Patent ID: 6838066

Claim:
A method for preparing a purified argon product from an impure argon stream, the method comprising: providing the impure argon stream comprising oxygen, nitrogen, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, water, hydrocarbons, and dopants; treating the impure argon stream to substantially remove the dopants contained therein; contacting the impure argon stream with a deoxygenation catalyst to substantially remove the oxygen contained therein; contacting the impure argon stream with one of a plurality of adsorbent beds to selectively adsorb carbon dioxide and water from the impure argon stream; separating the impure argon stream in a cryogenic temperature separation apparatus to provide a partially purified argon stream comprising oxygen, carbon monoxide, and hydrogen impurities and an effluent stream comprising nitrogen, hydrocarbons, and hydrogen; passing the partially purified argon stream comprising oxygen, carbon monoxide, and hydrogen impurities through one of a plurality of metal catalyst beds to remove the impurities and provide a purified argon product wherein the passing step is conducted at an ambient temperature heating at least one of the plurality of metal catalyst beds with a portion of the purified argon product to a temperature ranging from between about 120 to about 260° C. to provide at least one heated catalyst bed; passing a hydrogen-containing stream through at least one heated catalyst bed; purging the at least one heated catalyst bed with a portion of the purified argon product to provide a recycle stream; and cooling the at least one heated catalyst bed to ambient temperature.