Reverse flow reactor (RFR) apparatuses exhibiting asymmetric feed profiles and improved flow distribution during heating mode and/or pyrolysis mode operation, and methods of using same to transform a hydrocarbon feed into a pyrolysed hydrocarbon product are disclosed. The RFR apparatus includes an RFR body with a reaction zone having at least one bed. The RFR body has a central vertical axis and is flanked by first and second void spaces. The method utilizes at least two oxygen-containing feeds, a combustion fuel feed, a purge feed, and a hydrocarbon pyrolysis feed. The RFR apparatus can cycle between an exothermic heating mode (heated to ≥700° C. while maintaining a pressure drop across the reaction zone of ≤100 kPag), a purge mode (purging oxygen using <6 bed volumes of purge gas while maintaining a pressure drop of ≤35 kPag), and an endothermic pyrolysis mode (feeding pyrolysis hydrocarbons through the reaction zone to form pyrolysis products, while maintaining a pressure drop across the reaction zone of ≤70 kPag).

Catalyst systems are provided for reforming of hydrocarbons, along with methods for using such catalyst systems. The catalyst systems can be deposited or otherwise coated on a surface or structure, such as a monolith, to achieve improved activity and/or structural stability. The metal oxide support layer can correspond to a thermally stable metal oxide support layer, such as a metal oxide support layer that is thermally phase stable at temperatures of 800° C. to 1600° C. The catalyst systems can be beneficial for use in cyclical reaction environments, such as reverse flow reactors or other types of reactors that are operated using flows in opposing directions and different times within a reaction cycle.

Systems and methods are provided for using size-reversing materials in vessels where direct heating is used to at least partially provide heat for reforming reactions under cyclic reforming conditions. An example of a size-reversing material is the combination of NiO and Al.sub.2O.sub.3. It has been discovered that size-reversing materials can undergo a phase transition that can assist with re-dispersion of metal at elevated temperatures. This can assist with maintaining catalytic activity for reforming over longer time periods in the presence of cyclic reforming conditions.

A reactor having a shell comprising one or more reactor tubes located within the shell, said reactor tube or tubes comprising a plurality of catalyst receptacles containing catalyst; means for providing a heat transfer fluid to the reactor shell such that the heat transfer fluid contacts the tube or tubes; an inlet for providing reactants to the reactor tubes; and an outlet for recovering products from the reactor tubes; wherein the plurality of catalyst receptacles containing catalyst within a tube comprises catalyst receptacles containing catalyst of at least two configurations.

A monolith-type reactor includes a separation membrane, a first flow path, a second flow path, and a catalyst. The separation membrane is permeable to a product of conversion reaction of a raw material gas containing at least hydrogen and carbon dioxide to a liquid fuel. The raw material gas flows through the first flow path. A sweep gas for sweeping the product that has permeated through the separation membrane flows through the second flow path. The catalyst is disposed in the first flow path and configured to promote the conversion reaction of the raw material gas to the liquid fuel. In a side view of the separation membrane, a direction in which the sweep gas flows through the second flow path is opposite to the direction in which the raw material gas flows through the first flow path.

A catalyst bed contains one or more segments of monolithic catalyst, wherein the monolithic catalyst includes a mono-lithic honeycomb structure and a layer of catalyst coating the honeycomb structure; the honeycomb structure contains a plurality of channels aligned side by side; and each channel includes an inlet positioned at a first terminus of the channel, an outlet positioned at a second terminus of the channel, and openings positioned along the channel in the direction of fluid flow through the channel for transverse fluid flow in and/or out of the channel.

A reaction device for reacting a liquid-phase reactant and a gas-phase reactant converted into fine bubbles includes: a porous body that includes a plurality of flow paths and in which the flow paths are separated by porous walls, the porous walls include continuous pores, and the porous body includes a reaction catalyst at least on the surface thereof; a solution supply section for supplying a solution containing a gas-phase reactant and a liquid-phase reactant to the continuous pores in the porous body; and a solution discharge section for discharging solution containing a reaction product obtained when the solution flows through the continuous pores of the porous body.

The present invention relates to different liquid distributors for monolith in multiphase applications. The present invention more particularly relates to distributor devices in the form of a single injection and multiple injection pipe distributors; shower head distributor comprising a plurality of holes for plunging liquid; a packing of spherical particles with a pre-distributor to split the liquid into manifold streams, before entry into the monolith bed. The present invention provides liquid distributors for monolith in multiphase applications providing improved liquid distribution into the monolith bed resulting in uniform fluid flow in each channel so as to make maximum use of the catalyst surface area.

A reactor system for thermally treating a hydrocarbon-containing stream, that includes a pressure containment vessel comprising an interior chamber defined by a first end, a second end, and at least one side wall extending from the first end to the second end; and a ceramic heat transfer medium that converts electrical current to heat and is positioned within the interior chamber of the pressure containment vessel, wherein the heat transfer medium comprises an electrical resistor, an electrical lead line configured to provide electrical current to the heat transfer medium, a first end face, a second end face, and channels extending between the first end face and the second end face.

A reactor system for thermally treating a hydrocarbon-containing stream includes a pressure containment vessel having an interior chamber defined by a first end, a second end, and at least one sidewall extending from the first end to the second end. A heat transfer medium converts electrical current to heat is positioned within the interior chamber of the pressure containment vessel, and the heat transfer medium has a first end face, a second end face, and channels extending between the first end face and the second end face. A heat sink reservoir includes molten salt, and at least one of a heater or heat exchanger is fluidly coupled to the heat transfer medium and thermally coupled to the heat sink reservoir.