An apparatus for producing a natural gas using carbon dioxide and water in air that includes an air-compressing member, a water collecting member, a water storing member, a carbon dioxide collecting member, a water electrolysis member, and a methanation reaction member. The water electrolysis member electrolyzes water separated from compressed air. The methanation reaction member generates a natural gas by reacting hydrogen from the electrolysis and carbon dioxide from the carbon dioxide collecting member. A method of producing a natural gas using carbon dioxide and water in air includes supplying hydrogen electrolyzed from water separated from air and carbon dioxide collected from the dry air to a methanation reaction member to generate a natural gas. A natural gas-synthesizing equipment system includes an apparatus for producing a natural gas using carbon dioxide and water in air.

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.

The present disclosure relates to systems and methods that provide power generation using predominantly CO.sub.2 as a working fluid. In particular, the present disclosure provides for the use of a portion of the heat of compression from a CO.sub.2 compressor as the additive heating necessary to increase the overall efficiency of a power production system and method.

A system and a method for processing air prior to separating components of the air are disclosed. The system comprises an air cooler, one or more compression stages operated in series, and one or more intercoolers installed between two adjacent compression stages. A blowdown storage tank is configured to collect water blowdown from one or more intercoolers and provide cooling medium to the air cooler. Atmospheric air is first sprayed by the water blowdown in the air cooler to form a cooled air stream. The cooled air stream is subsequently compressed in the one or more compression stages and cooled by the intercoolers between two adjacent compression stages. The water blowdown from one or more of the intercoolers is collected and recycled as the cooling medium to cool the atmospheric air before it enters the first compression stage.

The present invention relates to a cryogenic air separation process that provides high pressure oxygen for an oxy-fired combustion of a fuel (e.g., a carbonaceous fuel). The air separation process can be directly integrated into a closed cycle power production process utilizing a working fluid, such as CO.sub.2. Beneficially, the air separation process can eliminate the need for inter-cooling between air compression stages and rather provide for recycling the adiabatic heat of compression into a process step in further methods wherein an additional heat supply is beneficial.

The present disclosure relates to systems and methods that provide power generation using predominantly CO.sub.2 as a working fluid. In particular, the present disclosure provides for the use of a portion of the heat of compression from a CO.sub.2 compressor as the additive heating necessary to increase the overall efficiency of a power production system and method.

A method of temperature balancing for thermal integration of an air separation unit (ASU) with an oxycombustion power generation system, including compressing air through a plurality of compression stages, and routing a first stage compressed air stream through a first heat exchanger in heat exchange communication with a subsequent stage compressed air stream to lower the first stage compressed air stream temperature and increase the temperature of a subsequent stage compressed air stream.

A method for reducing process disturbances during pressurization of an adsorber in an air separation unit is provided, in which the air separation unit includes a front end purification unit and an air buffer tank. In one embodiment, the method can include the steps of: pressurizing a first adsorber while a second adsorber operates in an adsorption cycle, wherein the step of pressurizing the first adsorber further includes the steps of withdrawing a pressurized air stream from the air buffer tank and introducing the pressurized air stream to the first adsorber until the first adsorber is at a target pressure, wherein the air buffer tank is in fluid communication with the booster air compressor, wherein the method further includes the step of continually sending a first portion of air flow from the booster air compressor to the air buffer tank and continually sending a second portion of air flow from the booster air compressor to a system of columns within a cold box for rectification therein.

A method for reducing heat bumps following regeneration of adsorbers in an air separation unit is provided. The air separation unit can include a front end purification unit, a main air compressor, a main heat exchanger, a distillation column system, a regeneration gas heater, and a regeneration gas cooler, wherein the front end purification unit comprises a first adsorber and a second adsorber. The method can include the steps of: regenerating the first adsorber while the second adsorber operates in an adsorption cycle, wherein the step of regenerating the first adsorber further includes the steps of heating the first adsorber and then cooling the first adsorber, wherein during the step of cooling the first adsorber, a regeneration gas sourced from the distillation column system and cooled in the main heat exchanger is further cooled in a regeneration gas cooler prior to being used to cool the first adsorber.

A method and a system are provided for liquefying an industrial gas. Industrial gas is compressed, at a three-stage feed recycle compressor, to produce a first compressed gas portion and a second compressed gas portion. The second compressed gas portion is further compressed and divided into a first part and a second part. The first compressed gas portion is turbo-expanded to form a first turbo-expanded gas portion. The first turbo-expanded gas portion is warmed, at a heat exchanger, to form a first return stream. The first return stream is fed back to the three-stage feed recycle compressor, between a first compression stage and a second compression stage. A cooled first part is turbo-expanded to form a turbo-expanded first part. The turbo-expanded first part is warmed at the heat exchanger to form a second return stream. The cooled and liquefied second part is recovered as liquefied industrial gas.