Patent ID: 9409773
Filing Date: 2016-08-09
CPC Classification: C01B

Claim Text:
1. A steam-hydrocarbon reforming process comprising: passing a feed stream to a first reactor containing a catalyst during a first period, reacting the feed stream in the first reactor in the presence of the catalyst under reaction conditions sufficient to react the feed stream and form an intermediate product stream, and withdrawing the intermediate product stream from the first reactor; dividing the intermediate product stream into a first portion and a second portion, the second portion of the intermediate product stream having a mass flow rate, M introducing a second reactor feed stream comprising the first portion of the intermediate product stream into a second reactor, reacting the second reactor feed stream in the second reactor in the presence of a second catalyst under reaction conditions effective to form a reformate comprising H conditioning the second portion to remove at least water and ammonia and form a conditioned portion of the second portion of the intermediate product stream; measuring a C2+ hydrocarbon content in the conditioned portion of the second portion of the intermediate product stream in a chemical component analyzer; increasing the ratio of the molar flow rate of steam to the molar flow rate of hydrocarbons in the feed stream responsive to the step of measuring the C2+ hydrocarbon content when the C2+ hydrocarbon content equals or exceeds an upper target C2+ hydrocarbon content during the first period; and decreasing the ratio of the molar flow rate of steam to the molar flow rate of hydrocarbons in the feed stream responsive to the step of measuring the C2+ hydrocarbon content when the C2+ hydrocarbon content equals or drops below a lower target C2+ hydrocarbon content during the first period.