Abstract: A process of producing a town-gas-grade fuel gas having a calorific value below 18,000 kJ/standard m.sup.3 (4,300 kcal/standard m.sup.3) by a catalytic reaction of methanol and water vapor under a pressure of 10 to 50 bars is disclosed wherein 80 to 95 percent of the mixed feedstock (methanol and water vapor) is fed in a water vapor to methanol weight ratio of 0.5 to 1.5 to a first reaction zone where it is maintained at a temperature of 300.degree. to 700.degree. C. in contact with a nickel catalyst containing 25 to 50 weight percent nickel, the remainder of the mixed feedstock being mixed with the effluent gas from the first reaction zone and together passed to a second reaction zone at a temperature of 200.degree. to 400.degree. C. and therein contacted with a copper catalyst containing 40 to 70 percent by weight copper.

Abstract: A process for reducing an ore which comprises:(A) gasifying a solid carbonaceous granular fuel by contacting the same in a fixed bed with oxygen and steam at a pressure of 5 to 50 bars;(B) subjecting the gas produced from said gasification to shift conversion in order to reduce the residual carbon monoxide content to 1 to 10 percent by volume of dry gas(C) scrubbing the gaseous shift conversion gas to remove sulfur compounds and to reduce the CO.sub.2 content to no more than 3 percent by volume whereby to provide a scrubbed gas containing more than 70 percent by volume hydrogen and carbon monoxide which gas contains more than 10 percent by volume methane(D) admixing the so scrubbed gas with reduction process exhaust gas formed by reduction of ore(E) reforming the resultant mixture of gases at a pressure of 1.5-10 bars a temperature of 800.degree. to 1500.degree. C.; and(F) feeding at least a portion of such gas containing up to 3 percent by volume CO.sub.2 and 5 percent by volume methane at 700.degree.-1000.

Abstract: A process is described for producing carbon monoxide and hydrogen which comprises contacting methanol vapor at a temperature of 200.degree. to 500.degree. C. with an indirectly heated zinc containing catalyst while said methanol vapor is at a pressure in a range of 2 to 50 bars, whereby to obtain an effluent gas in which the components of carbon monoxide and hydrogen constitute at least 90% by volume of said gas, removing at least a part of the impurities from said effluent gas and separating said effluent gas into its carbon monoxide and hydrogen components by adsorption. The effluent gas can be separated into its carbon monoxide and hydrogen components by use of a plurality of adsorbers containing zeolite-type molecular sieve material where the zeolite is substantially permeable to hydrogen but sorbs carbon monoxide.

Abstract: In the production of methanol from gaseous hydrocarbons having a lower C/H ratio than is stoichiometrically required to produce methanol and comprising the steps of catalytically cracking said hydrocarbons in the presence of water vapor at about 830.degree. to 930.degree. C. and about 5 to 30 bars to produce a synthesis gas consisting essentially of hydrogen and oxides of carbon, and subsequently catalytically converting said synthesis gas of hydrogen and oxides of carbon to methanol at about 230.degree. to 280.degree. C. and about 30 to 150 bars, the improvement which comprises transferring heat from the hot synthesis gas to the hydrocarbon-water vapor mixture flowing through the cracking catalyst thereby providing at least part of the heat required for the catalytic cracking of the hydrocarbons and reducing the consumption of thermal-/energy per unit of methanol produced.

Abstract: A reducing gas containing essentially carbon monoxide and hydrogen and only small amounts of water vapor, carbon dioxide and methane is produced by reacting a normally liquid, volatile hydrocarbon with water vapor in two stages under superatmospheric pressure in the presence of nickel-containing catalysts. The improvement of the invention involves adding from 0.02 to 0.1 standard cubic meter of hydrogen per kilogram hydrocarbon to the hydrocarbons to be gasified, subjecting the resulting mixture to a hydrogenation desulfurization and, after adding up to 1.6 kilogram water vapor per kilogram hydrocarbon, reacting said mixture in a one-part first gasification stage at temperatures of 350.degree.-550.degree. C. in the presence of a catalyst containing from 35-70% by weight nickel on a magnesium-containing support thereby producing a high-methane gas which is reacted further in a second stage at temperatures above 850.degree. C. in contact with an indirectly heated heat resistant nickel catalyst.

Abstract: An improvement in the production of a natural gas substitute comprising at least about 80% of methane by volume by multi-stage methanation of a synthesis gas containing hydrogen and oxides of carbon over fixed-bed nickel-containing catalysts under a pressure of about 5 to 100 bars. The starting synthesis gas, preferably produced by oxygen and water gasification of coal, has about 8 to 25% by volume of methane on a dry basis. It is methanated in a first stage at an inlet temperature of about 230.degree.-400.degree. C. and an outlet temperature of about 550.degree. to 750.degree. C. and then in a second stage at about 230.degree. to 500.degree. C. The process is economical with respect to heat consumption and equipment cost.

Abstract: In the production of methanol from gaseous and liquid hydrocarbons having a higher C/H ratio than is stoichiometrically required to produce methanol, wherein said hydrocarbons are catalytically cracked in the presence of water vapor and at a temperature of about 350.degree.-950.degree. C. and under a pressure of about 5-30 bars to produce a synthesis gas containing hydrogen and oxides of carbon, followed by a catalytic reaction of the hydrogen with the oxides of carbon at a temperature of about 230.degree.-280.degree. C. and under a pressure of about 30-150 bars to produce methanol, the improvement which comprises treating the methanol synthesis exhaust gas so as to remove therefrom carbonaceous gaseous constituents so that the residual gas is high in hydrogen, and adding said high-hydrogen residual gas to the hydrocarbons prior to cracking in an amount such that the C/H ratio of the material to be cracked is up to about 5.7, thereby reducing the energy consumption per unit of methanol produced.

Abstract: A reactor for reacting hydrocarbons with steam to produce carbon monoxide and hydrogen containing gases in the presence of a catalyst contained in a reaction tube and indirectly heated by heating fluid which is a gas that has been used to cool a nuclear reactor. The reaction tubes are surrounded by the heating fluid over a portion of their length in a heating zone and the other portion thereof is positioned outside of the heating zone. The reaction tubes are provided with one or more conduits for feeding of reactants and one or more conduits for discharging product gas.

Abstract: A gas which can be substituted for natural gas is produced from a raw gas containing hydrogen and carbon oxides which is produced by the gasification of coal, tar or heavy residual oils under superatmospheric pressure. The raw gas is cooled, purified to remove catalyst poisons, particularly sulfur compounds, and then subjected to methanation and at least two stages in contact with nickel catalysts under pressures of 5-100 bars and at temperatures in the range of 200.degree.-500.degree. C. The product gas from the preceding methanation stage is reacted in the last methanation stage in contact with a catalyst which is indirectly cooled by a gas flowing in a countercurrent to the gas to be reacted.

Abstract: High-methane, low-hydrogen gas, interchangeable with natural gas, is prepared by reacting hydrocarbons with steam in the presence of a nickel-based catalyst at elevated temperatures and pressures. The hydrocarbons and the steam are fed to the reaction in mixture with product gas from the process from which substantially all carbon dioxide has been removed.

Abstract: Carbon monoxide is produced from light hydrocarbons having an average C number not greater than 15 by catalytic cracking with water vapor in two cracking stages followed by separation of the carbon monoxide from the product gas employing the following steps:I. mixing the hydrocarbon feedstock with 0.02-0.1 standard cubic meter hydrogen per kilogram;Ii. subjecting this mixture to hot desulfurization;Iii. mixing the desulfurized mixture with superheated process steam in a ratio of 1.1-1.7 moles per mole of carbon in the feedstock;Iv. converting the resulting mixture in contact with nickel catalysts in a first cracking stage at temperatures of 300.degree.-500.degree. C. and thereafter, after a partial pressure relief, in a second stage at temperatures above 825.degree. C.; andV.

Abstract: Heat is supplied to chemical reactions, especially reactions involving the cracking of hydrocarbons for producing gas, by the combustion of fuels with heated combustion air followed by a heat exchange extraction of sensible heat from the flue gases produced by the combustion for heating air for the combustion. The hot reaction product is at least partly air cooled and the resulting heated cooling air is passed at least partly through the air preheater before the air is used as heated combustion air.

Abstract: A reactor for reacting gaseous or vaporized hydrocarbons with water vapor to produce carbon monoxide and hydrogen containing gases in the presence of a catalyst. The catalyst is contained in indirectly heated tubes in a heating zone which contains the gaseous heating fluid. The catalyst tubes extend through the reactor housing and at least partly into a heating zone defined by the reactor housing. The portion of the tubes extending into the reactor housing are surrounded by an inner shielding wall which is permeable to an outer shielding wall disposed within the reactor housing and defining a flow passage therewith.

Abstract: A reducing gas useful for reducing ores containing carbon monoxide and hydrogen and low amounts of carbon dioxide and water vapor is produced by reacting gaseous and/or volatile liquid hydrocarbons with water vapor on an indirectly heated, nickel-containing catalyst under superatmospheric pressure. A partial amount of the hydrocarbons to be reacted is first cracked in contact with a nickel catalyst at 350.degree. - 500.degree.C. with at least part of the water vapor to form a hydrogen-containing gas, which is mixed with the remaining hydrocarbons. The mixture is further heated if desired and is then completely reacted at temperatures above 900.degree.C. in contact with the indirectly heated catalyst.