A method and apparatus for heating a furnace using a burner system having first and second burner assemblies, each including a burner and a regenerative media bed, the method including operating the first burner assembly in a firing mode and the second burner assembly in a regeneration mode, switching the first burner assembly from the firing mode to the regeneration mode and the second burner assembly from the regeneration mode to the firing mode, and operating the second burner assembly in the firing mode and the first burner assembly in the regeneration mode. The burner assembly in the firing mode may be fired in either a first operating mode where the burner is supplied with preheated low calorific fuel and the burner is supplied with oxidizing gas or a second operating mode where the burner is supplied with preheated oxidizing gas and the burner is supplied with high calorific fuel.

A carbonaceous feed pyrolysis apparatus is provided including two or more hot particle fluidised beds, one of which contains a combustion zone, and one or more positive displacement apparatus for the transfer of hot particles beds. Also provided is a bio-oil production process including two or more fluidised beds, a first combustion zone carried out in one or more combustion fluidised beds in which a particulate material is fluidised and heated, and a second pyrolysis zone carried out in one or more pyrolysis fluidised beds in which hot particles heated in the combustion zone are used for pyrolysis of bio-mass, the combustion zone being operated at or about atmospheric pressure at a temperature of from 400 C. to 1100 C., and the pyrolysis zone being operated at a pressure of from atmospheric to 100 Barg at a temperature of from 400 C. to 900 C.

A gasification reactor is provided. The reactor comprises a first gasification area, a second gasification area and a shared combustion area. The shared combustion area is set between the first and second gasification areas. Therein, the (present invention applies interconnected fluidized beds in gasification. The connecting piping between the first and second gasification areas are separately replaced with dense beds to be integrated for forming a single reactor. Thus, the present invention simplifies the system, saves the cost and reduces the operation difficulty.

The invention is directed to a system for energy storage including a heat transfer fluid (HTF) tank containing a HTF such as water; a chemical combustion reactor that is at least partially filled with a metal and/or an oxide thereof, and that includes a gas inlet and a gas outlet; wherein the chemical combustion reactor is at least partially submerged in the HTF within the HTF tank.

Various aspects provide for a multistage fluidized bed reactor, particularly comprising a volatilization stage and a combustion stage. The gas phases above the bed solids in the respective stages are separated by a wall. An opening (e.g., in the wall) provides for transport of the bed solids from the volatilization stage to the combustion stage. Active control of the gas pressure in the two stages may be used to control residence time. Various aspects provide for a fuel stream processing system having a pretreatment reactor, a combustion reactor, and optionally a condensation reactor. The condensation reactor receives a volatiles stream volatilized by the volatilization reactor. The combustion reactor receives a char stream resulting from the removal of the volatiles by the volatilization reactor.

The invention concerns a CLC process, and its installation, producing high purity dinitrogen, comprising: (a) the combustion of a hydrocarbon feed by reduction of a redox active mass brought into contact with the feed, (b) a first step for oxidation of the reduced active mass (25) obtained from step (a) in contact with a fraction of a depleted air stream (21b), in order to produce a high purity stream of dinitrogen (28) and a stream of partially re-oxidized active mass (26); (c) a second step for oxidation of the stream of active mass (26) in contact with air (20) in order to produce a stream of depleted air and a stream of re-oxidized active mass (24) for use in step (a); (d) dividing the stream of depleted air obtained at the end of step (c) in order to form the fraction of depleted air used in step (b) and a fraction complementary to the depleted air extracted from the CLC.

A chemical looping reactor is provided. The reactor comprises a first reduction reactor, a second reduction reactor and a shared oxidation reactor. The shared oxidation reactor is set between the first and second reduction reactors. Therein, the present invention applies interconnected fluidized beds in chemical looping combustion. Single redox is processed with oxygen carrier (oxide of metal like nickel or copper). The first and second reduction reactors individually handle their own reactions and reactants. Thus, in a chemical looping reactor, two different source materials can be handled at the same time. The oxygen carrier can be cycled separately as well for fully releasing oxygen contained within. High-purity carbon dioxide is further obtained. The application can be extended to hydrogen generation. Hence, the present invention simplifies the reaction mechanism, enhances the yield, improves the operation efficiency and reduces the cost.

The invention relates to an oxygen carrier solid, its preparation and its use in a method of combustion of a hydrocarbon feedstock by active mass chemical-looping oxidation-reduction, i.e. chemical-looping combustion (CLC). The solid, which is in the form of particles, comprises an oxidation-reduction active mass composed of metal oxide(s) dispersed in a ceramic matrix comprising at least one oxide with a melting point higher than 1500 C., such as alumina, and has, initially, a specific macroporous texture. The oxygen carrier solid is prepared from an aqueous suspension containing precursor oxide grains for the ceramic matrix that have a specific size, by a spray-drying technique.

The invention relates to an oxygen carrier solid, its preparation and its use in a method of combustion of a hydrocarbon feedstock by active mass chemical-looping oxidation-reduction, i.e. chemical-looping combustion (CLC). The solid, which is hi the form of particles, comprises an oxidation-reduction active mass composed of metal oxide(s) dispersed in a ceramic matrix comprising at least at least one feldspar or feldspathoid with a melting point higher than 1500 C., such as celsian, and has, initially, a specific macroporous texture. The oxygen carrier solid is prepared from a precursor of the ceramic matrix, obtained from a macroporous zeolitic material with zeolite crystals of a specific size, and a precursor of the oxidation-reduction active mass.

Various aspects provide for a multistage fluidized bed reactor, particularly comprising a volatilization stage and a combustion stage. The gas phases above the bed solids in the respective stages are separated by a wall. An opening (e.g., in the wall) provides for transport of the bed solids from the volatilization stage to the combustion stage. Active control of the gas pressure in the two stages may be used to control residence time. Various aspects provide for a fuel stream processing system having a pretreatment reactor, a combustion reactor, and optionally a condensation reactor. The condensation reactor receives a volatiles stream volatilized by the volatilization reactor. The combustion reactor receives a char stream resulting from the removal of the volatiles by the volatilization reactor.