proceed in parallel. Protons produced by the electrolysis of water at the anode are supplied to the cathode catalyst layer via the electrolyte membrane. Electrons produced by the electrolysis of water are supplied to the cathode catalyst layer via an external circuit. The protons and electrons supplied to the cathode catalyst layer are used to hydrogenate toluene in the cathode catalyst layer. This produces methylcyclohexane (MCH).

[0042] The power source of the organic hydride production apparatus 22 is preferably renewable energy obtained from solar, wind, hydroelectric, geothermal, or other sources. Producing organic hydride using electricity derived from renewable energy can reduce carbon dioxide emissions during the hydrogen production process. In other words, so-called CO2-free hydrogen can be produced. Note that the amount of power generated by renewable energy power generation varies depending on weather conditions, and therefore, the amount of power generated may exceed the amount of power demand. Therefore, the organic hydride production apparatus 22 may be operated only when surplus power is generated from such a power plant, making effective use of the surplus power. Even if renewable energy is not used, carbon dioxide emissions can be reduced by capturing and storing carbon dioxide generated during hydrogen production using carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS) or enhanced oil recovery (EOR). Therefore, hydrogen produced in combination with CCS or EOR may be used. Enhanced oil recovery is a method of recovering the remaining crude oil from an oil field that has stopped flowing or whose water content has increased by injecting carbon dioxide into the field.

[0043] The installation location of the organic hydride production apparatus 22 is not limited. When renewable energy is used, the organic hydride production apparatus 22 may be installed near a power plant that is installed in a location where renewable energy generation efficiency is high. Furthermore, when by-product hydrogen is used or when CCS or EOR is combined, the organic hydride production apparatus 22 may be installed near such facilities. Therefore, the organic hydride production apparatus 22 may be installed in a location remote from the plant 1. The organic hydride produced in the organic hydride production apparatus 22 in a remote location may be transported to the plant 1 by marine transport or the like. In this case, the combination of the plant 1 and the organic hydride production apparatus 22 can be considered as a hydrogen production system. Note that the power source of the organic hydride production apparatus 22 is not limited to renewable energy. Furthermore, the organic hydride production apparatus 22 may be installed within the plant 1.

[0044] As described above, the plant 1 according to this embodiment includes the reformer feedstock tank 8 for storing reformed feedstock, the organic hydride tank 16 for storing organic hydride, and the catalytic reforming device 10 to which the reformed feedstock in the reformer feedstock tank 8 and the organic hydride in the organic hydride tank 16 are supplied directly or indirectly, and which produces a reformate, a dehydrogenated organic hydride, and hydrogen from the reformer feedstock and the organic hydride through a catalytic reaction.

[0045] In this way, a new hydrogen production technology that enables effective use of existing facilities can be provided by producing hydrogen from organic hydrides using the existing catalytic reforming device 10. In addition, since there is no need to install a dedicated dehydrogenation reaction device, it is possible to reduce the cost of hydrogen production and the amount of production facilities.

[0046] In particular, when a situation arises in which the operating rate of the catalytic reforming unit 10 of a refinery falls due to a decline in oil demand, the operating rate of the catalytic reforming unit 10 can be improved. In other words, surplus processing capacity of the refinery can be effectively utilized. Furthermore, because the dehydrogenation reaction of organic hydride is carried out while the catalytic reforming reaction of reformate feedstock is carried out to produce gasoline base stocks and chemical raw materials, it is possible to increase hydrogen production without significantly affecting the operation plan of the entire refinery. Furthermore, an increase in the amount of hydrogen produced in the catalytic reforming unit 10 makes it possible to reduce the scale of or omit the hydrogen production unit 14. These factors can increase the competitiveness of the refinery.

[0047] Furthermore, when organic hydrides are produced using electricity derived from renewable energy or in combination with CCS or EOR, it is possible to reduce carbon dioxide emissions associated with hydrogen production. Furthermore, when the scale of the hydrogen production unit 14 is reduced or the hydrogen production unit 14 is omitted, the consumption of fuel and raw materials in the hydrogen production unit 14 can be reduced, which is expected to further reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

[0048] The plant 1 of this embodiment also includes a raw material tank 20 for storing the organic hydride raw material recovered from the catalytic reforming device 10 and used to produce the organic hydride. This allows the organic hydride to be repeatedly used as a hydrogen carrier.

[0049] The embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above. The above-described embodiments merely illustrate specific examples of implementing the present invention. The content of the embodiments does not limit the technical scope of the present invention, and many design modifications, such as changing, adding, or deleting components, are possible within the scope of the inventive concept defined in the claims. A new embodiment with design modifications will combine the effects of the combined embodiments and modifications. In the above-described embodiments, content that allows such design modifications is emphasized by using notations such as "in this embodiment" or "in this embodiment," but design modifications are also permitted even in content without such notation. Any combination of the above-described components is also valid as an aspect of the present invention.

[0050] (Variation) This modified example has a common configuration with the first embodiment except for the connection mode of the organic hydride tank 16. Below, the modified example will be described focusing on the configuration that is different from the first embodiment, and a description of the common configuration will be omitted. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a plant 1 according to the modified example. In the plant 1 according to the modified example, an organic hydride line extending from the organic hydride tank 16 is connected to a crude oil tank 2. Therefore, the organic hydride is mixed with crude oil in the crude oil tank 2 by a tank blending method.

[0051] When a mixture of crude oil and organic hydride is supplied to the atmospheric distillation unit 4, a mixed fraction of naphtha and organic hydride is obtained by the atmospheric distillation unit 4. This mixed fraction is stored in the reformer feedstock tank 8 and used as the reformer feedstock. Therefore, in this modification, the organic hydride is supplied indirectly to the catalytic reformer 10, that is, via the crude oil tank 2, the atmospheric distillation unit 4, the hydrodesulfurization unit 6, and the reformer feedstock tank 8. After the mixed fraction is supplied to the catalytic reformer 10, a reformate, a dehydrogenated product of the organic hydride, and hydrogen are produced, as in the first embodiment. In addition, a portion of the product is recovered in the raw material tank 20.

[0052] By supplying the organic hydride to the crude oil tank 2, even if the organic hydride contains a large amount of oxygen, this oxygen can be separated from the organic hydride in the atmospheric distillation unit 4. Therefore, according to this modification, even if the amount of oxygen contained in the organic hydride exceeds the allowable amount, the O2 stripper 18 can be omitted. The organic hydride line may be connected to a line connecting the crude oil tank 2 and the atmospheric distillation unit 4.

[0053] The embodiments may be specified by the following items. [Item 1] Supplying an organic hydride directly or indirectly to a catalytic reforming unit (10) for reforming feedstock; A method for producing hydrogen, comprising producing hydrogen by dehydrogenating an organic hydride through a catalytic reaction in a catalytic reformer (10). [Item 2] 2. The method for producing hydrogen according to item 1, comprising recovering an organic hydride feedstock used in the production of organic hydride from a catalytic reformer (10). [Explanation of symbols]

[0054] 1 Plant, 8 Reformed feedstock tank, 10 Catalytic reforming unit, 16 Organic hydride tank, 20 Feedstock tank, 22 Organic hydride production unit.

Claims

1. a reforming feedstock tank for storing the reforming feedstock; an organic hydride tank for storing an organic hydride; a catalytic reforming device to which the reformate feedstock oil in the reformate feedstock tank and the organic hydride in the organic hydride tank are directly or indirectly supplied, and which generates a reformate, a dehydrogenated product of the organic hydride, and hydrogen from the reformate feedstock oil and the organic hydride through a catalytic reaction; a raw material tank for storing an organic hydride raw material recovered from the catalytic reforming device and used for producing an organic hydride; The plant is provided with:

2. The plant described in claim 1, wherein the catalytic reformer has a catalyst selected from a platinum-alumina catalyst and a bimetallic alumina catalyst in which a second metal is added to platinum.

3. a hydrogen utilization device to which hydrogen generated in the catalytic reformer is supplied; 3. The plant according to claim 1, wherein the hydrogen utilization device includes at least one selected from the group consisting of a hydrorefining device, a hydrocracking device, a hydrogen power generation device, and a hydrogen station.

4. 4. The plant of claim 1, wherein the reformate feedstock comprises at least one of heavy naphtha and catalytic cracking gasoline.

5. 5. The plant according to claim 1, wherein the catalytic reformer is indirectly supplied with the organic hydride in the organic hydride tank.

6. A plant as described in claim 5, wherein the organic hydride in the organic hydride tank is supplied to the organic hydride tank from outside the plant.

7. An O hydride tank is disposed between the organic hydride tank and the catalytic reforming device, and the O hydride tank is supplied with oxygen from the organic hydride. ２ 7. A plant according to claim 5 or 6, comprising a stripper.

8. A crude oil tank for storing crude oil; an atmospheric distillation unit that separates at least naphtha from the crude oil supplied from the crude oil tank; a hydrodesulfurization unit that desulfurizes the naphtha supplied from the atmospheric distillation unit and supplies the desulfurized naphtha to the reforming feedstock tank as a reforming feedstock; The plant according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the organic hydride in the organic hydride tank is supplied to the feedstock oil tank and then supplied to the catalytic reforming unit via the crude oil tank, the atmospheric distillation unit, the hydrodesulfurization unit and the reformed feedstock oil tank.

9. Supplying an organic hydride directly or indirectly to a catalytic reforming unit of the reforming feedstock; producing hydrogen by dehydrogenating an organic hydride through a catalytic reaction in the catalytic reformer; A method for producing hydrogen comprising recovering an organic hydride feedstock from said catalytic reformer for use in the production of an organic hydride.

10. A method for producing hydrogen as described in claim 9, comprising removing oxygen from the organic hydride stored in the organic hydride tank using an O2 stripper provided between the organic hydride tank and the catalytic reformer, and supplying the oxygen-removed organic hydride to the catalytic reformer.

11. 11. The method for producing hydrogen according to claim 9, further comprising: supplying the organic hydride raw material recovered from the catalytic reformer to an organic hydride production apparatus; and producing an organic hydride in the organic hydride production apparatus.

12. The method for producing hydrogen according to claim 11, further comprising supplying an organic hydride produced in the organic hydride production unit to the catalytic reformer.

13. 13. The hydrogen production method according to claim 11 or 12, wherein the organic hydride production apparatus includes at least one of an apparatus for producing an organic hydride by hydrogenating an organic hydride raw material with hydrogen produced by water electrolysis, and an electrolytic reduction apparatus for hydrogenating the organic hydride raw material by an electrochemical reduction reaction.

14. The method for producing hydrogen according to any one of claims 11 to 13, wherein the organic hydride producing apparatus produces organic hydride using electricity derived from renewable energy.

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