United States Patent: 4331529
An issue we'll continue to belabor is the fact that any Hydrogen needed to hydrogenate Coal, which is composed primarily of Carbon, to synthesize liquid hydrocarbons from which we can make Gasoline, can itself be generated as a function of the overall Coal conversion process.
Good ole' Exxon had that figured out three decades ago, as this enclosed and excerpted United States Patent attests.
Comment follows:
"United States Patent 4,331,529 - Fluid Coking and Gasification Process
Date: May 25, 1982
Inventor: Merlan Lambert, et. al.
Assignee: Exxon Research and Engineering, NJ
Abstract: An integrated fluid coking and gasification process is provided in which a portion of the coke is gasified in a first gasification zone in the presence of an oxygen-containing gas to produce a hot gas and hot coke. A portion of the resulting hot coke is gasified in a second gasification zone in the presence of steam to produce a gas comprising hydrogen and carbon monoxide, which is suitable, after conventional shift and clean up, for use as synthesis gas.
Claims: 1. An integrated coking and gasification process comprising the steps of:
(a) reacting a carbonaceous chargestock in a coking zone containing a bed of fluidized solids maintained at fluid coking conditions to produce a vapor phase product, including normally liquid hydrocarbons, and coke, said coke depositing on said fluidized solids;
(b) introducing a portion of said solids with the coke deposit thereon to a first fluid bed gasification zone maintained at gasification conditions;
(c) reacting said portion of solids in said first gasification zone with an oxygen-containing gas to produce a first gaseous stream and partially gasified coke and supplying heat from said first gasification zone to said coking zone;
(d) introducing a portion of said partially gasified coke from said first gasification zone to a second fluid bed gasification zone maintained at gasification conditions, said partially gasified coke supplying heat to said second gasification zone;
(e) reacting said portion of partially gasified coke in said second gasification zone with a gas comprising steam in the absence of added oxygen-containing gas to produce a second gaseous stream wherein said second gaseous stream has a higher heating value than the heating value of said first gaseous stream, and
(f) recycling a portion of said partially gasified coke from said second gasification zone to said first gasification zone."
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There's a bit more to it, of course, but: Basically, they're just adding Steam, generated by heat recovered from the Coal gasification process, to hydrogenate Carbon-rich Syngas derived from Coal. That Syngas can then be passed through Fischer-Tropsch, or Exxon's proprietary, catalytic reactors and condensed into liquid hydrocarbons suitable for refining into a variety of liquid fuels, such as Methanol and Gasoline.