Apparatus and Method for Recovery of Hydrogen and Noble Gas from a Gas Mixture

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This invention is a system and method for separating and recovering both hydrogen and noble gases (particularly argon or helium) from a mixed gas stream. The core technique uses a LOHC (Liquid Organic Hydrogen Carrier) hydrogenation unit, which chemically binds the hydrogen present in the gas mixture to a dehydrogenated LOHC liquid. This effectively removes the hydrogen from the gas mixture, leaving behind a noble-gas-enriched stream, while the hydrogen-laden LOHC can be processed separately to release and recover the hydrogen. The approach allows both components — hydrogen and the noble gas — to be recovered in usable form rather than lost or wasted.

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• Recovering hydrogen and argon from the off-gas streams of semiconductor or photovoltaic manufacturing processes, where both gases are used in large quantities.
• Reclaiming hydrogen and helium from purge gases in ammonia synthesis or other industrial chemical plants that use hydrogen-noble gas mixtures.
• Separating and recycling hydrogen and argon from the exhaust of metal heat-treatment furnaces that operate under protective gas atmospheres.
• Recovering helium and hydrogen from leak-test gas mixtures used in industrial quality-control applications.
• Enabling on-site gas recycling in research or analytical laboratories that consume significant volumes of hydrogen and noble gas blends.

BenefitsContent extracted from patent full text and abstract with AI.

• Enables simultaneous recovery of both hydrogen and noble gases from a single mixed gas stream, avoiding the loss of either valuable component.
• Uses LOHC technology to chemically bind hydrogen at moderate conditions, providing a safer and more energy-efficient separation route compared to cryogenic or high-pressure membrane methods.
• Reduces operating costs by recycling expensive noble gases such as helium and argon that would otherwise be vented or discarded.
• Avoids the need for complex multi-stage cryogenic separation plants by leveraging the chemical selectivity of the LOHC hydrogenation reaction.
• Supports sustainability goals by minimising waste of both hydrogen — a key energy carrier — and scarce noble gases like helium.

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Patent Abstract

The present invention relates to a system for separating hydrogen and a noble gas and/or for recovering both hydrogen and a noble gas from a supplied gas mixture, wherein the noble gas is in particular argon or helium, with a separation device designed as an LOHC hydrogenation device (3), which has at least one LOHC hydrogenation unit (3a) and is configured to chemically bind hydrogen contained in the gas mixture to dehydrogenated LOHC (Liquid Organic Hydrogen Carrier) and thus separate hydrogenated LOHC from the remaining hydrogen-depleted gas mixture and discharge it from the LOHC hydrogenation device (3).