Pressure Swing Adsorption Hydrogen Recovery via Overlapping Pressurization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional pressure swing adsorption type hydrogen manufacturing apparatuses face challenges in improving product recovery rate without compromising the purity of the hydrogen product.
Innovation Solution
The apparatus employs four or five adsorption towers with a process control unit that coordinates the adsorption, pressure-equalization discharge, desorption, and pressure-restoration processes, allowing the pressurization process to overlap with the subsequent pressure-equalization process, thereby extending the prior pressure-equalization period and reducing the transfer speed of adsorption target components, thus enhancing product recovery while maintaining purity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If the prior pressure-equalization process period is extended to improve product recovery rate, then the product recovery rate increases, but the process time for completing the adsorption cycle increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the pressurization process with the subsequent pressure-equalization process by performing them in an overlapping manner. The pressurization process is started before the pressure-equalization process is completely finished, allowing both processes to occur simultaneously for part of their duration. This reduces the total cycle time while maintaining the extended prior pressure-equalization period needed for high product recovery rate.
Solution Approach 2:
The pressurization process is initiated in advance before the pressure-equalization process is fully completed. By starting the pressurization of the adsorption tower beforehand, the system prepares the tower for the next adsorption cycle while the pressure-equalization is still ongoing, thereby reducing idle time and optimizing the overall process cycle.
2Ease of operation
If the pressurization process is performed separately after the prior pressure-equalization process, then the process sequence is simple to control, but the product recovery rate cannot be maximized
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces dynamic control to the process sequence by allowing overlapping of the pressurization and pressure-equalization processes. Instead of a fixed sequential operation, the system dynamically adjusts the timing and duration of each process based on real-time conditions, enabling optimization of product recovery rate while maintaining manageable control complexity through automated process control.
3Quantity of substance
If the pressurization process is performed while overlapping with the subsequent pressure-equalization process, then the product recovery rate increases, but the pressure control complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs feedback control mechanisms to manage the overlapping pressurization and pressure-equalization processes. By continuously monitoring pressure conditions in the adsorption towers and adjusting process parameters in real-time, the system maintains stable pressure control despite the increased complexity of overlapping operations, thereby achieving high product recovery rate without unmanageable control complexity.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This configuration effectively increases the product recovery rate while ensuring the purity of the hydrogen product by prolonging the prior pressure-equalization period and stabilizing the pressurization process, reducing the risk of pressure fluctuations and ensuring consistent hydrogen production.
Implementation Method 1
a pressure swing adsorption type hydrogen manufacturing apparatus produces a product gas having a high hydrogen concentration by adsorbing, using adsorbents, adsorption target components other than hydrogen components from a source gas that contains the hydrogen components and the adsorption target components
Implementation Method 2
by adsorbing, using adsorbents, adsorption target components other than hydrogen components from a source gas
Data Source
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AI summary
Provided is a pressure swing adsorption type hydrogen manufacturing apparatus that can improve the product recovery rate in a state where the purity of the product is kept from being reduced. A process control unit P controls operation of adsorption towers 1 that generate a product gas by adsorbing, using adsorbents, adsorption target components other than hydrogen components from a source gas, in a state where an adsorption process, a pressure-equalization discharge process, a desorption process, and a pressure-restoration process are successively repeated. The process control unit is configured to control operation of the adsorption towers 1 in such a manner that a prior pressure-equalization process of supplying gas inside an adsorption tower 1 undergoing the pressure-equalization discharge process to an adsorption tower 1 undergoing the pressure-restoration process is performed in an initial stage of a unit processing period, a subsequent pressure-equalization process of supplying gas inside the adsorption tower 1 undergoing the pressure-equalization discharge process to an adsorption tower 1 undergoing the desorption process is performed in a final stage of the unit processing period, a pressurization process of introducing a product gas H to perform pressurization is performed, as the pressure-restoration process, subsequently to the prior pressure-equalization process, and the pressurization process is performed while overlapping with the subsequent pressure-equalization process.