Recovering helium from a gaseous stream includes contacting an acid gas removal membrane with a gaseous stream to yield a permeate stream and a residual stream, removing a majority of the acid gas from the residual stream to yield a first acid gas stream and a helium depleted clean gas stream, removing a majority of the acid gas from the permeate stream to yield a second acid gas stream and a helium rich stream, and removing helium from the helium rich stream to yield a helium product stream and a helium depleted stream. A helium removal system for removing helium from a gaseous stream including hydrocarbon gas, acid gas, and helium includes a first processing zone including a first acid gas removal unit, a second processing zone including a second acid gas removal unit, a third processing zone, and a helium purification unit.

In a helium purification process, a stream containing at least 10% of helium, at least 10% of nitrogen in addition to hydrogen and methane is separated to form a helium-enriched stream containing hydrogen, a first stream enriched in nitrogen and in methane and a second stream enriched in nitrogen and in methane, the helium-enriched stream is treated to produce a helium-rich product and a residual gas containing water, the residual gas is treated by adsorption (TSA) to remove the water and the regeneration gas from the adsorption is sent to a combustion unit (O).

An apparatus and method for reclaiming and filtering helium for reuse in analytical instruments. The method includes inputting the output gas stream from a gas chromatograph split vent and subjecting the input gas stream to a mini-particulate filter. The gas stream is also subjected to a molecular sieve filter and a finishing filter to isolate the helium carrier gas. The finishing filter removes trace contaminants that are not caught in the previous filters. The method utilizes a pump and controller to maintain a constant pressure, preferably between 80 and 100 psi, to avoid back-flow contamination and to ensure movement of the gas stream through the filters. Additionally, the use of a relief valve prevents back pressure from entering into the gas chromatograph. The filtered helium gas may be stored for future use or re-introduced directly to the input carrier gas stream of a gas chromatograph.

Process and apparatus for producing helium, neon, or argon product gas using an adsorption separation unit having minimal dead end volumes. A purification unit receives a stream enriched in helium, neon, or argon, and a stream is recycled from the purification unit back to the adsorption separation unit in a controlled manner to maintain the concentration of the helium, neon, or argon in the feed to the separation unit within a targeted range.

An apparatus for collecting helium gas includes: a first receptacle having a first flexible membrane for receiving a gas containing helium, the first receptacle being selectively couplable to an inlet of the apparatus; a second receptacle having a second flexible membrane for receiving the gas containing helium, the second receptacle being selectively couplable to the inlet of the apparatus; a pump having an inlet selectively couplable to an outlet of the first receptacle and selectively couplable to an outlet of the second receptacle; a purifier having an inlet couplable to an outlet of the pump; and an outlet of the apparatus couplable to an outlet of the purifier. A method of collecting and reusing helium gas is also described. Other valuable and/or rare gases may be recovered and reused.

Recovering helium from a gaseous stream includes contacting an acid gas removal membrane with a gaseous stream to yield a permeate stream and a residual stream, removing a majority of the acid gas from the residual stream to yield a first acid gas stream and a helium depleted clean gas stream, removing a majority of the acid gas from the permeate stream to yield a second acid gas stream and a helium rich stream, and removing helium from the helium rich stream to yield a helium product stream and a helium depleted stream. A helium removal system for removing helium from a gaseous stream including hydrocarbon gas, acid gas, and helium includes a first processing zone including a first acid gas removal unit, a second processing zone including a second acid gas removal unit, a third processing zone, and a helium purification unit.

A helium-containing stream is recovered from a natural gas feed using a membrane followed by multiple distillation steps. Refrigeration is provided by expanding a bottoms liquid with a higher nitrogen content than the feed, achieving a lower temperature in the process. The helium-enriched vapor is then purified and the helium-containing waste stream is recycled to maximize recovery and reduce the number of compressors needed. The helium-depleted natural gas stream can be returned at pressure for utilization or transportation.

A crude helium stream is recovered from a natural gas feed by distillation. Refrigeration from expanding a portion of the bottoms liquid is used to partially condense the helium-enriched overhead vapor and generate a crude helium vapor and a helium-containing liquid stream that is recycled to the distillation column to maximize helium recovery. The helium-depleted natural gas stream can be returned at pressure for utilization or transportation.

A mechanism is provided in a data processing system comprising a processor and a memory, the memory comprising instructions that are executed by the processor to specifically configure the processor to implement a repetitive portion identification and weighting engine. A machine learning model is trained for weighting repetitive portions of patient electronic medical records (EMRs). A repetitive portion identification component applies a plurality of templates to clinical notes of a patient EMR to identify one or more candidate portions that match at least one of the plurality of templates. A content analysis component performs content analysis on the one or more candidate portions to determine whether each given candidate portion is relevant. A weighting component assigns a relative weight to each given candidate portion based on relevance. A cognitive summary graphical user interface (GUI) generation component generates cognitive summary reflecting at least a subset of the one or more candidate portions of the patient EMR. The mechanism outputs the cognitive summary in a GUI to a user.

Process and apparatus for producing helium, neon, or argon product gas using an adsorption separation unit having minimal dead end volumes. A second separation unit receives a stream enriched in helium, neon, or argon, and a stream is recycled from the second separation unit back to the adsorption separation unit in a controlled manner to maintain the concentration of the helium, neon, or argon in the feed to the separation unit within a targeted range.