Patent ID: 8899968

Claim:
A methane gas processing system for producing a compressible combustible gas containing a predetermined methane gas as a principal component thereof to be fed to and compressed by a compressor, said system comprising a catalytic combusting means for receiving an oxygen-containing methane gas that contains oxygen in addition to the methane gas as the principal component thereof, causing this oxygen-containing methane gas to contact an oxidation catalyst for partial combustion thereof, to produce a resultant partially combusted gas as said compressible combustible gas, wherein the oxidation catalyst comprises a support formed of alumina, titania, or zirconia, or a mixture of two or more of these and Pt and/or Pd supported thereon, the catalytic combusting means having the oxidation catalyst is constructed with a first stage and a second stage arranged in series, a heat-removing unit is provided between said first stage and said second stage, the oxygen-containing methane gas is partially combusted by said first stage to produce a first deoxygenated methane gas, the first deoxygenated methane gas is cooled by the heat-removing unit, and the cooled first deoxygenated methane gas is partially combusted by the second stage as the compressible combustible gas, a second deoxygenated methane gas from which oxygen is removed, the methane gas processing system further comprises an introducing means for introducing a gas containing hydrogen and/or steam into said oxygen-containing methane gas prior to the first stage of said catalytic combustion means and into said first deoxygenated methane gas prior to the second stage of said catalytic combustion means, and the methane processing system controls a highest temperature of the oxidation catalyst so as not to exceed 350° C. by using the introducing of the gas containing hydrogen and/or steam and the heat-removing unit.