The invention relates to a catalytic reactor comprising a combustion reaction chamber with catalytic reactor tubes filled with catalyst elements and metal radiation surfaces arranged in the chamber to improve heat transfer.

The invention relates to a pipe for thermal cracking of hydrocarbons in the presence of steam, in which the feed mixture is guided through externally heated pipes, wherein the pipe extends along a longitudinal axis and has a number N.sub.T of grooves that have been introduced into the inner surface of the pipe and extend in a helix around the longitudinal axis along the inner surface, the inner surface into which the grooves have been introduced, in a cross section at right angles to the longitudinal axis, has a diameter Di and a radius r.sub.1=Di/2, the grooves in the cross section at right angles to the longitudinal axis, in their groove base, each have the form of a circular arc and the circular arc has a radius r.sub.2, and
the grooves each have a groove depth TT which, in the cross section at right angles to the longitudinal axis, corresponds in each case to the smallest distance between the circle having the diameter Di on which the inner surface lies and the center of which lies on the longitudinal axis, and the furthest removed point of the groove base of the grooves from the longitudinal axis.

A reformer tube for producing synthesis gas by steam reforming of hydrocarbon-containing input gases is proposed where an outer shell tube is divided by means of a separating tray into a reaction chamber and an exit chamber, a dumped bed of a steam-reforming-active solid catalyst is arranged in the reaction chamber, at least one heat exchanger tube is arranged inside the reaction chamber and inside the dumped catalyst bed, whose entry end is in fluid connection with the dumped catalyst bed and whose exit end is in fluid connection with the exit chamber, the exit end of the heat exchanger tube is fed through the separating tray and opens out into a corrosion-protected inner tube which is disposed in the interior of the shell tube and is in fluid connection with a collection conduit for the synthesis gas product, and a gas-permeable thermal insulation layer is arranged between the inner wall of the shell tube and the outer wall of the inner tube.

The invention relates to a chemical reactor and reformer tubes for reforming a first feed stream comprising a hydrocarbon gas and steam. The chemical reactor comprises a shell with a heat source and one or more reformer tubes. The reformer tube is arranged to house catalyst material and is arranged to being heated by the heat source. The reformer tube comprises a first inlet for feeding said first feed stream into a first reforming reaction zone of the reformer tube, and a feed conduct arranged to allow a second feed stream into a second reforming reaction zone of the reformer tube. The second reforming reaction zone is positioned downstream of the first reforming reaction zone. The feed conduct is configured so that the second feed stream is only in contact with catalyst material in the second reforming reaction zone. The invention also relates to a process of producing CO rich synthesis gas at low S/C conditions.

Equipment for producing ethylene and/or acetylene from hydrocarbons, including the reaction chamber (13), burner (11), common or separate fuel gas inlets (12) and oxygen inlets (18), preheating tubes (14), a gas distributor (15), cracking gas inlets (16), and a reaction product outlet (17); the gas distributor (15), which has multiple gas inlets and gas outlets, is arranged on the cross section of the reaction chamber (13), where the gas inlet is connected to the cracking gas inlet (16), and the gas outlet is connected to the preheating tube (14). The cracking gas is uniformly distributed through the gas distributor (15) and passed through the preheating tubes (14), which are hollow tubes; the opening at the other end of the hollow tube is close to or inserted into the combustion area of the gaseous fuel and oxygen.

A method and an apparatus for detailed continuous monitoring of the thermal environment for a tube or a plurality of tubes and calculation and prediction of remaining lifetime of said tubes.

A reformer tube for producing synthesis gas by steam reforming of hydrocarbon-containing input gases is proposed where an outer shell tube is divided by means of a separating tray into the reaction chamber and an exit chamber, a dumped bed of a steam-reforming-active, solid catalyst is arranged in the reaction chamber, at least one heat exchanger tube is arranged inside the reaction chamber and inside the dumped catalyst bed whose entry end is in fluid connection with the catalyst bed and whose exit end is in fluid connection with the exit chamber, wherein gas-contacted parts of the reformer tube, in particular the at least one heat exchanger tube, are fabricated from a nickel-based alloy and coated on their inside with an aluminum diffusion layer.

The invention relates to a process for producing hydrogen from a light hydrocarbon source, in which a synthesis gas is generated by steam methane reforming after desulfurization and optionally pre-reforming of the feedstock. The synthesis gas is enriched with hydrogen by steam conversion of carbon monoxide, and is subsequently purified in a pressure swing adsorption unit to give a pure H.sub.2 product and a residual gas mixture containing CH.sub.4, CO, H.sub.2 and CO.sub.2; in accordance with the invention, the conversion step is performed in a cooled reactor in which the heat of the conversion reaction is transferred to a fluid which feeds the burners of the reformer, or to the gas for reforming.

A method for producing hydrogen includes flowing a first gas along a bayonet flow path of a steam methane reformer (SMR) to produce a first product, including flowing the first gas through a foam disposed along the bayonet flow path; providing the first product produced in the SMR to an input of a water gas shift (WGS) reaction channel defined within a reaction tube of a WGS reactor; and flowing a second gas including the first product through the WGS reaction channel to produce a second product. Flowing the second gas includes flowing the second gas across a heat transfer material disposed in the WGS reaction channel to reduce the temperature of the flowing second gas; and flowing the second gas across a WGS catalyst disposed in the reaction channel.

A system and method including a sulfur recovery system (SRU) having a Claus system, reacting hydrogen sulfide and oxygen in a furnace to give sulfur dioxide, performing a Claus reaction in the furnace to give elemental sulfur, performing the Claus reaction in a Claus reactor to give elemental sulfur at a temperature greater than a dew point of the elemental sulfur, performing the Claus reaction in a Claus cycling reactor to give elemental sulfur at a temperature less than a solidification temperature of the elemental sulfur, depositing the elemental sulfur as solid elemental sulfur on catalyst in the Claus cycling reactor, and regenerating (heating) the Claus cycling reactor thereby forming elemental sulfur vapor from the solid elemental sulfur.