United States Patent Application: 0090235587
We've dwelled to some extent lately on the Carbon Dioxide recycling technologies being developed by scientists at our United States Department of Energy's Idaho National Laboratory.
Our reports have included: USDOE Idaho Lab Recycles More CO2 | Research & Development | News; wherein is detailed "High Temperature H2O/CO2 Co-electrolysis; G. Hawkes, J. O'Brien, C. Stoots, et. al., and: USDOE Converts More CO2 to Hydrocarbon Syngas | Research & Development | News; which of which revealed that USDOE scientist Carl Stoots, as above, was named as the lead inventor of a Carbon Dioxide recycling technology in: United States Patent Application: 0080023338 - "Electrolysis for Syngas Production"; which formally disclosed some of the Carbon Dioxide-Water co-electrolysis procedures, for the production of hydrocarbon synthesis gas, that had been developed, as evidenced in our other reports, at the Idaho Lab.
Herein, via the initial link in this dispatch, we see that another of the Idaho Lab scientists, named above, has been identified as the lead inventor in yet another Carbon Dioxide-recycling technology originating at our Idaho facility.
USDOE Researcher Grant Hawkes, and his colleagues, tell us all how we can recycle CO2, by - in confirmation of other reports, from other sources, we've previously documented - involving Carbon Dioxide in the production of hydrocarbon synthesis gas, in a process based on Coal.
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Comment follows excerpts from:
"US Patent Application 20090235587 - Methods and Systems for Producing Syngas
Publication Date: September, 2009
Inventor: Grant Hawkes, James O'Brien, Carl Stoots, et. al., Idaho
Assignee: Battelle Energy Alliance, LLC, Idaho Falls
The US Government has certain rights in this invention pursuant to Contract No. DE-AC07-05-ID14517, between the United States Department of Energy and Battelle Energy Alliance, LLC.
Abstract: Methods and systems are provided for producing syngas utilizing heat from thermochemical conversion of a carbonaceous fuel to support decomposition of at least one of water and carbon dioxide using one or more solid-oxide electrolysis cells. Simultaneous decomposition of carbon dioxide and water or steam by one or more solid-oxide electrolysis cells may be employed to produce hydrogen and carbon monoxide. A portion of oxygen produced from at least one of water and carbon dioxide using one or more solid-oxide electrolysis cells is fed as a controlled flow rate in a gasifier or combustor to oxidize the carbonaceous fuel to control the carbon dioxide to carbon monoxide ratio produced.
Claims: A method for producing syngas, comprising:thermochemically converting a carbonaceous fuel to produce heat and a mixed gas comprising water, hydrogen, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide; exposing a water stream to the heat from the thermochemical conversion of the carbonaceous fuel to produce steam; introducing the steam to at least one solid-oxide electrolysis cell; decomposing the steam in the at least one solid-oxide electrolysis cell to produce hydrogen and oxygen; and combining at least a portion of the carbon monoxide from the mixed gas with at least a portion of the hydrogen to produce syngas.
The method ... further comprising:introducing carbon dioxide ... (into) one solid-oxide electrolysis cell; and decomposing the carbon dioxide to produce carbon monoxide and oxygen.
The method ... (of) producing heat and a mixed gas comprising carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, water and hydrogen by gasifying a carbonaceous fuel comprises gasifying the carbonaceous fuel in the presence of a portion of the oxygen formed by electrolyzing carbon dioxide and steam ... .
A process for forming syngas, comprising: thermochemically converting a carbonaceous fuel to produce heat and a mixed gas comprising carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, hydrogen and water; transferring the heat to a water stream to produce steam; electrolyzing the steam to produce hydrogen and oxygen; converting at least a portion of the carbon dioxide and hydrogen in the mixed gas to carbon monoxide and water; cooling the mixed gas; and removing water from the mixed gas to form syngas.
(And) wherein thermochemically converting a carbonaceous fuel to produce heat and a mixed gas comprising carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, water and hydrogen comprises at least one of combusting, gasifying or pyrolyzing the carbonaceous fuel.
The method ... (of) converting at least a portion of the carbon dioxide and hydrogen in the mixed gas to produce carbon monoxide and water.
A system for producing syngas, comprising:an apparatus configured to thermochemically convert a carbonaceous fuel into heat and a mixed gas comprising carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, hydrogen and water; a heat exchange device configured to transfer the heat produced during the conversion of the carbonaceous fuel to at least one of the carbon dioxide and water; and at least one solid-oxide electrolysis cell operably coupled to at least one power source and configured to electrolyze at least one of water and carbon dioxide to form oxygen and at least one of hydrogen and carbon monoxide.
The system ... further comprising an apparatus configured to convert carbon dioxide and hydrogen to carbon monoxide and water.
The system ... wherein the at least one solid-oxide electrolysis cell is operably connected to at least one power source including a nuclear power source, hydro power source, and wind power source.
(Yes to wind and hydro. Nuts to more Three Mile Islands.)
Embodiments of the present invention relate, generally, to the production of syngas and, more particularly, to methods and systems for producing syngas from a carbonaceous fuel, such as ... coal ... by utilizing the heat from thermochemical conversion of the carbonaceous fuel to support electrolysis of steam and/or co-electrolysis of steam and carbon dioxide in one or more solid-oxide electrolysis cells.
Background and Description: In response to the increasing energy demands and the desire to reduce or eliminate pollutants, new cleaner, energy conversion processes that can utilize biomass (and) coal are being sought.
A known process for conversion of these energy resources to cleaner fuels includes synthetic fuels, often referred to as "synfuels," which are made from synthesis gas, often referred to as "syngas." Syngas includes a mixture of varying amounts of carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H2) that may be converted to form hydrogen, synfuels, methanol or chemicals.
Production of synfuels from syngas may be performed using ... a Fischer-Tropsch process to convert the carbon monoxide and hydrogen into liquid hydrocarbons.
The synfuels produced using the Fischer-Tropsch process may include high purity, low sulfur, fuels, often referred to as "Fischer-Tropsch liquids," which have fewer pollutants than naturally occurring fuels or fuels processed from naturally occurring oil deposits.
(Note, in confirmation of earlier reports, that: Coal-based "synfuels produced using the Fischer-Tropsch process ... have fewer pollutants than ... fuels processed from naturally occurring oil deposits.")
Another approach is to convert syngas into methanol, (which can then) be converted to gasoline ... .
Syngas may be converted to methanol using a copper or zinc catalyst such as a modified ZSM-5 catalyst.
("ZSM-5" sound familiar? It should, if you have followed our posts thus far. It is the zeolite mineral specified as the catalyst, or catalyst "support", in ExxonMobil's "MTG"(r), methanol-to-gasoline, process, wherein the methanol is posited to be made, specifically, from, among other things, Coal.)
When run in reverse ... solid-oxide fuel cells are called solid-oxide electrolysis cells and are able to electrolytically reduce and split water into hydrogen and oxygen and carbon dioxide into carbon monoxide and oxygen.
The ... hydrogen ... may be combined with carbon monoxide to form syngas.
Furthermore the solid-oxide electrolysis cell may be used to co-electrolyze a mixture of water and carbon dioxide to produce syngas.
The heat produced by gasifying the carbonaceous fuel may be transferred to the feed stream to convert at least a portion of the water in the feed stream to steam. The steam may be introduced to at least one solid-oxide electrolysis cell. The carbon dioxide and steam in the feed stream may be electrolyzed in the least one solid-oxide electrolysis cell to produce carbon monoxide, hydrogen and oxygen. The carbon monoxide and hydrogen may be separated from the oxygen to form syngas.
(The) ratio of carbon dioxide to carbon monoxide may be controlled so that the end product includes a desired molar ratio of hydrogen to carbon monoxide.
The syngas produced from the carbonaceous fuel may be converted to synfuel using a process known in the art such as, for example, a Fischer-Tropsch process.
The system utilizes heat in the mixed gas produced by the apparatus during the thermochemical conversion of the carbonaceous fuel to perform electrolysis or co-electrolysis and, thus, only electricity may be provided by an external source.
(Such an "external source" of electricity, as we've documented in other reports of similar technologies, originating from the USDOE and other sources, could well be Carbon-neutral Solar, Wind or Hydro.)
Moreover, the location of the system is not dependent on the location of an external heat source.
- - - (Note: All of the heat can be provided by the internal partial oxidation of Coal. But, use of "an external heat source", as documented, separately, to be possible in:
USDOE Hydrogasifies Coal with Solar Power | Research & Development | News;
and, wherein is disclosed "USP 4,415,339 - Solar Coal Gasification Reactor; 1983; Assignee: The USA, as represented by the Department of Energy", could mean reliance on environmental power to gasify the Coal with the Steam; and which, by thus avoiding oxidation of the Coal to provide the needed heat energy, could prevent any, or most, co-production of Carbon Dioxide.) - - -
The hydrocarbon production process ... may further include a power generation process ... for supplying electrical energy to the electrolytic process (which) may include a direct current power source, such as an electric outlet connected to a commercial power grid, a generator powered by ... wind (or) water ... such that the hydrocarbon production process may be configured to be substantially carbon-neutral.
Various embodiments of the present invention provide methods and systems for forming syngas by combining a thermochemical conversion process of a carbonaceous fuel with an electrolytic process.
The term "carbonaceous fuel," as used herein, means and includes ... (by)way of example ... a biomass source ... (such as) wood waste, cellulose (and) municipal wastes ... .
Additionally, the carbonaceous fuel may include ... coal.
The carbonaceous fuel may include combinations of any of the carbon-containing compounds mentioned above.
The methods and systems may further include a Fischer-Tropsch process to effectively convert the syngas to a synfuel."
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And, we conclude, the Carbon-recycling potentials of this Coal-based process, in addition to the direct, specified use of Carbon Dioxide itself, should, thus, be obvious.
Not only can Carbon-recycling "wood and ... municipal wastes" be utilized; but, if the process of United States Patent 4,415,339, as above, were employed to effect the initial gasification of the Coal, then Carbon Dioxide supplied from a source external to the system - - all the effluents from a Corn ethanol production process, for instance - - could be added to the product gas, along with additional Steam, for reduction, as in "carbon dioxide and steam in the feed stream may be electrolyzed in the least one solid-oxide electrolysis cell to produce carbon monoxide (and) hydrogen", into additional hydrocarbon synthesis gas.
Moreover, the process herein of US Patent Application 20090235587, itself, specifies that a "mixture of water and carbon dioxide" can be used, in addition to "carbonaceous fuel, such as ... coal", to produce syngas.
And, such "syngas ... may be converted to synfuel using ... for example, a Fischer-Tropsch process".