Autothermal ammonia cracking process

1. Process for the production of a product gas containing nitrogen and hydrogen from ammonia, comprising the steps of:

non-catalytic partial oxidation of ammonia with an oxygen containing gas to a process gas containing nitrogen, water, amounts of nitrogen oxides and residual amounts of ammonia;

cracking of at least a part of the residual amounts of ammonia to hydrogen and nitrogen in the process gas by contact with a nickel containing catalyst and simultaneously reducing the amounts of nitrogen oxides to nitrogen and water by reaction with a part of the hydrogen formed during cracking of the process gas by contact of the process gas with the nickel containing catalyst; and

withdrawing the hydrogen and nitrogen containing product gas.

2. The process of claim 1 , wherein the amounts of nitrogen oxides generated in the non-catalytic partial oxidation step are reduced by more than 80%, and up to 100% as limited by thermodynamic equilibrium, through reaction of the nitrogen oxides with hydrogen by contact with the nickel containing catalyst.

3. The process of claim 1 , wherein the non-catalytic partial oxidation of ammonia is performed by burning the ammonia in gaseous form in a burner with under-stoichiometric amounts of oxygen containing gas.

4. The process of claim 1 , wherein the non-catalytic partial oxidation step and the cracking step are performed in a single reactor vessel.

5. The process of claim 4 , wherein the single reactor is an autothermal cracking reactor.

6. The process of claim 1 , wherein the oxygen to ammonia feed flow rate to the non-catalytic partial oxidation step is adjusted to result in an equilibrium temperature of the product gas between 700 and 1100° C. after contact with the nickel containing catalyst.

7. The process of claim 1 , wherein the content of oxygen in the oxygen containing gas is varied corresponding to lambda-values between λ=0.18 and λ=0.30, where lambda is the ratio between the actual oxygen feed flow and that required for full stoichiometric combustion of the ammonia into nitrogen and water.

8. The process of claim 1 , wherein the oxygen containing gas contains between 10 and 100 vol % oxygen.

9. The process of claim 1 , comprising the further step of converting CO 2 to methane in a methanation reactor by hydrogen obtained from the ammonia cracking step.

10. The process of claim 1 , comprising the further step of separating uncracked ammonia further contained in the product gas.

11. The process of claim 8 , wherein the residual ammonia is separated from the product gas by a water wash.

12. The process of claim 10 , wherein the separated ammonia is recovered in an ammonia recovery step and recycled to the non-catalytic partial oxidation step.

13. The process of claim 10 , comprising addition of NaOH to the ammonia recovery step.

14. The process of claim 1 , comprising the further step of adjusting the hydrogen to nitrogen mole ratio of the product gas in a product gas adjustment unit.

15. The process of claim 3 , comprising addition of a hydrogen source to the ammonia feed or directly to the burner.

16. The process of claim 15 , wherein the hydrogen source is the ammonia cracking product gas, or product gas adjusted for ammonia content and/or hydrogen to nitrogen ratio.

17. The process of claim 15 , wherein the hydrogen source is a utility supply or coming from another process.

18. The process of claim 1 , comprising a CO 2 removal wash of the oxygen containing gas.