This invention relates to an apparatus, comprising: a plurality of plates in a stack defining at least one process layer and at least one heat exchange layer, each plate having a peripheral edge, the peripheral edge of each plate being welded to the peripheral edge of the next adjacent plate to provide a perimeter seal for the stack, the ratio of the average surface area of each of the adjacent plates to the average penetration of the weld between the adjacent plates being at least about 100 cm.sup.2/mm. The stack may be used as the core assembly for a microchannel processor. The microchannel processor may be used for conducting one or more unit operations, including chemical reactions such as SMR reactions.

A furnace for performing an endothermic process comprises tubes containing a catalyst for converting a gaseous feed, said tubes positioned inside the furnace, inner burners mounted to a furnace roof between the tubes, and outer burners mounted to the furnace roof between the tubes and a furnace wall. The outer burners are positioned close to the furnace wall, and configured to operate with 45-60% of the power of the inner burners and with an inlet velocity between 90 to 110% of the inlet velocity of the inner burners.

A method for upgrading a hydrocarbon feed gas to methanol, including the steps of: providing a hydrocarbon feed gas; optionally, purifying the hydrocarbon feed gas in a gas purification unit; optionally, prereforming the hydrocarbon feed gas together with a steam feedstock in a prereforming unit; carrying out steam methane reforming in a reforming reactor heated by means of an electrical power source; providing the synthesis gas to a methanol synthesis unit to provide a product including methanol and an off-gas. Also, a system for upgrading a hydrocarbon feed gas to methanol.

A process for synthesizing methanol is described comprising the steps of (i) reforming a hydrocarbon feedstock in a hydrocarbon reforming unit comprising a fired steam reformer to form a synthesis gas containing hydrogen, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide; (ii) converting the synthesis gas into a methanol product in a methanol loop comprising one or more methanol synthesis reactors; and (iii) recovering a purge gas stream from the methanol loop, wherein at least a portion of the purge gas stream is treated in a purge gas treatment unit by subjecting it to partial oxidation in a partial oxidation reactor or autothermal reforming in a purge gas reforming unit to form a partially-oxidised or reformed purge gas, followed by one or more stages of water gas shift of the partially-oxidised or reformed purge gas in a water-gas shift unit to form a hydrogen-enriched gas and a step of carbon dioxide removal.

Induction heating is applied to thermochemical processes in specially adapted chemical processing units comprising heat exchange channels. Collections of components are housed in portable units adapted for easy setup and maintenance.

The present disclosure provides systems and methods for hydrogen production as well as apparatuses useful in such systems and methods, including steam generation systems and methods. Hydrogen is produced by reforming of a hydrocarbon in a plurality of reformers to achieve improved reforming efficiency. A CO.sub.2 convective reformer (CCR) and an oxygen secondary reformer (OSR) are used in series to convert hydrocarbon and steam to synthesis gas with substantially complete carbon capture. Steam generation is provided along separate pathways to provide separate steam streams of different composition.

A hydrogen production method that reduces carbon dioxide emissions outside the system is provided.

A hydrogen production method including: performing a dry reforming reaction to obtain a synthesis gas containing carbon monoxide and hydrogen from a source gas containing methane and carbon dioxide in the presence of a dry reforming catalyst; performing a solid carbon capture reaction by reacting the synthesis gas in the presence of a catalyst for capturing solid carbon to generate solid carbon from the carbon monoxide in the synthesis gas, thereby obtaining the solid carbon and a processed gas; and separating the processed gas into an emission gas and hydrogen to obtain hydrogen, wherein a content molar ratio CO/CO.sub.2 of a content of the carbon monoxide to a content of the carbon dioxide in the synthesis gas, reaction temperature T.sub.1 ( C.) of the dry reforming reaction, and reaction temperature T.sub.2 ( C.) of the solid carbon capture reaction satisfy the following condition (1):

[00001]$$\begin{gathered} \begin{array}{cc}\left[\mathrm{Formula}1\right]& \\ 450<T_2<750-\frac{300}{1+e^{\left(\frac{\mathrm{Inflection}-\left(\mathrm{CO}/{\mathrm{CO}}_2\right)}{\mathrm{Gradient}}\right)}} \\ \mathrm{wherein}\mathrm{Inflection}=\left(1.06{10}^{-4}\right){\left(T_1\right)}^2+\left(-0.13\right)T_1+40.\mathrm{Gradient}=\left(1.6910^{-4}\right){\left(T_1\right)}^2\end{array} \end{gathered}$$

A method of producing hydrogen that uses at least two batches of biomethane, where at least two of the biomethanes are from different sources, are produced from different feedstocks, are produced from different processes, and/or have different carbon intensities. The at least two batches of biomethane are distributed such that at least a portion of the first batch distributed to the feedstock, at least a portion of the second batch distributed to the fuel, and such that at least one of the biomethanes is distributed disproportionally between feedstock and fuel and/or such that biomethane in the feedstock has a different fractional make-up than biomethane in the fuel.

A system and method for producing hydrogen, including providing hydrocarbon and steam into a vessel to a region external to a tubular membrane in the vessel. The method includes steam reforming the hydrocarbon in the vessel via reforming catalyst to generate hydrogen and carbon dioxide. The method includes diffusing the hydrogen through the tubular membrane into a bore of the tubular membrane, wherein the tubular membrane is hydrogen selective.

According to one aspect of the present invention, a hydrogen production apparatus includes a hydrogen production mechanism configured to produce a hydrogen gas from a raw material by using a catalyst; and an operation control circuit configured to input a parameter value as an index indicating a state of the catalyst, and configured to control an operation maximum load of the hydrogen production mechanism to be variable in correspondence with the parameter value.