Method of pumping gas

摘要

A vacuum pumping arrangement is described for pumping a gas stream containing hydrogen or other hydrogen-containing gas. The arrangement comprises a pumping mechanism for receiving the gas stream and exhausting a pumped gas stream at a sub-atmospheric pressure, and, downstream from the pumping mechanism, an ionic conducting membrane having one side exposed to the pumped gas stream and another side exposed to oxygen or other source of oxygen. In one example, the membrane is permeable to hydrogen, which permeates across the membrane to react with oxygen adsorbed on the other surface of the membrane. In another example, the membrane is permeable to oxygen anions, which permeate across the membrane to react with hydrogen within the gas stream.

主权项

1. A method of pumping a gas stream containing hydrogen comprising the steps of:
conveying the gas stream through a vacuum pumping mechanism; subsequently conveying the gas stream at a sub-atmospheric pressure through a membrane reactor attached to an exhaust flange of the vacuum pump mechanism such that the gas stream is conveyed to a first side of a membrane permeable to oxygen ions within the membrane reactor wherein the first side of the membrane comprises a catalyst to catalyze the oxidation of a hydrocarbon or hydrogen in the gas stream; and exposing a second side of the membrane to a gaseous source of oxygen, wherein the second side of the membrane comprises a material to disassociate oxygen into oxygen ions so that the oxygen ions permeate across the membrane to react with the hydrocarbon or hydrogen in the gas stream thereby inhibiting hydrogen from back streaming through the pumping mechanism.