Patent ID: 7819955

Claim:
A hydrogen processing assembly, comprising: an enclosure defining an internal compartment having an internal surface; and a separation assembly within the internal compartment, wherein the separation assembly is adapted to receive a mixed gas stream that includes hydrogen gas and other gases and to divide the mixed gas stream into a hydrogen-rich permeate stream, which has a greater concentration of hydrogen gas than the mixed gas stream, and a byproduct stream, which comprises a greater concentration of the other gases than the mixed gas stream, wherein the mixed gas stream contains hydrogen gas as a majority component, and further wherein the separation assembly includes a membrane module that comprises: a plurality of frames; a plurality of hydrogen-selective membranes, wherein each hydrogen-selective membrane includes a perimeter region that is supported by at least one of the plurality of frames, a mixed gas surface, and a permeate surface, wherein the permeate stream includes hydrogen gas that permeates through the membrane from the mixed gas surface to the permeate surface, and further wherein the byproduct stream includes at least a portion of the mixed gas stream that does not permeate through the membrane; a plurality of gas-permeable supports, wherein each of the plurality of gas-permeable supports is positioned to support the permeate surface of at least one of the hydrogen-selective membranes; and wherein the membrane module includes a plurality of seals formed by intermetallic diffusion between adjoining surfaces of the plurality of frames, the plurality of hydrogen-selective membranes, and the plurality of gas-permeable supports.