Catalytic conversion of coal energy to hydrogen. Project final report

Technical Report · Sat Oct 01 04:00:00 EDT 1977

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/6809020· OSTI ID:6809020

Starkovich, J. A.; Pinkerton, J. D.; Motley, E.

This project was concerned with the catalytic gasification of coal char and specifically with the use of alkali salt based catalyst systems for promoting the char-lime-steam, char-steam, and char-oxygen-steam gasification reactions. The activity and recyclability performance of selected alkali catalyst systems were evaluated using both fixed and fluid-bed reactors. It was established in both fixed and fluid-bed reactor tests that all char gasification reactions could be made to rapidly occur at 650/sup 0/C with steam using alkali catalysts such as sodium and potassium carbonate. This reaction temperature is approximately 150 to 200/sup 0/ lower than the temperature at which rapid reaction can be effected for uncatalyzed char gasification reactions. These high catalyst activities are achieved through simple admixing of the dry solid catalyst with char or char-acceptor mixtures. Hydrogen is the principal fuel product produced from alkali catalyzed char-steam and char-acceptor-steam reactions under the experimental conditions employed. It was shown in reactions carried out in fluidized bed reactors, that a 95% pure hydrogen product is obtainable from catalyzed char-acceptor-steam reactions at 650/sup 0/C and for 3 to 6 atmosphere reaction pressures. In recycle where reaction residues were remixed with fresh char, alkali catalyst systems could be used to catalytically gasify between 12 to 35 times their own weight of char. Recyclability performance was shown to depend on catalyst and char type, 950 to 1000/sup 0/C acceptor regeneration treatment, and the presence of lime and stabilizing additives such as fluorspar and phosphate salts. Preliminary engineering analysis indicates that a conceptual process based on alkali catalyzed char-acceptor-steam gasification reactions for high purity hydrogen production could be competitive on a product cost per energy unit basis.

• Research Organization: TRW Defense and Space Systems Group, Redondo Beach, Calif. (USA). Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Lab.
• OSTI ID: 6809020
• Report Number(s): FE-2206-14
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

01 COAL, LIGNITE, AND PEAT
010404 -- Coal
Lignite
& Peat-- Gasification
08 HYDROGEN
080107* -- Hydrogen-- Production-- Coal Gasification
ALKALI METAL COMPOUNDS
ALKALINE EARTH METAL COMPOUNDS
CALCIUM COMPOUNDS
CALCIUM OXIDES
CARBON COMPOUNDS
CARBONATES
CATALYSTS
CHALCOGENIDES
CHARS
COAL GASIFICATION
GASIFICATION
HIGH TEMPERATURE
HYDROGEN PRODUCTION
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
POTASSIUM CARBONATES
POTASSIUM COMPOUNDS
RESEARCH PROGRAMS
SODIUM CARBONATES
SODIUM COMPOUNDS
STEAM