Syngas Hydrogen Supplementation for Methanol Yield Without CO Loss
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing gasification processes struggle to achieve desirable H2 to CO ratios for syngas, leading to inefficient production of industrially useful chemicals like methanol, and require costly water-gas-shift reactors that sacrifice CO and increase operating costs.
Innovation Solution
Supplement syngas with an external source of hydrogen, such as that produced by steam methane reforming, steam injection onto molten metals, or halogen acid reaction with scrap metals, to adjust the H2 to CO ratio without using a water-gas-shift reactor.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If syngas is passed through a water-gas-shift reactor to adjust H2 to CO ratio, then the H2 to CO ratio is improved, but CO is lost and operating costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
Hydrogen is added to syngas before it enters the methanol synthesis reactor, pre-adjusting the H2:CO ratio to the optimal 2:1 stoichiometric ratio. This preliminary adjustment eliminates the need for subsequent water-gas-shift reaction, preventing CO loss and reducing operating costs while maintaining the required hydrogen concentration for efficient methanol production
2Quantity of substance
If syngas is passed through a water-gas-shift reactor to adjust H2 to CO ratio, then the H2 to CO ratio is improved, but operating costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
Hydrogen supplementation is performed upstream of the methanol synthesis reactor, pre-adjusting the H2:CO ratio to eliminate the need for expensive water-gas-shift reactor operation. This preliminary action reduces both capital and operating costs by avoiding the purchase and operation of additional reactor equipment
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts and eliminates the water-gas-shift reactor step from the conventional gasification-to-methanol process train. By independently supplementing hydrogen to syngas, the process removes the need for this intermediate processing step, simplifying the overall manufacturing process and reducing operating costs
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
Achieves a desired H2 to CO molar ratio of 2:1 for enhanced chemical production efficiency, reducing costs and optimizing yield, while avoiding the economic drawbacks of traditional methods.
Implementation Method 1
hydrogen produced by steam methane reforming (SMR)
Implementation Method 2
hydrogen produced by steam injected onto molten metals
Implementation Method 3
hydrogen produced by a halogen acid contacting various types of metals
Implementation Method 4
Gasification is a process commonly used to convert biomass or other organic materials into gases
Data Source
AI summary
In one aspect, the disclosure relates to a method for supplementing syngas to produce a precursor composition for synthesis of at least one industrially useful chemical, the method comprising contacting the syngas with an external source of hydrogen. In an aspect, industrially useful chemical comprises methanol and the external source of hydrogen comprises hydrogen produced by steam methane reforming (SMR), hydrogen produced by steam injected onto molten metals, or another hydrogen source. In some aspects, the external source of hydrogen comprises hydrogen produced by a halogen acid contacting scrap metal, wherein the halogen acid can be produced by gasifying a halogen-containing polymer such as, for example, polyvinylchloride (PVC), polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC), or any combination thereof. Also disclosed herein are systems useful for carrying out the disclosed methods.