A grid-energy firming process and a grid energy firming system. The process comprises alternating between a process for generating electrical energy, and a process for generating gaseous fuels in response to the energy demands of a grid energy system. The system comprises a reactor containing a carbonaceous fuel, and a heat exchanger to extract heat from the flue gas and/or gaseous fuel.

The present disclosure provides systems and methods for hydrogen production as well as apparatuses useful in such systems and methods. Hydrogen is produced by steam reforming of a hydrocarbon in a gas heated reformer that is heated using one or more streams comprising combustion products of a fuel in an oxidant, preferably in the presence of a carbon dioxide circulating stream.

An integrated process for the production of a useful liquid hydrocarbon product comprises: feeding a gasification zone with an oxygen-containing feed and a first carbonaceous feedstock comprising waste materials and/or biomass, gasifying the first carbonaceous feedstock in the gasification zone to produce first synthesis gas, partially oxidising the first synthesis gas in a partial oxidation zone to generate partially oxidised synthesis gas, combining at least a portion of the first synthesis gas and/or the partially oxidised synthesis gas and at least a portion of electrolysis hydrogen obtained from an electrolyser in an amount to achieve the desired hydrogen to carbon monoxide molar ratio of from about 1.5:1 to about 2.5:1, and to generate a blended synthesis gas, wherein the electrolyser operates using green electricity; and subjecting at least a portion of the blended synthesis gas to a conversion process effective to produce the liquid hydrocarbon product.

Embodiments of the present disclosure are directed to a diesel reformer system comprising: a diesel autothermal reforming unit; a post-reforming unit disposed downstream of the autothermal reforming unit; a heat exchanger disposed downstream of the post-reforming unit; and a desulfurization unit disposed downstream of the heat exchanger.

A catalytic burner arrangement is provided including at least a catalytic burner unit with a housing having a reaction chamber in which a catalyst is arranged, wherein the catalyst is adapted to react a fuel, particularly a hydrogen containing fluid, with an oxidant, particularly air, for producing heat, the housing having a fluid inlet for supplying a fluid stream into the housing and a find outlet for exiting a fluid stream from the housing, and the catalytic burner arrangement further includes a mixing unit forming a mixing chamber in which fuel and oxidant are mixed, wherein the mixing device includes a fuel inlet, an oxidant inlet and an fuel-oxidant-mixture outlet, and wherein the fluid inlet of the catalytic burner unit merges with the fuel-oxidant-outlet of the mixing unit for transferring the fuel-oxidant-mixture from the mixing chamber to the reaction chamber of the catalytic burner unit wherein the fuel-oxidant-outlet of the mixing chamber is pipe-shaped and extents into the mixing chamber of the mixing unit, and wherein a length of the pipe-shaped fuel-oxidant-outlet extents over the oxidant inlet and/or the fuel inlet.

Methods and systems for ammonia production are provided. An exemplary method includes electrolyzing water to form H.sub.2 and O.sub.2; contacting a reformer feed stream including hydrocarbons, O.sub.2 from electrolysis, and an oxidant stream including O.sub.2 and N.sub.2 to form a reformed stream including H.sub.2, CO, CO.sub.2, and N.sub.2; contacting the reformed stream with a water-gas shift catalyst to form a shifted stream including H.sub.2, CO.sub.2, and N.sub.2; separating the shifted stream to form a captured stream including CO.sub.2 and an ammonia production feed stream including H.sub.2 and N.sub.2; and reacting the ammonia production feed stream, and optionally H.sub.2 from electrolysis, to form ammonia.

Integrated liquid fuel catalytic partial oxidation (CPOX) reformer and fuel cell systems can include a plurality or an array of spaced-apart CPOX reactor units, each reactor unit including an elongated tube having a gas-permeable wall with internal and external surfaces. The wall encloses an unobstructed gaseous flow passageway. At least a portion of the wall has CPOX catalyst disposed therein and/or comprising its structure. The catalyst-containing wall structure and open gaseous flow passageway enclosed thereby define a gaseous phase CPOX reaction zone, the catalyst-containing wall section being gas-permeable to allow gaseous CPOX reaction mixture to diffuse therein and hydrogen rich product reformate to diffuse therefrom. The liquid fuel CPOX reformer also can include a vaporizer, one or more igniters, and a source of liquid reformable fuel. The hydrogen-rich reformate can be converted to electricity within a fuel cell unit integrated with the CPOX reactor unit.

A direct carbonaceous material to power generation system integrates one or more solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) into a fluidized bed gasifier. The fuel cell anode is in direct contact with bed material so that the H.sub.2 and CO generated in the bed are oxidized to H.sub.2O and CO.sub.2 to create a push-pull or source-sink reaction environment. The SOFC is exothermic and supplies heat within a reaction chamber of the gasifier where the fluidized bed conducts an endothermic reaction. The products from the anode are the reactants for the reformer and vice versa. A lower bed in the reaction chamber may comprise engineered multi-function material which may incorporate one or more catalysts and reactant adsorbent sites to facilitate excellent heat and mass transfer and fluidization dynamics in fluidized beds. The catalyst is capable of cracking tars and reforming hydrocarbons.

Provided is a hydrogen production apparatus enabling reduction of energy needed for separation and collection of CO.sub.2 in the hydrogen production. The hydrogen production apparatus includes a reformer, a heating device heating the reformer, a transformer, a hydrogen separation device separating and taking out hydrogen from transformed gas, a CO.sub.2 separation device separating and taking out CO.sub.2 from off-gas from which hydrogen was separated by the hydrogen separation device, a heat collecting device collecting heat of the reformed gas, heat of the transformed gas, and waste heat from the heating device, and a heat medium supply device supplying the heat medium having absorbed heat collected by the heat collecting device to the CO.sub.2 separation device. The absorption liquid having absorbed CO.sub.2 in off-gas is heated by the heat medium heated with collected heat, thereby releasing CO.sub.2.

The present invention is directed to modifications of bitumen and heavy oil upgrading and refining processes to synthesize synthetic crude oil and other valuable synthesized hydrocarbon products in an efficient manner along with the production of commercially valuable co-products from by-products formed by the upgrading process.