Production of hydrocarbons from a granular solid reactant

Claim 1

IN A REACTION OF A GRANULATED SOLID WITH A GASEOUS REACTANT, DURING WHICH THE GRANULATED SOLID IS AT LEAST PARTIALLY DECOMPOSED AND DISINTEGRATED INTO PARTICLES OF SUBSTANTIALLY SMALLER SIZE, THE MPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES MAINTAINING A DENSE FLUIDIZED MASS OF THE GRANULATED SOLID HAVING A TOP LEVLE IN THE BOTTOM PORTION OF A VERTICALLY ELONGATED REACTION ZONE BY INTRODUCING SAID GASEOUS REACTANT INTO THE BOTTOM OF SAID DENSE FLUIDIZED MASS IN A QUANTITY SUFFICIENT TO MAINTAIN SAID DENSE MASS OF THE GRANULATED SOLID IN A CONTINUOUSLY FLUDIZED STATE, INTRODUCING FRESH FEED OF THE GRANULATED SOLID AT A FEED POINT ABOVE SAID TOP LEVEL SO THAT THIS FRESH FEED PASSES INTO AND DROPS COUNTERCURRENTLY TO AN UPFLOWING STREAM OF THE GASEOUS REACTANT CARRYING PARTLY DECOMPOSED AND DISINTEGRATED PARTICLES OF THE SOLID REACTANT WHICH ARE CONTINUOUSLY ARISING FROM THE FLUIDIZED MASS TOWARD AND INTO AN UPPER AND LONGER PART OF THE REACTION ZONE, MAINTAINING THE DISINTEGRATED SOLID REACTANT PARTICLES IN SUSPENSION IN THE GASES IN THE UPPER AND LONGER PART OF THE REACTION ZONE UNTIL FULLY DECOMPOSED TO FINE DUST PARTICLES, AND REMOVING DECOMPOSED PARTICLES FROM A TOP PART OF THE REACTION ZONE AT A POINT SUFFICIENTLY REMOTE FROM THE TOP LEVEL OF THE DENSE MASS AND ABOVE SAID FEED POINT OF ALLOW SUBSTANTIALLY COMPLETE REACTION OF THE PARTLY DECOMPOSED PARTICLES OF THE SOLID REACTANT WHILE CARRIED IN SUSPENSION THROUGH THE UPPER PART OF THE ELONGATED REACTION ZONE.