Patent ID: 7118612

Claim:
A method of separating oxygen from an oxygen containing gas stream comprising: compressing the oxygen containing gas stream to form a compressed oxygen containing gas stream; heating said compressed oxygen containing gas stream; introducing said compressed oxygen containing gas stream after having been heated into a cathode side of an oxygen transport membrane reactor to permeate oxygen to an anode side and thereby to form an oxygen depleted retentate and permeated oxygen; supporting combustion within at least one stage of combustion with residual oxygen contained within a retentate stream made up of the oxygen depleted retentate; the compressed oxygen containing gas stream being heated at least in part from a portion of the heat generated by the combustion; introducing a motive fluid into an ejector to draw an oxygen permeate containing stream from said anode side of said oxygen transport membrane reactor at a subatmospheric pressure and thereby to form an oxygen containing product stream; forming a steam stream by heating a make-up water stream at least in part with a further portion of the heat generated by the combustion; expanding a combustion product stream with performance of work, the combustion product stream being discharged from the at least one stage of combustion, applying said work to the compression of the oxygen containing gas stream; and forming the motive fluid at least in part from the steam stream.