173 results about "Oxygen transport" patented technology

A method of generating electrical power in which a synthesis gas stream generated in a gasifier is combusted in an oxygen transport membrane system of a boiler. The combustion generates heat to raise steam to in turn generate electricity by a generator coupled to a steam turbine. The resultant flue gas can be purified to produce a carbon dioxide product.

A method and apparatus for producing heat used in a synthesis gas production process is provided. The disclosed method and apparatus include a plurality of tubular oxygen transport membrane elements adapted to separate oxygen from an oxygen containing stream contacting the retentate side of the membrane elements. The permeated oxygen is combusted with a hydrogen containing synthesis gas stream contacting the permeate side of the tubular oxygen transport membrane elements thereby generating a reaction product stream and radiant heat. The present method and apparatus also includes at least one catalytic reactor containing a catalyst to promote the steam reforming reaction wherein the catalytic reactor is surrounded by the plurality of tubular oxygen transport membrane elements. The view factor between the catalytic reactor and the plurality of tubular oxygen transport membrane elements radiating heat to the catalytic reactor is greater than or equal to 0.5.

The present invention relates to blood products, and more particularly to compositions comprising a modified oxygenated hemoglobin having a high affinity for oxygen and methods for making such compositions. Such compositions according to the present invention have better stability to autooxidation and superior oxygen carrying characteristics.

Provided herein is a stabilized oxygen transport matrix that includes a reversible oxygen binding protein, such as hemoglobin, immobilized throughout the stabilized oxygen transport matrix. The stabilized oxygen transport matrix is used to transport oxygen and can be used as an oxygen transport region and a reaction region of an analyte sensor, such as an implantable glucose sensor. The reversible binding protein can also function as an oxygen probe within the analyte sensor.

A method of generating a synthesis gas product stream and carbon dioxide in which a fuel is combusted in an oxygen transport membrane combustor to produce a flue gas stream containing the carbon dioxide and water. Reforming duty is divided between a combined reforming process and a gas heated reformer to produce the product stream. The flue gas stream is used to supply heat to a primary, steam methane reforming stage of the combined reforming process. Residual methane, produced in the primary stage, is reacted in a secondary stage having an oxygen transport membrane reactor. Heat produced in the secondary stage is supplied to the gas heated reactor to support its operation. The flue gas stream is cooled and water is separated therefrom to produce the carbon dioxide at a concentration of at least 85 mol percent.

A method of generating a synthesis gas product stream and carbon dioxide in which a fuel is combusted in an oxygen transport membrane combustor to produce a flue gas stream containing the carbon dioxide and water. Reforming duty is divided between a combined reforming process and a gas heated reformer to produce the product stream. The flue gas stream is used to supply heat to a primary, steam methane reforming stage of the combined reforming process. Residual methane, produced in the primary stage, is reacted in a secondary stage having an oxygen transport membrane reactor. Heat produced in the secondary stage is supplied to the gas heated reactor to support its operation. The flue gas stream is cooled and water is separated therefrom to produce the carbon dioxide at a concentration of at least 85 mol percent.

An emergency oxygen supply system for use on aircraft in the event of a loss in cabin pressure is configured for delivering allotments of oxygen and timing the delivery such allotments to each passenger so as maximize the efficiency of the transfer of such oxygen into the passenger's bloodstream. The delivery of each allotment is selected so that the entire allotment is available for inhalation into the region of the lung most efficient at oxygen transfer while the volume of the allotment is selected to substantially coincide with the volume of such region of the lung.

An integrated system utilizing a solid oxide fuel cell and at least one ion transport reactor to generate electric power and a product gas by delivering an oxygen-containing gas, typically air, to a first cathode side of the solid oxide fuel cell and delivering a gaseous fuel to a first anode side. Oxygen ions are transported through a membrane in the fuel cell to the first anode side and exothermally react with the gaseous fuel to generate electric power and heat. The heat and oxygen transport produces a higher-temperature, reduced-oxygen-content gaseous retentate stream exiting the cathode side of the solid oxide fuel cell which is delivered to a first ion transport reactor where a substantial portion of the residual oxygen is transported through an oxygen selective ion transport membrane. A product gas stream is then recovered.

The intervertebral disc contains no blood vessels. Nutrients and waste are diffused mainly through adjacent vertebral bodies. As we age, calcified layers form between the disc and vertebral bodies, blocking diffusion. The disc begins to starve and flatten. The weight shifts abnormally from disc to the facet joints causing strain and back pain. Under anaerobic conditions, lactic acid is produced causing acidic irritation and unspecific pain. A U-shaped disc shunt is delivered into and sealed within the degenerated disc simply by needle puncturing and withdrawal, to draw nutrients from bodily circulation into the avascular disc. A continual supply of nutrients increases biosynthesis of the water-retaining sulfated glycosaminoglycans, hence swelling pressure within the disc. The weight is re-shifted from the facet joints to the regenerated disc, alleviating back pain. With oxygen transported through the shunt, anaerobic production of lactic acid is minimized. In addition, the residual lactic acid is expelled through the U-shaped shunt during disc compression into bodily circulation to alleviate unspecific pain.

A commercially viable modular ceramic oxygen transport membrane reforming reactor for producing a synthesis gas that improves the thermal coupling of reactively-driven oxygen transport membrane tubes and catalyst reforming tubes required to efficiently and effectively produce synthesis gas.

A method and system for producing a synthesis gas in an oxygen transport membrane based reforming system is disclosed that carries out a primary reforming process, a secondary reforming process.

A method and system for producing methanol that employs an integrated oxygen transport membrane based reforming system is disclosed. The integrated oxygen transport membrane based reforming system carries out a primary reforming process, a secondary reforming process, and synthesis gas conditioning to produce synthesis gas having a desired module of between about 2.0 and 2.2 for a methanol production process thereby optimizing the efficiency and productivity of the methanol plant.

A method and system for producing a synthesis gas in an oxygen transport membrane based reforming system is disclosed that carries out a primary reforming process within a reforming reactor, and a secondary reforming process within an oxygen transport membrane reactor and in the presence of heat generated from a oxygen transport membrane reactor and an auxiliary source of heat. The auxiliary source of heat is disposed within the reactor housing proximate the reforming reactors and may include an auxiliary reactively driven oxygen transport membrane reactor or a ceramic burner.

A method and system for generating electrical power is provided in which a high pressure synthesis gas stream generated in a gasifier is partially oxidized in an oxygen transport membrane based reactor, expanded and thereafter, is combusted in an oxygen transport membrane based boiler. A low pressure synthesis gas slip stream is split off downstream of the expanders and used as the source of fuel in the oxygen transport membrane based partial oxidation reactors to allow the oxygen transport membrane to operate at low fuel pressures with high fuel utilization. The combustion within the boiler generates heat to raise steam to in turn generate electricity by a generator coupled to a steam turbine. The resultant flue gas can be purified to produce a carbon dioxide product.

A method and system for producing a synthesis gas in an oxygen transport membrane based reforming system that utilizes a combined feed stream having a steam to carbon ratio between about 1.6 and 3.0 and a temperature between about 500° C. and 750° C. The combined feed stream is comprised a pre-reformed hydrocarbon feed, superheated steam, and a reaction product stream created by the reaction of a hydrogen containing stream reacted with the permeated oxygen at the permeate side of the oxygen transport membrane elements and wherein the hydrogen containing stream is a recycled portion of the synthesis gas.

A composite oxygen transport membrane having a dense layer, a porous support layer and an intermediate porous layer located between the dense layer and the porous support layer. Both the dense layer and the intermediate porous layer are formed from an ionic conductive material to conduct oxygen ions and an electrically conductive material to conduct electrons. The porous support layer has a high permeability, high porosity, and a microstructure exhibiting substantially uniform pore size distribution as a result of using PMMA pore forming materials or a bi-modal particle size distribution of the porous support layer materials. Catalyst particles selected to promote oxidation of a combustible substance are located in the intermediate porous layer and in the porous support adjacent to the intermediate porous layer. The catalyst particles can be formed by wicking a solution of catalyst precursors through the porous support toward the intermediate porous layer.

The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for determining blood oxygen transport, and to measure lipid levels by correlating these levels with the rate at which oxygen diffuses through the red blood cell membrane.

A method and apparatus for producing a synthesis gas product having one or more oxygen transport membrane elements thermally coupled to one or more catalytic reactors such that heat generated from the oxygen transport membrane element supplies endothermic heating requirements for steam methane reforming reactions occurring within the catalytic reactor through radiation and convention heat transfer. A hydrogen containing stream containing no more than 20 percent methane is combusted within the oxygen transport membrane element to produce the heat and a heated combustion product stream. The heated combustion product stream is combined with a reactant stream to form a combined stream that is subjected to the reforming within the catalytic reactor. The apparatus may include modules in which tubular membrane elements surround a central reactor tube.

The invention relates to a commercially viable modular ceramic oxygen transport membrane system for utilizing heat generated in reactively-driven oxygen transport membrane tubes to generate steam, heat process fluid and / or provide energy to carry out endothermic chemical reactions. The system provides for improved thermal coupling of oxygen transport membrane tubes to steam generation tubes or process heater tubes or reactor tubes for efficient and effective radiant heat transfer.

A method of producing a composite oxygen ion membrane and a composite oxygen ion membrane in which a porous fuel oxidation layer and a dense separation layer and optionally, a porous surface exchange layer are formed on a porous support from mixtures of (Ln1-xAx)wCr1-yByO3-δ and a doped zirconia. In the porous fuel oxidation layer and the optional porous surface exchange layer, A is Calcium and in the dense separation layer A is not Calcium and, preferably is Strontium. Preferred materials are (La0.8Ca0.2)0.95Cr0.5Mn0.5O3-δ for the porous fuel oxidation and optional porous surface exchange layers and (La0.8Sr0.2)0.95Cr0.5Fe0.5O3-δ for the dense separation layer. The use of such materials allows the membrane to sintered in air and without the use of pore formers to reduce membrane manufacturing costs. The use of materials, as described herein, for forming the porous layers have application for forming any type of porous structure, such as a catalyst support.

A method and system for producing methanol that employs both an oxygen transport membrane (OTM) based reforming system together with a more traditional steam methane reforming (SMR) and / or autothermal (ATR) synthesis gas production system is disclosed. The dual mode system and method for producing the synthesis gas in a methanol production process optimizes the efficiency and productivity of the methanol plant by using the OTM based reforming system as an independent source of synthesis gas. The disclosed methods and systems are configurable either as a retrofit to existing methanol production facilities or as an integrated package into newly constructed methanol production facilities.

A composite oxygen transport membrane having a dense layer, a porous support layer and an intermediate porous layer located between the dense layer and the porous support layer. Both the dense layer and the intermediate porous layer are formed from an ionic conductive material to conduct oxygen ions and an electrically conductive material to conduct electrons. The porous support layer has a high permeability, high porosity, and a microstructure exhibiting substantially uniform pore size distribution as a result of using PMMA pore forming materials or a bi-modal particle size distribution of the porous support layer materials. Catalyst particles selected to promote oxidation of a combustible substance are located in the intermediate porous layer and in the porous support adjacent to the intermediate porous layer. The catalyst particles can be formed by wicking a solution of catalyst precursors through the porous support toward the intermediate porous layer.

The invention relates to catalyst preparation, and aims to provide a preparation method of catalysts for oxygen production implemented through the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide. The method comprises the following steps of: immersing a nickel-foam solid sample into a silver nitrate solution, heating the obtained object, carrying out a replacement reaction, and cooling the obtained product to room temperature; taking an alkaline sodium borohydride solution, reducing nickel ions in the previous solution to metal nickel and depositing the metal nickel to the solid sample; and taking out the solid sample, calcinating the solid sample for 2-5 hours under nitrogen so as to obtain a silver catalyst taking nickel foam as a carrier. According to the invention, micropores of nickel foam are used as oxygen transport channels, so that the service life of the catalyst is greatly prolonged. Meanwhile, because the structure compatibility of nickel and silver is excellent, and silver atoms are dissolved in the crystal structure of nickel so as to form a solid solution, so that the mechanical strength of nickel foam can be enhanced, and the capability of a carrier to resist shock waves produced by the generation of oxygen is increased, thereby greatly improving the stability and reliability of catalysts.

Nitrosylation of proteins and amino acid groups enables selective regulation of protein function, and also endows the proteins and amino acids with additional smooth muscle relaxant and platelet inhibitory capabilities. Thus, the invention relates to novel compounds achieved by nitrosylation of protein thiols. Such compounds include: S-nitroso-heme proteins, S-nitroso-t-PA, S-nitroso-cathepsin; S-nitroso-lipoproteins; and S-nitroso-immunoglobulins. The invention also relates to therapeutic use if S-nitroso-protein compounds for regulating protein function, cellular metabolism and effecting vasodilation, platelet inhibition, relaxation of non-vascular smooth muscle, and increasing blood oxygen transport by hemoglobin and myoglobin. The compounds are also used to deliver nitric oxide in its most bioactive form in order to achieve the effects described above, or for in vitro nitrosylation of molecules present in the body. The invention also relates to the nitrosylation of oxygen, carbon and nitrogen moieties present on proteins and amino acids, and the use thereof to achieve the above physiological effects.

Integrated polymeric-ceramic membrane-based oxy-fuel combustor. The combustor includes a polymer membrane structure for receiving air at an input and for delivering oxygen-enriched air at an outlet. An oxygen transport reactor including a ceramic ion transport membrane receives the oxygen-enriched air from the polymer membrane structure to generate oxygen for combustion with a fuel introduced into the oxygen transport reactor.

Provided herein is a stabilized oxygen transport matrix that includes a reversible oxygen binding protein, such as hemoglobin, immobilized throughout the stabilized oxygen transport matrix. The stabilized oxygen transport matrix is used to transport oxygen and can be used as an oxygen transport region and a reaction region of an analyte sensor, such as an implantable glucose sensor. The reversible binding protein can also function as an oxygen probe within the analyte sensor.

An oxide-based electrolytic structure and process is disclosed, which is particularly useful for use as an oxygen separation device. The disclosed structures utilize thin film layers to provide the oxygen separation in conjunction with polymer substrate materials. The disclosed devices operate at relatively low temperatures to provide a relatively low flux density (typically 10−10-10−14 g / cm2 sec) of ion conduction, compared to prior art solid oxide electrolytes, whereas substantial oxygen separation is provided over relatively large areas. The disclosed oxygen separation devices are particularly suited for protection of organic-based semiconductors.