A method of producing liquid fuel and/or chemicals from a carbonaceous material entails combusting a conditioned syngas in pulse combustion heat exchangers of a steam reformer to help convert carbonaceous material into first reactor product gas which includes carbon monoxide, hydrogen, carbon dioxide and other gases. A portion of the first reactor product gas is transferred to a hydrogen reformer into which additional conditioned syngas is added and a reaction carried out to produce an improved syngas. The improved syngas is then subject to one or more gas clean-up steps to form a new conditioned syngas. A portion of the new conditioned syngas is recycled to be used as the conditioned syngas in the pulse combustion heat exchangers and in the hydrocarbon reformer. A system for carrying out the method include, a steam reformer, a hydrocarbon reformer, first and second gas-cleanup systems, a synthesis system and an upgrading system.

Provided is a process capable of converting the cokes on spent catalysts in a fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) process into synthesis gas. The produced synthesis gas contains high concentrations of CO and H.sub.2 and may be utilized in many downstream applications such as syngas fermentation for alcohol production, hydrogen production and synthesis of chemical intermediates. A reducer/regenerator reactor for a fluid catalytic process comprising a chemical looping system to produce synthesis gas is also described.

The present invention is directed to a renewable methanol production system generally comprising: 1. a water capture module for directly capturing water from air to provide water in a liquid form; 2. an electrolysis module for electrolysis of the liquid water to produce hydrogen; 3. an exothermic reactor for reacting the hydrogen from the electrolysis module with carbon dioxide to produce renewable methanol.

Processes and systems for converting a hydrocarbon-containing feed. The feed and heated particles can be contacted within a pyrolysis zone to effect pyrolysis of at least a portion of the feed to produce a pyrolysis zone effluent and a first gaseous stream rich in olefins and a first particle stream rich in the particles can be obtained therefrom. At least a portion of the first particle stream, an oxidant, and steam can be fed into a gasification zone and contacted therein to effect gasification of at least a portion of coke disposed on the surface of the particles to produce a gasification zone effluent. A second gaseous stream rich in a synthesis gas and a second particle stream rich in heated and regenerated particles can be obtained from the gasification zone effluent. At least a portion of the second particle stream can be fed into the pyrolysis zone.

A power-to-X system for the utilization of off-gases, includes an electrolyzer for generating hydrogen H2 and oxygen O2, a unit, connected to the electrolyzer, for processing the hydrogen H2, for removing any remaining water H2O and oxygen O2 from the generated stream of hydrogen H2, a compressor, connected to the unit for processing the hydrogen H2, for compressing the hydrogen H2, and a chemical reactor, connected to the compressor, for producing a synthesis gas consisting of hydrogen H2 and carbon dioxide CO2 that can be added. An oxy-fuel combustion system to which non-condensable off-gases from the chemical reactor and oxygen O2 from the electrolyzer can be supplied, and carbon dioxide CO2 generated during the combustion of the off-gases in the oxy-fuel combustion system can be returned to the stream of hydrogen H2 downstream of the electrolyzer via a return line.

A plant complex may include a unit that produces CO.sub.2-containing gases, a gas conducting system for CO.sub.2-containing gases, a gas/liquid separation system, a reformer that is connected to the gas conducting system and where the CO.sub.2-containing gas reacts with H.sub.2 and/or hydrocarbons to give a CO— and H.sub.2-containing synthesis gas mixture. The reformer is connected to a reactor for producing higher alcohols in which the synthesis gas mixture reacts with H.sub.2 to give a gas/liquid mixture containing higher alcohols. For separating off the alcohols of the gas/liquid mixture, the gas/liquid separation system is connected to the reactor for producing higher alcohols.

A plant complex may include a unit that produces CO.sub.2-containing gases, a gas conducting system for CO.sub.2-containing gases, a gas/liquid separation system, a reformer that is connected to the gas conducting system and where the CO.sub.2-containing gas reacts with H.sub.2 and/or hydrocarbons to give a CO— and H.sub.2-containing synthesis gas mixture. The reformer is connected to a reactor for producing higher alcohols in which the synthesis gas mixture reacts with H.sub.2 to give a gas/liquid mixture containing higher alcohols. For separating off the alcohols of the gas/liquid mixture, the gas/liquid separation system is connected to the reactor for producing higher alcohols.

Certain embodiments are directed to methods of purifying methanol comprising fractionating a feed source into methanol and heavy alcohol or fusel alcohol fractions and further recovering methanol from the fusel alcohol fraction.

A method for the preparation of methanol by conversion of a mixture of fresh methanol synthesis gas and unconverted methanol synthesis separated from produced methanol in a low pressure separator and recycled and admixed to the fresh synthesis gas upstream the suction side of a make-up gas compressor.

An improved system for separating gas from a process stream by providing a stripping unit at the overhead stream of a fractionation column to selectively and effectively remove the gas using a stripping fluid without providing a dedicated light-ends separations unit. The stripper unit may be connected to the reflux drum at the overhead stream. The system for separating gas further achieves greater thermodynamic efficiency by means of a split column design using mechanical vapor recompression with the reboiler and condenser integrated in a falling-film evaporator- or thermosiphon-type vapo-condenser.