The present invention is to provide, in a combined system of a bioethanol producing device and an SOFC, a method that is capable of further enhancing the electric power generation efficiency of the SOFC, and is also capable of achieving further reduction of the energy required for distillation of the fermented liquid. A part of an anode off-gas is refluxed to the water-containing ethanol vapor line from the mash column to the reforming device at a reflux ratio ((flow rate of reflux gas)/(flow rate of (anode off-gas)(reflux gas))) of from 1 to 2. The ethanol concentration of the water-containing ethanol vapor is controlled by refluxing, to a range of from 25 to 35% by weight with water contained in the anode off-gas of the solid oxide fuel cell.

A hydrogen generation system includes a reformer that produces a hydrogen-containing gas from a raw material and reforming water, a combustor that burns the hydrogen-containing gas and air, an exhaust-gas path, a cooling-water path, a condenser that produces condensed water by exchanging heat between the exhaust gas and the cooling water, a water tank that stores the cooling water, a water pump that feeds the cooling water into the condenser, a reforming-water path along which part of the cooling water is passed into the reformer to serve as reforming water which is branched from the cooling-water path, and a controller. The water tank is disposed at a position higher than the water pump. The water pump is disposed at a position higher than the junction. The controller detects an insufficient supply of the cooling water on the basis of the rotational speed of the water pump.

A plant and process for producing a hydrogen rich gas are provided, the process including the steps of: reforming a hydrocarbon feed in a reforming step thereby obtaining a synthesis gas including CH.sub.4, CO, CO.sub.2, H.sub.2 and H.sub.2O; shifting the synthesis gas in a shift configuration including a high temperature shift step; removal of CO.sub.2 upstream hydrogen purification unit, such as a pressure swing adsorption unit (PSA), and recycling off-gas from hydrogen purification unit and mix it with natural gas upstream prereformer feed preheater, prereformer, reformer feed preheater or ATR or shift as feed for the process.

A multiple stage synthesis gas generation system is disclosed including a high radiant heat flux reactor, a gasifier reactor control system, and a Steam Methane Reformer (SMR) reactor. The SMR reactor is in parallel and cooperates with the high radiant heat flux reactor to produce a high quality syngas mixture for MeOH synthesis. The resultant products from the two reactors may be used for the MeOH synthesis. The SMR provides hydrogen rich syngas to be mixed with the potentially carbon monoxide rich syngas from the high radiant heat flux reactor. The combination of syngas component streams from the two reactors can provide the required hydrogen to carbon monoxide ratio for methanol synthesis. The SMR reactor control system and a gasifier reactor control system interact to produce a high quality syngas mixture for the MeOH synthesis.

A method for conversion of greenhouse gases comprises: introducing a flow of a dehumidified gaseous source of carbon dioxide into a reaction vessel; introducing a flow of a dehumidified gaseous source of methane into the reaction vessel; and irradiating catalytic material in the reaction vessel with microwave energy. The irradiated catalytic material is heated and catalyzes an endothermic reaction of carbon dioxide and methane that produces hydrogen and carbon monoxide. At least a portion of heat required to maintain a temperature within the reaction vessel is supplied by the microwave energy. If desired, a mixture that includes carbon monoxide and hydrogen can flow out of the reaction vessel and be introduced into a second reaction vessel to undergo catalyzed reactions producing multiple-carbon reaction products.

A method for conversion of greenhouse gases comprises: introducing a flow of a dehumidified gaseous source of carbon dioxide into a reaction vessel; introducing a flow of a dehumidified gaseous source of methane into the reaction vessel; and irradiating catalytic material in the reaction vessel with microwave energy. The irradiated catalytic material is heated and catalyzes an endothermic reaction of carbon dioxide and methane that produces hydrogen and carbon monoxide. At least a portion of heat required to maintain a temperature within the reaction vessel is supplied by the microwave energy. A mixture that includes carbon monoxide and hydrogen can undergo catalyzed reactions producing multiple-carbon reaction products in a lower-temperature portion of the reaction vessel.

There is disclosed a surprising reaction of an alkane thiol with a catalyst and heat to become dehydrogenated and form a thiophene rather than an expected desulfurization reaction to form the corresponding alkane or alkene. Moreover, there are disclosed surprising results regarding the form of a catalyst to allow a reaction of an alkane thiol to form the dehydrogenated thiophene at lower temperatures and at higher conversion percentages to allow for more efficient recovery of thiophenes to allow for recycling and reuse of thiophenes to hydrogenate to form alkane thiols. Further still, there is disclosed a set of reaction conditions and catalyst presentation that allows for recovery of usable diatomic hydrogen gas from a dehydrogenation reaction of substituted or unsubstituted cyclic thioethers to substituted or unsubstituted thiophene.

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 elongate tube having a gas-permeable wall with internal and external surfaces, the wall enclosing an open gaseous flow passageway with at least a portion of the wall having 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 liquid fuel CPOX reactor unit.

The present disclosure is directed to a hydrogen production system for creating and extracting hydrogen gas. The hydrogen production system contains a reactor vessel into which a solution and a metallic or semi-metal material may be placed. The solution is added to the reactor vessel contains both water and a caustic. When contacting the metallic or semi-metal material within the reactor vessel a chemical reaction occurs. The chemical reaction creates hydrogen gas as well as heat and other byproducts. The hydrogen gas may then flow through a hydrogen extraction point located on the reactor vessel for collection or operational use.

Hydrogen generation assemblies, hydrogen purification devices, and their components are disclosed. In some embodiments, the devices may include a permeate frame with a membrane support structure having first and second membrane support plates that are free from perforations and that include a plurality of microgrooves configured to provide flow channels for at least part of the permeate stream. In some embodiments, the assemblies may include a return conduit fluidly connecting a buffer tank and a reformate conduit, a return valve assembly configured to manage flow in the return conduit, and a control assembly configured to operate a fuel processing assembly between run and standby modes based, at least in part, on detected pressure in the buffer tank and configured to direct the return valve assembly to allow product hydrogen stream to flow from the buffer tank to the reformate conduit when the fuel processing assembly is in the standby mode.