Various methods and apparatuses for multi-stage synthesis gas generation

Abstract

A multiple stage synthesis gas generation system is disclosed including a high radiant heat flux reactor, a gasifier reactor control system, and a Steam Methane Reformer (SMR) reactor. The SMR reactor is in parallel and cooperates with the high radiant heat flux reactor to produce a high quality syngas mixture for MeOH synthesis. The resultant products from the two reactors may be used for the MeOH synthesis. The SMR provides hydrogen rich syngas to be mixed with the potentially carbon monoxide rich syngas from the high radiant heat flux reactor. The combination of syngas component streams from the two reactors can provide the required hydrogen to carbon monoxide ratio for methanol synthesis. The SMR reactor control system and a gasifier reactor control system interact to produce a high quality syngas mixture for the MeOH synthesis.

1 . A multiple stage synthesis gas generation system, comprising:
 a high-radiant heat-flux reactor configured to receive biomass particles that undergo a biomass gasification reaction in the reactor at greater than 950 degrees C., via primarily due to a radiant heat emitted from the high-radiant heat-flux reactor, to produce reactant products including ash and syngas products of hydrogen and carbon monoxide coming out of an exit of the high-radiant heat-flux reactor;   a Steam Methane Reformer (SMR) reactor configured to receive a methane-based gas, where the SMR reactor is in parallel to and cooperates with the high-radiant heat-flux reactor to produce a high quality syngas mixture for methanol synthesis between the resultant reactant products coming from the two reactors, wherein the SMR provides 1) hydrogen gas, 2) a hydrogen-rich syngas composition, in which a ratio of hydrogen-to-carbon monoxide is higher than a ratio generally needed for methanol synthesis, and 3) any combination of the two, to be mixed with a potentially carbon-monoxide-rich syngas composition, in which a ratio of carbon monoxide to hydrogen is higher than the ratio generally needed for methanol synthesis, from the high-radiant heat-flux reactor to provide a required hydrogen-to-carbon monoxide ratio for methanol synthesis; and   a common input into a methanol-synthesis-reactor-train coupled downstream of the SMR reactor and the high-radiant heat-flux reactor that is configured to receive a first stream of the syngas components from the SMR reactor and a separate second stream of the syngas components from the high-radiant heat-flux reactor, where one or more control systems monitor a chemical composition feedback signal of the first stream of the syngas components and the second stream of the syngas components from one or more sensors to produce a high quality syngas mixture for methanol synthesis.   
     
     
         2 . The multiple stage synthesis gas generation system of  claim 1 , where the high-radiant heat-flux reactor has a biomass particle feed system, a first steam supply inlet, one or more regenerative or recuperative heaters, a first set of sensors to measure a chemical composition of produced product gases from the high-radiant heat-flux reactor, and a gasifier reactor control system to cause the biomass gasification reaction of the biomass particles at greater than 950 degrees, the SMR reactor has a methane-based gas feed system, a second steam supply inlet, a second set of sensors to measure a chemical composition of produced product gases from the SMR reactor, and a SMR control system, and both the SMR control system and the gasifier reactor control system are part of the one or more control systems, and the common input into the methanol-synthesis-reactor-train is also configured to receive gases from a purge line exiting the methanol-synthesis-reactor-train, wherein the gasifier reactor control system and the SMR control system interact to control an amount of hydrogen and carbon monoxide gases supplied to the methanol-synthesis-reactor-train to achieve a proper hydrogen/carbon monoxide ratio for methanol synthesis from 1) the first stream of the syngas components from the SMR reactor, 2) the separate second stream of the syngas components from the high-radiant heat-flux reactor and 3) a flow of hydrogen gas from a separator off a purge gas line coming out of the methanol-synthesis-reactor-train, and any of these three sources are mixed together prior to feeding the syngas at the proper ratio into the methanol-synthesis-reactor-train. 
     
     
         3 . The multiple stage synthesis gas generation system of  claim 1 , wherein a gasifier reactor control system and a SMR control system are part of the one or more control systems and interact to alter a flow of the biomass particles through the high-radiant heat-flux reactor much more gradually than an altering of a flow of the methane-based gas through the SMR reactor; and thus, where the SMR control system is configured to throttle a flow of the methane-based gas and steam as reactants in the SMR reactor to use as a coarse control to maintain the proper ratio of hydrogen-to-carbon monoxide for methanol synthesis while keeping the flow of biomass particles entrained in a carrier gas steady through the high-radiant heat-flux reactor. 
     
     
         4 . The multiple stage synthesis gas generation system of  claim 1 , wherein the syngas composition made up of carbon monoxide and hydrogen exiting from the high-radiant heat-flux reactor flows to a particle control device to remove any ash and other solids in the second stream of the syngas components from the high-radiant heat-flux reactor, and any methane coming out from the methanol-synthesis-reactor-train purge stream is fed as a feedstock into the SMR reactor, where the methane was produced in the biomass gasification reaction in the high-radiant heat-flux reactor or 2) was simply part of the entrainment gas carrying the biomass particles being fed into the high-radiant heat-flux reactor, where the gasifier reactor control system, and where the syngas components from the high-radiant heat-flux reactor is fed further into a gas clean up section to cool the gas products, filter out harmful contaminant gases including sulfur compounds, and compress to increase the pressure of the syngas components for feeding into the common input for the methanol-synthesis-reactor-train. 
     
     
         5 . The multiple stage synthesis gas generation system of  claim 1 , wherein the high-radiant heat-flux reactor includes two or more tubes that are heated from the inside of the tubes and have biomass flowing on an outside of the tubes. 
     
     
         6 . The multiple stage synthesis gas generation system of  claim 3 , where the methanol reactor train is configured to receive syngas components at the common input from three sources 1) synthesis gas from a SMR reactor, 2) synthesis gas from the high-radiant heat-flux reactor, and 3) a flow of hydrogen gas from a separator off a purge gas line coming out of the methanol-synthesis-reactor-train, wherein the SMR reactor control system and the gasifier reactor control system interact to control a chemical composition of a combined gas stream from the three sources necessary to achieve a proper hydrogen-to-carbon monoxide ratio of synthesis gas composition feed necessary for high quality methanol synthesis, which is a 2.0:1 to 3:1 hydrogen-to-carbon monoxide ratio. 
     
     
         7 . The multiple stage synthesis gas generation system of  claim 6 , wherein the ratio is 2.3 to 3.0 to 1 that causes a greater overall conversion of carbon monoxide into methanol and a per pass through the methanol synthesis train conversion of 50% or more of the carbon monoxide into methanol, and wherein the high-radiant heat-flux reactor includes two or more vertically orientated tubes within the high-radiant heat-flux reactor, and where the biomass particles flow inside the tubes and the one or more regenerative heaters and surfaces of high-radiant heat-flux reactor itself emit radiant heat to the outside of the two or more tubes. 
     
     
         8 . The multiple stage synthesis gas generation system of  claim 1 , wherein hydrogen gas from a purge gas line of the methanol-synthesis-reactor-train is recycled into a syngas component feed to a suction of the methanol-synthesis-reactor-train and any methane in the purge gas line of the methanol-synthesis-reactor-train is routed as a feedstock to the SMR reactor. 
     
     
         9 . The multiple stage synthesis gas generation system of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 an on-site fuel synthesis reactor that is geographically located on a same site as the high-radiant heat-flux reactor and the SMR reactor, where the on-site fuel synthesis reactor is coupled downstream to receive the methanol products from the methanol-synthesis-reactor-train and use them in a hydrocarbon fuel synthesis process to create at least one of a liquid hydrocarbon fuel, a blend stock fuel, and a chemical feedstock, which includes gasoline, aviation fuel, middle distillate, olefins, dimethyl ether, and other oxygenated hydrocarbons.   
     
     
         10 . The multiple stage synthesis gas generation system of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a recycle loop to route methane (CH4) either 1) generated in the biomass gasification or 2) merely present during the biomass gasification reaction in the high-radiant heat-flux reactor and 3) any combination of the two, over to the SMR reactor from the exit of the methanol-synthesis-reactor-train.   
     
     
         11 . The multiple stage synthesis gas generation system of  claim 3 , wherein the two control systems interaction with the sensors are configured to control 1) changes in a flow rate of a biomass particles being fed into the high-radiant heat-flux reactor, 2) provides feedback to change a flow rate of natural gas and steam into the SMR reactor, 3) directs the one or more regenerative heaters to increase their heat input into the high-radiant heat-flux reactor, and 4) any combination of the three. 
     
     
         12 . The multiple stage synthesis gas generation system of  claim 1 , wherein the SMR includes a heat transfer aid for reactions in the SMR reactor, where the heat transfer aid includes one or more of: (1) a fluidized bed or entrained flow of biomass particles, (2) a fluidized bed or entrained flow of chemically inert particles, (3) a ceramic monolith, (4) ceramic tubes or aerogels, (5) open structured packed rings including any of (a) Raschig rings, (b) gauze, (c) wire constructed of a high temperature-resistant material, and (d) reticulate porous ceramic (RPC) foam, wherein the SMR reactor includes a catalytic lining to aid reaction kinetics. 
     
     
         13 . The multiple stage synthesis gas generation system of  claim 1 , wherein after the gasification reaction in the high-radiant heat-flux reactor occurs, then a rapid cooling occurs to capture a molecular state of the reaction products in a quench zone that is located immediately downstream of the exit of the high-radiant heat-flux reactor to immediately quench via rapid cooling of at least the hydrogen and carbon monoxide of the reaction products of exiting the high-radiant heat-flux reactor, where the quench achieves within ten seconds a temperature of 850 degrees C. or less, which is below a level to reduce coalescence of ash remnants of the biomass particles and a reformation reaction of the carbon monoxide and hydrogen into larger molecules. 
     
     
         14 . The multiple stage synthesis gas generation system of  claim 1 , wherein the high-radiant heat-flux reactor system includes the biomass particle feed system to grind, pulverize, shear and any combination of the three biomass to a particle size controlled to an average smallest dimension size between 1 micron (um) and 2000 um, and wherein the biomass feed system may supply a variety of non-food stock biomass sources fed as particles into the high-radiant heat-flux reactor and wherein the variety of non-food stock biomass sources can include two or more types of biomass that can be fed, individually or in combinational mixtures. 
     
     
         15 . The multiple stage synthesis gas generation system of  claim 14 , wherein the gasifier reactor control system maintains the reaction conditions in the high-radiant heat-flux reactor and a combination of the controlled particle size, temperature being greater than 950 degrees C. within the reactor at an exit of the reactor, and designed residence time within the reactor to cause a rapid gasification of dispersed biomass particulates with a resultant stable ash formation within a residence time in the less than 5 seconds, resulting in a complete amelioration of tar to less than 500 milligrams per normal cubic meter, and at least a 80% conversion of the biomass particles into the production of the hydrogen and carbon monoxide products. 
     
     
         16 . A method of multiple stage synthesis gas generation system in an integrated plant, comprising:
 providing a high-radiant heat-flux reactor to conduct a biomass gasification reaction on biomass particles to cause the production of at least carbon monoxide, hydrogen, and ash;   providing a Steam Methane Reformer (SMR) reactor, the SMR reactor in parallel and cooperating with the high-radiant heat-flux reactor to produce a high quality syngas mixture for methanol synthesis between the resultant products from the two reactors wherein the SMR provides hydrogen rich syngas to be mixed with the potentially carbon monoxide rich syngas from the high-radiant heat-flux reactor to provide the required hydrogen-to-carbon monoxide ratio for methanol synthesis;   immediately quenching the products from the biomass gasification reaction in the high-radiant heat-flux reactor and then removing ash and other solids from the products   
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 16 , further comprising controlling the volume of hydrogen/carbon monoxide coming from the SMR reaction by throttling when mixing with the reaction products of the biomass reaction to achieve the proper hydrogen/carbon monoxide ratio for methanol synthesis such that altering the flow of the biomass through the high-radiant heat-flux reactor occurs more gradually than altering the flow of methane-based gas through the SMR. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 16 , further comprising:
 keeping the temperature within the high-radiant heat-flux reactor within a specific range and varying the amount of biomass fed into high-radiant heat-flux reactor to the carrier gas volume to control the output syngas composition and wherein the high-radiant heat-flux reactor includes internally heated tubes and biomass flowing on the outside of the tubes.   
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 16 , further comprising:
 providing a methanol reactor train that receives syngas from a common input of 1) synthesis gas from a SMR reactor, 2) synthesis gas from the high radiant heat flux and 3) a flow of hydrogen gas from a separator off a purge gas line coming out of the methanol-synthesis-reactor-train; and   controlling the chemical composition of the combined gas streams from the three sources necessary to achieve the proper hydrogen-to-carbon monoxide ratio of synthesis gas composition feed necessary for high quality methanol synthesis, which is a 2.0:1 to 3.0:1 hydrogen-to-carbon monoxide ratio.   
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 19 , wherein flow of reactants through the SMR reactor is used to dynamically control the hydrogen-to-carbon monoxide ratio supplied to the methanol-synthesis-reactor-train while trying to maintain flow of reactants in the high-radiant heat-flux reactor relatively steady.