Energy efficient gasification based multi generation apparatus employing advanced process schemes and related methods

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9605220-B2
Application number	US-201514692633-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 21, 2015
Priority date	Jun 28, 2014
Publication date	Mar 28, 2017
Grant date	Mar 28, 2017

Abstract

Energy-efficient gasification-based multi-generation apparatus, facilities, or systems, and methods of modifying existing gasification-based multi-generation apparatus and the various conventional thermal coupling arrangements, are provided. An exemplary gasification-based multi-generation apparatus includes a gasification system configured to generate raw syngas feed from a carbon-based feedstock, and an acid gas removal system configured to remove acidic contaminants from the raw syngas feed to thereby provide a treated syngas feed. The gasification system includes a gasification reactor, a syngas fluid cooler reactor, and a soot ash removal unit comprising a soot quench column, a soot separator, a soot filter, a soot scrubber, and a gasification system energy management system having a conventional set of heat exchanger unit and an added set of heat exchanger units to enhance energy efficiency. The acid gas removal system includes a reactor, an acid gas contaminant absorber, a solvent regenerator, and an acid gas removal system energy management system having a conventional set of heat exchanger unit and an added set of heat exchanger units to enhance energy efficiency.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A gasification-based multi-generation apparatus, comprising one or more of the following:
an acid gas removal system configured to remove acidic contaminants from a raw syngas feed to thereby provide a treated syngas feed; and
a gasification system configured to generate the raw syngas feed from a carbon-based feedstock;
a condensate polishing plant or facility;
a sour water stripper;
the acid gas removal system comprising an acid gas contaminant absorber, a solvent regenerator, and an acid gas removal system energy management system, the acid gas removal system energy management system comprising one or more of the following:
a first acid gas removal system process-to-process heat exchanger unit positioned to receive a hot condensate stream received from the gasification system and the raw syngas feed from the gasification system to provide heat energy to the raw syngas feed and to cool the hot condensate stream from the gasification system,
a second acid gas removal system process-to-process heat exchanger unit positioned to receive the hot condensate stream received from the gasification system and the treated syngas feed from the acid gas contaminant absorber to provide heat energy to the treated syngas feed and to further cool the hot condensate stream from the gasification system,
a third acid gas removal system process-to-process heat exchanger unit positioned to receive a reactor effluent bottom stream from a contaminant hydrolysis reactor and at least a portion of a rich solvent bottom stream from the acid gas contaminant absorber to provide heat energy to the rich solvent bottom stream and to cool the reactor effluent bottom stream, and
a fourth acid gas removal system process-to-process heat exchanger unit defining a solvent regenerator reboiler positioned to receive at least a portion of a soot scrubber bottom stream received from the gasification system and a solvent regenerator tray stream extracted from a solvent stream tray of the solvent regenerator to provide heat energy to reboil the extracted solvent regenerator tray stream and to cool the soot scrubber bottom stream;
the acid gas removal system energy management system additionally comprising a fifth acid gas removal system process-to-process heat exchanger unit positioned to receive at least a portion of a polished cold condensate stream received from the condensate polishing plant or facility, and a solvent regenerator top stream from the solvent regenerator to provide heat energy to the at least a portion of the polished cold condensate stream and to cool the solvent regenerator top stream; and

the gasification system comprising a gasification reactor and a gasification system energy management system, the gasification system energy management system comprising:
a first gasification system process-to-process heat exchanger unit positioned to receive the polished cold condensate stream and an overhead stream of the sour water stripper to add a thermal load to the polished cold condensate stream and to cool the overhead stream of the sour water stripper,
a second gasification system process-to-process heat exchanger unit positioned to receive the polished cold condensate stream having the added thermal load from the overhead stream of the sour water stripper and to receive at least a portion of an oxygen feed to the gasification reactor to provide heat energy to the at least a portion of the oxygen feed and to remove at least a portion of the added thermal load added to the polished cold condensate stream, and
a third gasification system process-to-process heat exchanger unit positioned to receive a wastewater bottom stream from the sour water stripper and to receive at least a portion of the oxygen feed to the gasification reactor to provide heat energy to the at least a second portion of the oxygen feed to the gasification reactor and to cool the wastewater bottom stream from the sour water stripper, and
the gasification system energy management system optionally comprising a fourth gasification system process-to-process heat exchanger unit positioned to receive a hot condensate stream and the oxygen feed to the gasification reactor to provide heat energy to heat the oxygen feed to the gasification reactor and to cool the hot condensate stream.

2. The apparatus as defined in claim 1 ,
wherein the apparatus comprises the acid gas removal system;
wherein the at least a portion of the polished cold condensate stream received by the fifth process-to-process heat exchanger unit of the acid gas removal system comprises a first branch of the polished cold condensate stream to receive heat energy from the solvent regenerator top stream;
wherein the acid gas removal system comprises the contaminant hydrolysis reactor; and
wherein the acid gas removal system energy management system further comprises a sixth acid gas removal system process-to-process heat exchanger unit positioned to receive a second branch of the polished cold condensate stream from the condensate polishing plant or facility, and the reactor effluent bottom stream from the contaminant hydrolysis reactor to provide heat energy to the second branch of the polished cold condensate stream and to cool the reactor effluent bottom stream.

3. The apparatus as defined in claim 2 ,
wherein the apparatus further comprises the gasification system;
and
wherein the polished cold condensate stream received by the first gasification system process-to-process heat exchanger comprises the first and the second branches of the polished cold condensate stream recombined together and received from the acid gas removal system after the first branch is heated by the top stream of the solvent regenerator and the second branch is heated by the reactor effluent bottom stream.

4. The apparatus as defined in claim 3 , wherein the gasification system comprises a gasification plant or facility, and wherein the apparatus further comprises:
a sour water stripping plant or facility comprising the sour water stripper, the sour water stripping plant or facility integrated with the gasification plant or facility through at least the overhead and the wastewater bottom streams from the sour water stripper; and
wherein the first gasification system process-to-process unit is located adjacent the sour water stripper.

5. The apparatus as defined in claim 3 , wherein the acid gas removal system energy management system comprises the fourth acid gas removal system process-to-process heat exchanger unit.

6. The apparatus as defined in claim 1 ,
wherein the acid gas removal system comprises an acid gas removal plant or facility; and
wherein the gasification system comprises a gasification plant or facility.

7. The apparatus as defined in claim 6 , further comprising:
a membrane pre-treatment unit to separate water droplets from the treated syngas, integrated into the acid gas removal plant or facility; and
a hydrogen recovery plant or facility comprising a gas membrane unit.

8. The apparatus as defined in claim 7 , further comprising:
wherein the membrane pre-treatment unit of the acid gas removal plant or facility is in fluid communication with the gas membrane unit of the hydrogen recovery plant; and
wherein the acid gas removal system energy management system comprises the second acid gas removal system process-to-process heat exchanger unit to provide heat energy to the treated syngas to thereby heat the treated syngas to the required inlet temperature for the gas membrane unit.

9. The apparatus as defined in claim 8 , further comprising:
wherein hydrogen recovery plant or facility does not include a membrane pre-treatment unit to separate water droplets from the treated syngas; and

Assignees

• Saudi Arabian Oil Co

Inventors

• Noureldin Mahmoud Bahy

Classifications

• C10K1/10

  with aqueous liquids {(alkaline reacting aqueous liquids C10K1/12)} · CPC title

• C10J2300/1892

  with one stream being water/steam · CPC title

• C10K1/101

  with water only · CPC title

• C10K1/046 Primary

  Reducing the tar content · CPC title

• C10J2200/09

  Mechanical details of gasifiers not otherwise provided for, e.g. sealing means · CPC title