TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to reactions involving the use of an activated metal such as aluminum and others, and to products produced by such reactions. The invention also relates to methods for activating the metal with the use of a metal activating agent. The invention further relates to processes utilizing the activated metal for capturing carbon, sulfur, and/or nitrogen, or other elemental materials, from carbon, sulfur, and/or nitrogen compounds, respectively, and for transforming such compounds to modify the compounds or produce other compounds. The invention further relates to alkylation processes utilizing the activated metal.

BACKGROUND

Aluminum and certain other metals have high energy content (aluminum being one of the highest) and therefore can be extremely active materials, limited only by surface passivation. The reactivity of aluminum and other metals may be visualized by the well-known Ellingham diagram, which plots the change in Gibbs free energy (ΔG) as a function of temperature for oxidation reactions involving different metals. The driving force for reaction is governed by the bond energy difference with oxide, sulfide, nitride, or phosphide compounds. The Ellingham diagram demonstrates that in addition to aluminum, magnesium, calcium, lithium, and other electropositive species follow this trend. However, such metals are not generally considered as catalysts, reagents, electrophiles, or the like, due to their normal confinement by a passivating oxide that blocks their reactivity potential. Such metals, in order to be active and to continue to remain active after reacting with a target material, need to be in an atomic state unhindered by a passivating oxide. An ongoing need exists for finding ways to exploit the active property of such metals in the context of various chemical and industrial processes, and to renew such metals so that they remain available as an active agent in such processes.

For example, there have been numerous studies relating to removing or capturing transforming carbon dioxide (CO2) from the exhaust of various processes, such as from flue gases from combustion processes, byproducts of fermentation, and byproducts of processes of extraction from the environment. Also of interest is removing pollutants such as NOxcompounds (nitric oxide and nitrogen dioxide), SOxcompounds (sulfur dioxide, sulfur trioxide, etc.), and other sulfur-containing compounds such as carbon disulfide (CS2), carbonyl sulfide (COS), and thiophene (C4H4S) and the like. These studies have also extended to the removal of carbon compounds, sulfur compounds, nitrogen compounds and other pollutants from synthesized or extracted products such as organic fuels, natural gas, and syngas. Carbon and sulfur capture approaches currently in practice have focused on removal of CO2and hydrogen sulfide (H2S) from process streams via adsorption in an amine system, with elemental sulfur subsequently isolated via the well-known Claus process. However, these processes require high temperatures and pressures and the use of expensive catalysts to obtain conversion yields on the order of 50% to 70%. Moreover, the amine-based processes are not effective for removing mercaptans, thiophenes, and certain sulfides such as carbonyl sulfide (COS).

Another example is the class of alkylation processes, which utilize an alkylating agent to transfer an alkyl group from one molecule to another. One specific example is the alkylation of isobutane with olefins in oil refining processes. Known nucleophilic alkylating reagents include organometallic compounds such as organomagnesium (Grignard reagents), organolithium, organocopper, and organosodium. Known electrophilic alkylating reagents include those utilized in Friedel-Crafts reactions, using alkyl halides to alkylate aromatic substrates in the presence of a Lewis acid catalyst.

It would be desirable to be able to capture or extract useful materials from the products resulting from chemical and industrial processes, such as elemental carbon from carbon compounds, elemental sulfur from sulfur compounds, and elemental nitrogen from nitrogen compounds. Further, it would be desirable to capture elemental carbon, sulfur, and/or nitrogen by using activated metal as an agent for such capture. Further, it would be desirable to capture such materials without requiring the expense and complexity of heat addition and pressurization, or the use of expensive catalysts although these may be added within ranges that are economical. Further, it would be desirable to implement alkylation processes with the use of activated metal as an agent or catalyst. Further, it would be desirable to utilize the activated metal to simultaneously produce hydrogen locally and at low temperature to facilitate alkylation and other hydration reactions.

SUMMARY

To address the foregoing problems, in whole or in part, and/or other problems that may have been observed by persons skilled in the art, the present disclosure provides methods, processes, systems, apparatus, instruments, and/or devices, as described by way of example in implementations set forth below.

According to one embodiment, a method for capturing a target element from a target source includes: providing a matrix comprising an activated metal dispersed in a metal activating agent; and contacting the target source with the matrix, wherein: the target element is selected from the group consisting of carbon, sulfur, nitrogen, and a combination of two or more of the foregoing; the target source comprises a compound selected from the group consisting of a target carbon compound, a target sulfur compound, a target nitrogen compound, and a combination of two or more of the foregoing; and the activated metal reacts with the target source to produce a product selected from the group consisting of elemental carbon, elemental sulfur, elemental nitrogen, a transformed carbon compound transformed from the target carbon compound, a transformed sulfur compound transformed from the target sulfur compound, a transformed nitrogen compound transformed from the target nitrogen compound, and a combination of two or more of the foregoing.

In some embodiments in which the activated metal reacts with the target source to produce a transformed compound or compounds (e.g., a transformed carbon compound, transformed sulfur compound, and/or transformed nitrogen compound), the method further comprises: producing or liberating the target element (e.g., elemental carbon, elemental sulfur, and/or elemental nitrogen) from the transformed compound(s). In some embodiments, the activated metal may be reacted with the transformed compound(s) to produce or liberate the target element from the transformed compound(s).

According to another embodiment, a method for capturing a target element from a target source includes: providing a matrix comprising activated metal dispersed in a metal activating agent; and contacting the target source with the matrix, wherein: the target element is selected from the group consisting of carbon, sulfur, nitrogen, and a combination of two or more of the foregoing; the target source is selected from the group consisting of a carbon compound, a sulfur compound, a nitrogen compound, and a combination of two or more of the foregoing; and the activated metal reacts with the target source to produce at least one of liberated carbon, liberated sulfur, and liberated nitrogen thereby cleansing the fluid of the targeted materials.

According to another embodiment, a method for capturing a target element from a target source includes: producing a matrix comprising activated metal by contacting solid metal with an metal activating agent, and maintaining contact between the solid metal and the metal activating agent for a period of time sufficient for metal atoms from the solid metal to disperse in the metal activating agent; and flowing the target source into contact with the matrix, wherein: the target element is selected from the group consisting of carbon, sulfur, nitrogen, and a combination of two or more of the foregoing; the target source is selected from the group consisting of a carbon compound, a sulfur compound, a nitrogen compound, and a combination of two or more of the foregoing; and the activated metal reacts with the target source to produce at least one of liberated carbon, liberated sulfur, and liberated nitrogen.

According to another embodiment, the activated metal comprises aluminum (Al), magnesium (Mg), calcium (Ca), barium (Ba), lithium (Li), beryllium (Be), silicon (Si), an alloy of one or more of the foregoing, or a combination of two or more of the foregoing.

According to another embodiment, the metal activating agent comprises gallium, indium, tin, zinc, or a combination of two of more of the foregoing.

According to another embodiment, flowing the target source into contact with the matrix is done at a process temperature in a range from 7° C. to 400° C.

According to another embodiment, flowing the target source into contact with the matrix is done at about room temperature, at about atmospheric pressure, or at both of the foregoing.

According to another embodiment, the reaction produces a metal compound such as, for example, a metal oxide, metal hydroxide, metal carbide, metal sulfide, or metal nitride.

According to another embodiment, the target source is a liquid, a gas, a supercritical fluid, a solid, or a solid dispersion phase.

According to another embodiment, the target source comprises carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, sulfur trioxide, carbon disulfide, hydrogen sulfide, thiofuran, thiophenes, mercaptans, ammonia, nitric oxide, nitrogen dioxide, or a combination of two or more of the foregoing.

According to another embodiment, the target source comprises a thiofuran, or a mixture of a thiofuran and one or more of a hydrocarbon, and an alcohol.

According to another embodiment, the target source comprises a hydrocarbon, or a mixture of a hydrocarbon and one or more of water, a hydrated compound, an alcohol, and a compound including a hydroxyl functional group (—OH).

According to another embodiment, flowing the target source into contact with the matrix is done in the presence of a hydrogen source, and while the activated metal reacts with the target source, and the method further comprises generating hydrogen gas, generating a hydrogen compound, or generating both hydrogen gas and a hydrogen compound.

In some embodiments, the hydrogen source is water, alcohol, or both water and alcohol.

According to another embodiment, the target source includes a carbon compound, and flowing the target source into contact with the matrix is done in the presence of a hydrogen source.

The method further includes producing an organic compound such as a hydrocarbon.

According to another embodiment, an organic compound is provided. The organic compound is produced according to any of the methods disclosed herein. In some embodiments, the organic compound is a hydrocarbon.

According to another embodiment, a method for generating electricity includes:

performing a reduction reaction between activated metal and a compound; and channeling the charge transfer associated with the reduction reaction into electrical current.

According to another embodiment, a metal compound is provided. The metal compound is produced according to any of the methods disclosed herein.

According to another embodiment, elemental carbon, sulfur, nitrogen, or a combination of two of more of the foregoing is provided. The elemental carbon, sulfur, nitrogen, or combination is produced according to any of the methods disclosed herein.

According to another embodiment, a system for capturing a target element from a target source is provided. The system may be configured to perform any of the methods disclosed herein.

Other devices, apparatus, systems, methods, features and advantages of the invention will be or will become apparent to one with skill in the art upon examination of the following figures and detailed description. It is intended that all such additional systems, methods, features and advantages be included within this description, be within the scope of the invention, and be protected by the accompanying claims.

