The present invention relates to an adsorption process for xenon recovery from a cryogenic liquid or gas stream wherein a bed of adsorbent is contacted with a xenon-containing liquid or gas stream selectively adsorbing the xenon from said stream. The adsorption bed is operated to at least near full breakthrough with xenon to enable a deep rejection of other stream components, prior to regeneration using the temperature swing method. After the stripping step, the xenon adsorbent bed is drained to clear out the liquid residue left in the nonselective void space and the xenon molecules in those void spaces is recycled upstream to the ASU distillation column for increasing xenon recovery. The xenon adsorbent bed is optionally purged with oxygen, followed by purging with gaseous argon at cryogenic temperature (160 K) to displace the oxygen co-adsorbed on the AgX adsorbent due to higher selectivity of argon over oxygen on the AgX adsorbent. By the end of this step, the xenon adsorbent bed is filled with argon and xenon. Then the entire adsorbent bed is heated indirectly without utilizing any of the purge gas for direct heating. Operating the adsorption bed to near full breakthrough with xenon and displacing the adsorbed oxygen and other residues with argon, prior to regeneration, along with indirect heating of the bed, enables production of a high purity product 40 vol % xenon from the adsorption bed and further enables safely heating without any purge gas and ease for downstream product collection, even in cases where hydrocarbons are co-present in the feed stream.

A liquefier device which may be a retrofit to an air separation plant or utilized as part of a new design. The flow needed for the liquefier comes from an air separation plant running in a maxim oxygen state, in a stable mode. The three gas flows are low pressure oxygen, low pressure nitrogen, and higher pressure nitrogen. All of the flows are found on the side of the main heat exchanger with a temperature of about 37 degrees Fahrenheit. All of the gasses put into the liquefier come out as a subcooled liquid, for storage or return to the air separation plant. This new liquefier does not include a front end electrical compressor, and will take a self produced liquid nitrogen, pump it up to a runnable 420 psig pressure, and with the use of turbines, condensers, flash pots, and multi pass heat exchangers. The liquefier will make liquid from a planned amount of any pure gas oxygen or nitrogen an air separation plant can produce.

A distillation column system and a plant are for production of oxygen by cryogenic fractionation of air. The distillation column system has a high-pressure column and a low-pressure column, a main condenser, and an argon column with an argon column top condenser. The low-pressure column comprises an upper mass transfer region, a lower mass transfer region and a middle mass transfer region. The argon column top condenser is arranged within the low-pressure column between the upper and middle mass transfer regions and is configured as a forced-flow evaporator.

The present invention relates to a refrigerant composition comprising neon and hydrogen. The present invention further relates to the use of the refrigerant composition in liquefying gaseous substances such as hydrogen or helium.

The present invention relates to an integrated method and apparatus for providing a synthesis gas to a cryogenic separation unit installed for separating synthesis gas into products selected from carbon monoxide, crude hydrogen, methane-rich fuel and syngas with a particular H.sub.2:CO ratio. More specifically, the invention relates to the purification of synthesis gas routed to a downstream cryogenic separation unit and minimizing temperature disturbances in the separation unit.

An apparatus for producing a purified, pressurized liquid carbon dioxide stream includes a distillation column (B) having packing (C) therein and a sump (D) below the packing, the distillation column in fluid communication with the liquid carbon dioxide supply tank for receiving the liquid carbon dioxide stream and the packing stripping volatile impurities from the liquid carbon dioxide stream; a heater (E) in contact with the liquid carbon dioxide stream in the sump (D) for vaporizing the liquid carbon dioxide stream in the sump; a vent in the distillation column (B) from which a first vaporized portion (G) of carbon dioxide vapor in the sump (D) is withdrawn from the distillation column: and a conduit (I) in fluid communication with the sump (D) and from which a second vaporized portion (H) of the carbon dioxide vapor in the sump is withdrawn into the conduit (I) to be introduced into the carbon dioxide vapor feed stream.

A batch process for producing a purified, pressurized liquid carbon dioxide stream, includes withdrawing a liquid carbon dioxide stream (A) from a liquid carbon dioxide supply (10); introducing the liquid carbon dioxide stream (A) into a distillation column (B) having packing (C) therein, and stripping volatile impurities from the liquid carbon dioxide stream with the packing; vaporizing the liquid carbon dioxide stream (A) in a sump (D) of the distillation column (B) for providing a carbon dioxide vapor; withdrawing from a vaporized portion (F) of carbon dioxide vapor in the sump (D) a first vapor stream (G) vented from the distillation column (B); withdrawing from the vaporized portion (F) of the carbon dioxide vapor in the sump (D) a second vapor portion (H) vented from the sump into a conduit (I); and introducing the second vapor portion (H) in the conduit (I) into a carbon dioxide vapor feed stream.

A moderate pressure air separation unit and air separation cycle is disclosed that provides for up to about 96% recovery of argon and an overall nitrogen recovery of 98% or greater. The air separation is configured to produce a high purity oxygen enriched stream which is used as the refrigerant to condense the argon in the argon condenser, with the resulting vaporized oxygen stream used to regenerate the temperature swing adsorption prepurifier unit. Argon recovery is facilitated with the use of an argon superstaged column.

A process for cryogenic separation of a feed stream containing methane and air gases in which: the feed stream is cooled in order to produce a cooled stream, at least one portion of the cooled stream is sent to one level of a distillation column, a bottom stream is drawn off from the distillation column, the bottom stream being enriched in methane relative to the feed stream, a stream enriched in oxygen and in nitrogen relative to the feed stream is drawn off from the distillation column, at least one noncombustible dilution stream that is more volatile than oxygen is introduced into the distillation column at at least one level lower than the one at which the cooled stream is introduced. The dilution stream is extracted from the feed stream. Facility for producing biomethane by purification of biogases derived from non-hazardous waste storage facilities (NHWSF) implementing the process.

Device and method for purifying a gas mixture to produce a concentrated gas, notably neon, starting from a mixture comprising neon, said device including, in a cold box housing a cryogenic purification circuit comprising, in series, at least one unit for purifying the mixture by cryogenic adsorption at a temperature between 65K and 100K and notably 65K, then a unit for cooling the mixture to a temperature between 25 and 65 K and then a unit for cryogenic distillation of the mixture to produce the concentrated liquid at the outlet of the cryogenic distillation unit, characterized in that the unit for cooling the mixture to a temperature between 25 and 65 K comprises at least one cryocooler that extracts thermal power from the mixture via a heat exchanger.