Catalytic conversion of hydrocarbons

Claim 1

IN A PROCESS FOR THE CONVERSION OF FLUID REACTANTS IN THE PRESENCE OF SUBDIVIDED SOLID CATALYST PARTICLES WHEREIN THE REACTANTS ARE CONTACTED AT CONVERSION CONDITIONS WITH CATALYST PARTICLES IN A REACTION ZONE AND THE REACTION PRODUCTS ARE SEPARATED FROM SAID CATALYST PARTICLES AND DISCHARGED FROM THE REACTION ZONE, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES PASSING CONTAMINATED CATALYST PARTICLES FROM THE REACTION ZONE LATERALLY THROUGH A PARTITION HAVING VERTICALLY SPACED OPENINGS INTO AN ADJOINING STRIPPING ZONE, PASSING A FLUID STRIPPING MEDIUM UPWARD THROUGH SAID STRIPPING ZONE, ZONE, CONTROLLING THE FLOW OF SAID STRIPPING MEDIUM TO OBTAIN A GREATER DENSITY OF CATALYST PARTICLES IN SAID STRIPPING ZONE THAN IN SAID REACTION ZONE, MAINTAINING SAID CONTAMINATED PARTICLES IN THE STRIPPING ZONE AS A DENSE FLUID BED EXTENDING TO AN ELEVATION ADJACENT AN OPEN PORTION OF SAID PARTITION, MAINTAINING THE CATALYST PARTICLES IN THE REACTION ZONE AS A DENSE FLUID BED EXTENDING TO A SLIGHTLY HIGHER ELEVATION THAN SAID BED IN THE STRIPPING ZONE BUT BELOW THE TOP OF SAID PARTITION, TRANSFERRING CATALYST PARTICLES FROM THE REACTION ZONE TO THE STRIPPING ZONE ONLY FROM SAID HIGHER ELEVATION IN THE REACTION ZONE TO SAID ELEVATION IN THE STRIPPING ZONE THROUGH SAID OPEN PORTION OF THE PARTITION, PASSING THE STRIPPING MEDIUM AND STRIPPED VOLATILE MATTER FROM THE UPPER PORTION OF SAID STRIPPING ZONE TO THE UPPER END OF SAID REACTION ZONE TO BE DISCHARGED THEREFROM WITH SAID REACTION PRODUCTS AND DISCHARGING STRIPPED CONTAMINATED CATALYST PARTICLES FROM THE LOWER END OF SAID STRIPPING ZONE FOR REGENERATION.