Patent 7988948 was granted and assigned to AIR PRODUCTS AND CHEMICALS, INC. on August, 2011 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
A method for generating hydrogen and/or syngas in a production facility where little or no export steam is produced. Most or all of the steam produced from the waste heat from the process is used in the steam-hydrocarbon reformer. Reformed gas is passed to a pressure swing adsorption system for H2 purification. In the method, CO2 is removed from the pressure swing adsorber residual gas prior to recycling the residual gas to the reformer for use as feed and as fuel. Plant efficiencies using the method and prior art-type methods are compared.