Patent ID: 6254652
Filing Date: 2001-07-03
Classification: B01J,C01B,C10J,Y02E

Abstract:
A heat balanced, molten metal process for sequentially converting at least two different feedstocks, a hydrogen rich feed having a carbon:hydrogen mole ratio no greater than 1:1 and a hydrogen deficient feed having a carbon:hydrogen mole ratio greater than that of said hydrogen rich feed, in a single molten metal bath thermal reactor to produce at least two product vapor streams comprising:a) heating a molten metal bath containing dissolved carbon by adding oxygen or an oxygen containing gas at an oxygen gas rate to said bath and exothermically oxidizing in said bath at least a portion of said dissolved carbon to produce a carbon oxides gas product which is removed as a product stream from said reactor;b) cooling said molten metal bath by sequentially thermally converting in said bath, in any order, both said:hydrogen rich feed, in the absence of added oxygen, to produce a hydrogen gas product comprising at least 90 mole % of hydrogen which is removed as a product from said reactor and carbon which dissolves in said molten metal bath, andhydrogen deficient feed to produce a hydrogen gas product stream comprising less than 90 mole % H2, which is removed as a product stream from said reactor and carbon which dissolves in said molten metal bath; andc) repeating the sequence from step a.