Micro-reactor and method implementation for methanation

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11229894-B2
Application number	US-201716305473-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 7, 2017
Priority date	Jun 7, 2016
Publication date	Jan 25, 2022
Grant date	Jan 25, 2022

Abstract

The invention relates to a reactor, preferably microreactor, for methanation, and to the operation of this reactor, i.e. to the process regime for preparation of methane.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A reactor, wherein the reactor comprises a reactor shell, a reaction space, a cooling space, and fluid-tight separate inlets for at least one fluid reactant and for at least one cooling fluid, there being at least two inlets for the at least one cooling fluid each with at least one convoluted channel and column structure with reversal of flow, and wherein the reactor is connected in a fluid-tight manner to an upstream electrolysis apparatus.

2. The reactor of claim 1 , wherein the reactor shell is a pressure-stable reactor shell.

3. The reactor of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the at least two inlets for the cooling fluid comprises at least two convoluted channel and column structures with reversal of flow.

4. The reactor of claim 1 , wherein the reactor further comprises at least one outlet for heated cooling fluid which comprises at least one convoluted channel and column structure with reversal of flow.

5. The reactor of claim 1 , wherein the at least two inlets are disposed in a region of a first half of the reaction space.

6. The reactor of claim 1 , wherein the at least two inlets and/or at least one outlet for heated cooling fluid which comprises at least one convoluted channel and column structure with reversal of flow have different cross sections with regard to shape and/or area in a region of the convoluted channel and column structures with reversal of flow.

7. The reactor of claim 1 , wherein at least one inlet for the at least one cooling fluid in at least one column structure comprises sintered phases, sintered metals, fibers, cylinders or circular blanks.

8. The reactor of claim 1 , wherein the reaction space is loaded with a catalyst.

9. The reactor of claim 1 , wherein the reactor comprises, downstream of an outlet, a reactor portion with countercurrent cooling comprising at least one inlet for the cooling fluid which has at least one convoluted channel and column structure with reversal of flow.

10. The reactor of claim 1 , wherein the at least one fluid reactant is a fluid comprising hydrogen and carbon monoxide and/or carbon dioxide.

11. The reactor of claim 1 , wherein the reactor is a microreactor.

12. A process for preparing hydrocarbons, wherein the process comprises preparing the hydrocarbons by using a reactor which comprises a reactor shell, a reaction space, a cooling space, and fluid-tight separate inlets for at least one fluid reactant and for at least one cooling fluid, there being at least two inlets for the at least one cooling fluid each with at least one convoluted channel and column structure with reversal of flow.

13. The process of claim 12 , wherein an essentially autothermal operation is conducted.

14. The process of claim 12 , wherein the cooling fluid is fed in at a pressure of from 5 bar to 100 bar.

15. The process of claim 12 , wherein the cooling fluid is fed in at a temperature of from 0.1 Kelvin to 30 Kelvin below a boiling temperature of the cooling fluid.

16. The process of claim 12 , wherein a temperature in the reaction space/catalyst bed is from 100° C. to 800° C.

17. The process of claim 12 , wherein a temperature differential between an entry temperature of the reaction fluid and an entry temperature of the cooling fluid is from 10° C. to 300° C.

18. The process of claim 12 , wherein a waste product from the reaction in the reaction space is used as cooling fluid.

19. The process of claim 12 , wherein at least two reactors are connected in series in a fluid-tight manner, the first reactor being cooled by a co-current flow regime and the second reactor being cooled by a countercurrent flow regime.

20. A reactor, wherein the reactor comprises a reactor shell, a reaction space, a cooling space, and fluid-tight, separate inlets for at least one fluid reactant and for at least one cooling fluid, wherein the reactor comprises at least two inlets for the at least one cooling fluid each comprising at least one convoluted channel and column structure with reversal of flow, wherein the reactor comprises at least a discharge line for warmed cooling fluid, which comprises at least one convoluted channel and column structure with reversal of flow, a channel structure being an elongated cavity parallel to a flow direction in the reaction space and a column structure being an elongated cavity perpendicular to a flow direction in the reaction space, a column structure being part of a conduction of the cooling fluid, which connects two channel structures and thus enables a fluid-tight conduction of the cooling fluid, wherein the reaction space is loaded with a catalyst, and wherein the cooling space succeeds at least one of the at least two inlets for the cooling fluid, extends to the discharge line and runs parallel to the reaction space.

21. The process of claim 12 , wherein the process is a methanation.

Assignees

• Karlsruher Inst Technologie

Inventors

• Pfeifer Peter
• Belimov Michael

Classifications

• B01J2219/00873

  Heat exchange · CPC title

• B01J2219/00835

  Comprising catalytically active material · CPC title

• B01J19/0093 Primary

  Microreactors, e.g. miniaturised or microfabricated reactors (laboratory containers with capillary fluid transport in microfabricated channels or chambers B01L3/5027) · CPC title

• B01J2219/00783

  Laminate assemblies, i.e. the reactor comprising a stack of plates · CPC title

• Y02P20/133

  Renewable energy sources, e.g. sunlight · CPC title