A reforming device (10) according to the present invention has a compressor (11), a first heat exchanger (12), a desulfurization device (13), a reformer (14), a raw material gas branching line (L11) that extracts a compressed natural gas (21) from a downstream side of the desulfurization device (13) with respect to the flow direction of the natural gas (21) and supplies the natural gas (21) to the reformer (14), and a flue gas discharging line (L12) that discharges a flue gas (22) generated in the reformer (14), wherein the first heat exchanger (12) is provided in the flue gas discharging line (L12), and the flue gas (22) is used as a heating medium of the compressed natural gas (21).

The present invention generally relates to improved catalysts that provide for reduced product contaminants, related methods and improved reaction products. It more specifically relates to improved direct fuel production and redox catalysts that provide for reduced levels of certain oxygenated contaminants, methods related to the use of those catalysts, and hydrocarbon fuel or fuel-related products that have improved characteristics. In one aspect, the present invention is directed to a method of converting one or more carbon-containing feedstocks into one or more hydrocarbon liquid fuels. The method includes the steps of: converting the one or more carbon-containing feedstocks into syngas; and, converting the syngas to one or more hydrocarbons (including liquid fuels) and a water fraction. The water fraction comprises less than 500 ppm of one or more carboxylic acids.

A process and plant for producing a synthesis gas chiefly consisting of hydrogen and carbon monoxide by catalytic steam reformation of a hydrocarbonaceous feed gas, wherein the heat of burners required for the chemical reforming reactions to take place is generated by producing a flue gas and wherein, by utilizing the heat contained in the synthesis gas and in the flue gas, a pure steam is generated from boiler feed water and a process steam is generated from process condensate, wherein for the generation of the pure steam synthesis gas and flue gas are used and for the generation of the process steam a part of the pure steam is used as heat-transfer medium and the remaining part of the pure steam is discharged from the process as export steam.

Embodiments of methods for capturing high-purity CO.sub.2 in a hydrocarbon facility and related systems are provided. The method comprises operating a hydrogen plant to generate a high-purity hydrogen stream and a CO.sub.2 rich stream with a CO.sub.2 concentration above 30%; introducing the high-purity hydrogen stream into an anode of a molten carbonate fuel cell; introducing the CO.sub.2 rich stream and O.sub.2 into a cathode of the molten carbonate fuel cell; reacting CO.sub.2 and O.sub.2 within the cathode to produce carbonate and a cathode exhaust stream from a cathode outlet; reacting carbonate from the cathode with H.sub.2 within the anode to produce electricity and an anode exhaust stream from an anode outlet, the anode exhaust stream comprising CO.sub.2 and H.sub.2O; separating the CO.sub.2 in the anode exhaust stream in one or more separators to form a pure CO.sub.2 stream and a H.sub.2O stream; and collecting the pure CO.sub.2 stream.

A hydrogen purifier includes an electrolyte membrane including a proton conductive polymer, an anode having an anode catalyst layer disposed on one side of the electrolyte membrane, a cathode having a cathode catalyst layer disposed on the other side of the electrolyte membrane, a separator which has a fluid channel and through which carbon monoxide, hydrogen and oxygen are supplied to the anode, and a power supply that energizes the anode and the cathode, the anode catalyst layer including Pt, the cathode catalyst layer including Pt and Ru.

A solar thermochemical processing system is disclosed. The system includes a first unit operation for receiving concentrated solar energy. Heat from the solar energy is used to drive the first unit operation. The first unit operation also receives a first set of reactants and produces a first set of products. A second unit operation receives the first set of products from the first unit operation and produces a second set of products. A third unit operation receives heat from the second unit operation to produce a portion of the first set of reactants.

A process and a plant for producing pure hydrogen by steam reforming of a feed gas containing hydrocarbons, preferably natural gas or naphtha, with reduced carbon dioxide emissions are proposed. The reduction in carbon dioxide emissions is achieved in accordance with the invention in that carbon dioxide is separated both out of a PSA tail gas stream and out of the flue gas from the reformer furnace by means of suitable measures.

The invention is directed to a method for heating a process gas in a top or bottom fired reformer, a method for improving the temperature spread over a top or bottom fired reformer, and to a top or bottom fired reformer wherein these methods can applied. This can be achieved by the lane flow rate of at least one outer tube lane being different from the lane flow rate of at least one inner tube lane.

A catalytic reactor is provided comprising a plurality of first flow channels including a catalyst for a first reaction; a plurality of second flow channels arranged alternately with the first flow channels; adjacent first and second flow channels being separated by a divider plate (13a, 13b), and a distributed temperature sensor such as an optical fiber cable (19). The distributed temperature sensor may be located within the divider plate, or within one or 10 more of the flow channels.

Disclosed is an alternative fuel fueling station useful for fueling both electrical and hydrogen alternative fuel vehicles simultaneously. The alternative fuel fueling station includes a solid oxide fuel cell, an electrical conduit, and a compressed hydrogen conduit, such that the alternative fuel fueling station can fuel both the electrical and hydrogen alternative fuel vehicles simultaneously.