A fuel oxidation system including an inlet in fluid communication with an interior of a sealed container, and the sealed container is holding permeated gas released from a pressure vessel within the sealed container. Another inlet is in fluid communication with an environment surrounding the sealed container, and the environment includes oxygen gas (O.sub.2). An oxidation module is in fluid communication with the inlet and the other inlet, and the oxidation module is combining the permeated gas received by the inlet with the oxygen gas (O.sub.2) received by the other inlet to form a preferred substance.

A membrane is described for purifying or separating hydrogen from a multi-component gas stream such as syngas. This membrane uses a molecular pre-treatment, a transition metal, fluorine containing polymer, carbon fibers and carbon matrix sintered on a supportive screen. The membrane may be a bilayer membrane comprised of a layer containing high surface area carbon and another layer containing lower surface area carbon. Methods for purifying hydrogen are also described.

A gas treatment method includes: a process (a) of allowing gas to be treated in which a target substance to be treated is mixed with air to pass through inside a housing, the target substance to be treated exhibiting volatility at room temperature and belonging to at least one substance selected from a group consisting of carbon compounds, nitrogen compounds, and sulfur compounds; a process (b) of introducing ozone into a space through which the gas to be treated flows inside the housing at 200° C. or lower; a process (c) of stirring the gas to be treated after the process (b); and a process (d) of heating the gas to be treated to 300° C. or higher after executing the process (c).

The present invention comprises a one-stage membrane process for electrochemical separation of hydrogen from natural gas streams in a pipeline (1) having a positive pressure in the range from 50 mbar to 100 bar, having the following process steps: (i) a gas substream (2) is drawn off from the natural gas stream in a pipeline (1) without any change in the gas composition, where the mass flow rate of the gas substream is adjusted depending on the hydrogen content in the natural gas stream (1) such that a depletion level of 0.65 to 0.975 is established in the case of a hydrogen concentration of <10% by volume and a depletion level of 0.55 to 0.925 in the case of a hydrogen concentration of >10% by weight, where the depletion level is defined as the quotient of the desired molar H2 product stream (6) and the molar H2 reactant flow rate in the gas substream at the inlet of the membrane unit (2), (ii) this gas substream (2) is compressed (3) upstream of a membrane unit (5), (iii) this gas substream is heated to 100 to 250° C. either upstream of the membrane unit or in the membrane unit, and this gas substream is supplied with water (4) upstream of the membrane unit and/or on the permeate side of the membrane unit (4a), such that the water loading is between 0.005 and 0.2 mol of water/mol of natural gas, (iv) this gas substream is sent to an electrochemical membrane unit in which hydrogen is separated off as permeate (6a) at a temperature of 100 to 250° C., (v) the retentate (8) from the membrane unit is recycled into the natural gas stream, sent to a chemical utilization and/or used as fuel.

The present invention further comprises a method of ascertaining the optimized gas substream which is drawn off from a pipeline that conducts natural gas and hydrogen in order to separate hydrogen from this gas substream in an electrochemical membrane unit.

An adsorbent bed, including at least one elementary composite structure that includes adsorbent particles in a polymer matrix, wherein the adsorbent bed has a bed packing, ρ.sub.bed, defined as a volume occupied by the at least one elementary composite structure V.sub.ecs divided by a volume of the adsorbent bed V.sub.bed where ρ.sub.bed is greater than 0.60.

A system and a method for reduction or elimination of environmentally harmful or “greenhouse” gases in situations in which gaseous hydrocarbons are flared or vented from an oil and gas well are disclosed. The system configures to inject a chemically reactive, or dispersive, or reactive and dispersive atomized mist into a gas flow line leading to a flare stack. The mist reacts with the gas in the flow line to convert methane to hydrogen and carbon monoxide and to reduce other harmful gases, facilitating a clean-burning, compact flare of blue color due to the presence of primarily hydrogen, some carbon monoxide, and a small amount of residual methane. The hydrogen and carbon monoxide may be captured and stored before reaching the ignition point at the top of the flare stack.

A method for recovering helium from a feed gas mixture comprising helium, carbon dioxide and at least one of methane and nitrogen, and wherein at least a part of the feed gas mixture is subjected to a separation sequence including a membrane-based separation and an adsorption-based separation forming a helium product, wherein the the membrane based separation is performed using a first membrane separation step and a second membrane separation step, the membrane based separation and the separation sequence includes no further membrane separation steps, the adsorption based separation is performed using a pressure swing adsorption step, at least a part of the feed gas mixture is subjected to the first membrane separation step forming a first retentate and a first permeate. A corresponding arrangement is also provided.

Microorganisms present within a plurality of microorganism clusters immobilized in a porous support material may collectively define a supported bio-catalyst. When the microorganisms are effective to convert methane into one or more oxidized carbon compounds (e.g., methanotrophic bacteria), the supported bio-catalysts may be utilized to remove methane from methane-containing gas streams, such as those obtained from mining ventilation. Methods for processing a methane-containing gas stream may comprise interacting the gas stream with the supported bio-catalyst in substantial absence of a liquid phase, and obtaining a methane-depleted gas stream downstream from the supported bio-catalyst. Systems for processing a methane-containing gas stream may comprise the supported bio-catalysts housed in one or more vessels fluidly coupled to a source of methane-containing gas stream. A gas concentration in the methane-containing gas stream and/or the methane-depleted gas stream may be used to determine a current state or anticipated remaining lifetime of the supported bio-catalyst.

The present invention relates to novel sulfur-doped carbonaceous porous materials. The present invention also relates to processes for the preparation of these materials and to the use of these materials in applications such as gas adsorption, mercury and gold capture, gas storage and as catalysts or catalyst supports.

Provided are a methane-selective composite membrane comprising: a UiO-66 type organic-inorganic composite nanoporous material, a MIL-100 type organic-inorganic composite nanoporous material, or a ZIF-8 type organic-inorganic composite nanoporous material to which a methane-selective functional group is introduced for selectively separating methane from a gas mixture containing methane/nitrogen, a use thereof, and a method of preparing the same.