A steam methane reformer (SMR) system includes an outer tube, wherein a first end of the outer tube is closed; an inner tube disposed in the outer tube, wherein a first end of the inner tube is open. A flow channel is defined within the inner tube and an annular space is defined between the outer tube and the inner tube, the flow channel being in fluid communication with the annular space. The SMR system includes a catalytic foam disposed in the annular space between the outer tube and the inner tube, the catalytic foam comprising a catalyst.

Provided is a propylene oxide production apparatus including a switching mechanism that is capable of switching a state of each reactor between an operating state where reaction raw materials are supplied and an epoxidation reaction is performed and a non-operating state where the supply of the reaction raw materials is shut off. The propylene oxide production apparatus is capable of changing a reactor in the non-operating state one by one, and performs switching in such a way that only reactors in the operating state are connected fluidically in series or in parallel, thereby enabling supplying the reaction raw materials to the reactors in the operating state. A sampling mechanism is also provided that samples part of the reaction mixture from each discharge line that is connected to each reactor.

Proposed is a process for producing methanol from synthesis gas by means of multi-stage, for example two-stage, heterogeneously catalyzed methanol synthesis, wherein the methanol product formed in every synthesis stage is separated by condensation and the remaining residual gas is supplied to the downstream synthesis stage or after separation of a purge stream recycled to the first synthesis stage as a recycle stream. According to the invention after each synthesis stage the residual gas streams have separated from them a respective purge stream, from which, using one or more hydrogen recovery apparatuses, hydrogen is separated and recycled to the first synthesis stage. The ratio of the individual purge streams and their total molar flow may optionally be varied to allow better control of the reaction in the individual synthesis stages and to allow reaction to the advancing deactivation of the catalysts present therein.

A multi-stage dehydrogenation process including contacting, in a first stage, a feed stream comprising a hydrocarbon and steam with a dehydrogenation catalyst under dehydrogenation conditions to yield a first stage effluent, heating the first stage effluent, and contacting, in a second stage, the heated first stage effluent with a dehydrogenation catalyst under dehydrogenation conditions to yield a second stage effluent comprising a dehydrogenation product, wherein the first stage includes a first reactor and a second reactor arranged in parallel, and wherein the second stage includes a third reactor connected in series with the first reactor and the second reactor. A multi-stage dehydrogenation system for carrying out dehydrogenation is also provided.

A process for producing nitric acid comprising: catalytic oxidation of ammonia in the presence of oxygen to form a nitrous gas containing NO, O2, N2O and water vapor; a catalytic abatement of N2O which is performed over a first catalyst; a catalytic conversion of NO into NO2 which is performed over a second catalyst; the so obtained nitrous gas is then subject to absorption in water to produce nitric acid.

Systems and methods are provided for using oxycombustion to provide heat within a reverse flow reactor environment. The oxygen for the oxycombustion can be provided by oxygen stored in an oxygen storage component in the reactor. By using an oxygen storage component to provide the oxygen for combustion during the regeneration step, heat can be added to a reverse flow reactor while reducing or minimizing addition of diluents and while avoiding the need for an air separation unit. As a result, a regeneration flue gas can be formed that is substantially composed of CO.sub.2 and/or H.sub.2O without requiring the additional cost of creating a substantially pure oxygen-containing gas flow.

A multi-stage process for transforming a high sulfur ISO 8217 compliant Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil involving a core desulfurizing process that produces a Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oil that can be used as a feedstock for subsequent refinery process such as anode grade coking, needle coking and fluid catalytic cracking. The Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oil exhibits multiple properties desirable as a feedstock for those processes including a sulfur level has a maximum sulfur content (ISO 14596 or ISO 8754) between the range of 0.05 mass % to 1.0 mass. A process plant for conducting the process is also disclosed.

A process for reducing the environmental contaminants in a ISO 8217: 2017 Table 2 compliant Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil and resulting product, the process involving: mixing a Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil with a Activating Gas to give a feedstock mixture; contacting the feedstock mixture with one or more catalysts to form a Process Mixture; separating the Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oil from the Process Mixture and, discharging the Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oil. The Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oil complies with ISO 8217:2017 Table 2 for residual marine fuel and the Environmental Contaminants, which are selected from the group consisting of: a sulfur; vanadium, nickel, iron, aluminum and silicon and combinations thereof, are less than 0.5 wt. %. The Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oil can be used as blending stock for an ISO 8217:2017 Table 2 compliant, IMO 2020 compliant, low sulfur heavy marine fuel composition.

A fuel cell system and method, the system including a hotbox, a fuel cell stack disposed in the hotbox, an anode tail gas oxidizer (ATO) disposed in the hotbox, and a fuel exhaust processor fluidly connected to the hotbox. The fuel exhaust processor includes a first hydrogen pump configured to extract hydrogen from the anode exhaust received from the fuel cell stack and to output the hydrogen to a first hydrogen stream provided to the fuel cell stack, a second hydrogen pump configured to extract hydrogen from anode exhaust output from the first hydrogen pump and to output the hydrogen to the first hydrogen stream, and a third hydrogen pump configured to extract hydrogen from anode exhaust output from the second hydrogen pump and to output the hydrogen to a second hydrogen stream provided to the ATO.

A multi-bed catalytic converter comprising: a plurality of catalytic beds which are traversed in series by a process gas, sequentially from a first catalytic bed to a last catalytic bed of said plurality, and at least one inter-bed heat exchanger (7) positioned between a first catalytic bed and a second catalytic bed of said plurality, wherein at least the last catalytic bed of said plurality is adiabatic and is made of fine catalyst with a particle size not greater than 2 mm.