This invention relates to a power recovery process in waste steam/CO.sub.2 reformers in which a waste stream can be made to release energy without having to burn the waste or the syngas. This invention in some embodiments does not make use of fuel cells as a component but makes use of exothermic chemical reactors using syngas to produce heat, such as Fischer-Tropsch synthesis. It also relates to control or elimination of the emissions of greenhouse gases in the power recovery process of this invention with the goal of producing energy in the future carbonless world economy.

The present disclosure relates to a process and a system for producing synthesis gas. The carbonaceous feedstock is gasified, in the presence of at least one of oxygen and steam, in a first reactor to obtain a gaseous mixture comprising H2, CO, CH4, CO2, H2O, tar and char. The gaseous mixture is treated in a second, reactor, in the presence of a catalyst, to obtain synthesis gas. The system comprises a first reactor, a connecting conduit, a second reactor, at least one cyclone separator, at least one heat exchanger and at least one synthesis gas filter unit. The process and the system of the present disclosure are capable of producing synthesis gas with comparatively higher conversion of the unreacted char.

A system for using carbonaceous material includes a steam reformer, a hydrocarbon reformer, and at least one gas-cleanup system. Also described are methods of producing liquid fuel and/or chemicals from carbonaceous material.

A process to efficiently convert organic feedstock material into liquid non-oxygenated hydrocarbons in the C.sub.5 to C.sub.12 carbon skeleton range is disclosed. The process can utilize gaseous, liquid or solid organic feedstocks containing carbon, hydrogen and, optionally, oxygen. The feedstock may require preparation of the organic feedstock for the process and is converted first into a synthesis gas containing carbon monoxide and hydrogen. The synthesis gas is then cleaned and conditioned and extraneous components removed, leaving substantially only the carbon monoxide and hydrogen. It is then converted via a series of chemical reactions into the desired liquid hydrocarbons. The hydrocarbons are suitable for combustion in a vehicle engine and may be regarded a replacement for petrol made from fossil fuels in the C.sub.5 to C.sub.12 carbon backbone range. The process also recycles gaseous by-products back through the various reactors of the process to maximize the liquid hydrocarbon in the C.sub.5 to C.sub.12 carbon skeleton range yield.

Copper adsorbents which are resistant to the reduction by the components of the synthesis gas at normal operation conditions. The adsorbents are produced by admixing small amounts of an inorganic halide, such as NaCl, to the basic copper carbonate precursor followed by calcination at a temperature sufficient to decompose the carbonate. The introduction of the halide can be also achieved during the forming stage of adsorbent preparation. These reduction resistant copper oxides can be in the form of composites with alumina and are especially useful for purification of synthesis gas and the removal of mercury, arsine, phosphine, as well as hydrogen sulfide.

A method of recovering a hydrogen-enriched gas at least 70 percent by volume hydrogen includes introducing into the feed device to a rotary furnace defining a tubular interior space, starting materials containing carbon or hydrocarbons. A mass of water being added to the starting material is regulated according to the content of hydrogen in the gas mixture leaving the rotary furnace. The tubular interior space of the rotary furnace is expanded axially to accommodate thermally expanding the starting material and water in the interior space of the rotary furnace.

A device for reacting an organic starting material to yield a gas that includes hydrogen has a feed device, a tubular furnace with an entry zone, an interior space, an axis of rotation and an exit side, and a water feed arranged by the feed device or entry zone and controllable as a function of the content of hydrogen in the gas mixture. The feed device feeds the starting material in the region of the entry zone into the interior space of the tubular furnace, from which a solid material and a gas mixture is discharged. The tubular furnace has a compensator for different thermal expansions of a first zone and a second zone. A gas-conducting system includes a gas monitor for the content of hydrogen in the gas mixture.

The present disclosure relates to a power production system that is adapted to achieve high efficiency power production using partial oxidation of a solid or liquid fuel to form a partially oxidized stream that comprises a fuel gas. This fuel gas stream can be one or more of quenched, filtered, and cooled before being directed to a combustor of a power production system as the combustion fuel. The partially oxidized stream is combined with a compressed recycle CO.sub.2 stream and oxygen. The combustion stream is expanded across a turbine to produce power and passed through a recuperator heat exchanger. The expanded and cooled exhaust stream can be further processed to provide the recycle CO.sub.2 stream, which is compressed and passed through one or more recuperator heat exchangers in a manner useful to provide increased efficiency to the combined systems.

Methods and systems for processing construction and demolition (C&D) materials to produce a product gas stream and/or electricity are disclosed herein. In some embodiments, the method comprises pre-processing C&D materials to produce a C&D feed, and processing the C&D feed to produce syngas. The C&D feed can comprise untreated wood, treated wood, paper and cardboard, yard waste, plastic, rubber, and/or foam. Processing the C&D feed can comprise gasifying the C&D feed, steam, and oxygen in a gasifier at a temperature of no more than 950 C. and/or a pressure of no more than 200 psi to produce syngas.

A synthesis gas production apparatus (reformer) to be used for a synthesis gas production step in a GTL (gas-to-liquid) process is prevented from being contaminated by metal components. A method of suppressing metal contamination of a synthesis gas production apparatus operating for a GTL process that includes a synthesis gas production step of producing synthesis gas by causing natural gas and gas containing steam and/or carbon dioxide to react with each other for reforming in a synthesis gas production apparatus in which, at the time of separating and collecting a carbon dioxide contained in the synthesis gas produced in the synthesis gas production step and recycling the separated and collected carbon dioxide as source gas for the reforming reaction in the synthesis gas production step, a nickel concentration in the recycled carbon dioxide is not higher than 0.05 ppmv.