The invention is directed to a process for the preparation of a syngas comprising hydrogen and carbon monoxide from a methane comprising gas, which process comprises the steps of: (a) reacting the methane comprising gas with an oxidising gas in an autothermal reformer to obtain a hot raw syngas comprising carbon monoxide and hydrogen; (b) cooling the hot raw syngas resulting from step (a) to obtain the syngas, wherein step (b) comprises cooling the hot raw syngas by indirect heat exchange against the methane comprising gas used in step (a) and wherein sulphur is added upstream of cooling step (b). The invention also relates to a process for the preparation of hydrocarbon products in which a feed syngas is prepared in the process as described above followed by a desulphurisation treatment and the desulphurised syngas is subsequently converted into hydrocarbon products in a Fischer-Tropsch process.

A reactor suitable for a reaction containing an exothermic reaction is provided. The reactor includes the following components. A reaction channel has an inlet and an outlet, and has a front-end reaction zone, middle-end reaction zones, and a back-end reaction zone from the inlet to the outlet. A front-end catalyst support and a front-end catalyst are located in the front-end reaction zone, a middle-end catalyst support and a middle-end catalyst are respectively located in the middle-end reaction zones, and a back-end catalyst support and a back-end catalyst are located in the back-end reaction zone. The concentration of the front-end catalyst is less than the concentration of the back-end catalyst, and the concentration of the middle-end catalyst is decided via a computer simulation of reaction parameters. The reaction parameters include size and geometric shape of the reaction channel.

A heat recovery system for plasma reformers is comprised of a cascade of regenerators and recuperators that are arranged to transfer in stages the heat at high temperatures for storage, transport, and recirculation. Recirculation of heat increases the efficiency of plasma reformers and heat exchanging reduces temperature of the product for downstream applications.

A reformer reactor is provided for converting hydrocarbon fuel into hydrogen rich gas by auto-thermal reaction process having a cylindrically shaped and double walled, housing with two side faces forming a reaction chamber of the reformer. Additionally, a fuel inlet is provided in one of the two side faces for providing hydrocarbon fuels into the reaction chamber, wherein further a fuel preheating means is provided which preheats the hydrocarbon fuel before the hydrocarbon fuel enters the reaction chamber.

The present invention comprises a process for producing hydrogen, wherein in a first stage hydrocarbons are decomposed into solid carbon and into a hydrogen-containing gaseous product mixture, the hydrogen-containing gaseous product mixture, which has a composition in respect of the main components CH4, N2, and H2 of 20% to 95% by volume H2 and 80% to 5% by volume CH4 and/or N2, is discharged from the first stage at a temperature of 50 to 300° C., and this is supplied at a temperature differing from this exit temperature by not more than 100° C. to an electrochemical separation process and, in this second stage, the hydrogen-containing product mixture is separated in the electrochemical separation process at a temperature of 50 to 200° C. into hydrogen having a purity of >99.99% and a remaining residual gas mixture.

A process and apparatus for producing a hydrogen-enriched product and recovering CO.sub.2 from an effluent stream from a hydrogen production process unit are described. The process utilizes a CO.sub.2 recovery system integrated with a PSA system that produces at least two product streams to recover additional hydrogen and CO.sub.2 from the tail gas stream of a hydrogen PSA unit in the hydrogen production process.

A process and apparatus for producing a hydrogen-enriched product and recovering CO.sub.2 from an effluent stream from a hydrogen production unit are described. The effluent from the hydrogen production unit, which comprises a mixture of gases comprising hydrogen, carbon dioxide, water, and at least one of methane, carbon monoxide, nitrogen, and argon, is sent to a PSA system that produces at least two product streams for separation. The PSA system that produces at least two product streams separates the gas mixture into a high-pressure hydrogen stream enriched in hydrogen, optionally a second gas stream containing the majority of the impurities, and a low-pressure tail gas stream enriched in CO.sub.2 and some impurities. The CO.sub.2-rich tail gas stream is compressed and sent to a CO.sub.2 recovery unit, where a CO.sub.2-enriched stream is recovered. The CO.sub.2-depleted overhead gas stream is recycled to the PSA system that produces at least two product streams.

Various embodiments that pertain to fuel processing are described. A fuel processor can produce an endothermic reaction that cools a substance and produces a processed fuel from a raw fuel. A generator can employ the processed fuel to produce an electricity. The generator can supply the electricity to a load that uses the electricity to function. The load can become hot due to its functioning and can benefit from being cooled. The substance cooled by the fuel processor can cool load and in the process the substance can rise in temperature. This warmer substance can be transferred to the fuel processor to be cooled again and this cycle can continue. Further, the fuel processor can use the warmer substance to achieve the endothermic reaction.

A method and design of providing high temperature heat for an endothermic gasifier without combustion includes flowing a stream of a first hydrocarbon gas sequentially through an annular plenum and a cylindrical plenum while heating the gas using electrical resistance immersion heating elements. These heating elements may be heated by three phase electrical power, minimizing the number of electrical leads emerging from the top of the heating elements. This method and design reduces the risk of extremely hot syngas exiting the gasifier damaging downstream fittings.

Process and apparatus for producing a hydrogen-containing product by steam-hydrocarbon reforming of multiple hydrocarbon feedstocks in a production facility utilizing a prereformer in addition to the primary reformer. The temperature of the reactant mixture introduced into the prereformer is controlled depending on the composition of the reactant mixture fed to the prereformer.