Hydrocarbon conversion process utilizing the gas lift as the conversion zone

Claim 1

THE PROCESS OF CRACKING HYDROCARBONS WITH SOLID CRACKING CATALYST, WHICH COMPRISES CONTINUOUSLY INTRODUCING A CRACKABLE HYDROCARBON CHARGE INTO A TRANSFER ZONE CONTAINING A LATERALLY CONFINED COMPACT BED OF HOT GRANULAR CATALYST OF COMPARATIVELY LARGE PARTICLE SIZE, SAID CHARGE BEING INTRODUCED TO FLOW UPWARDLY THROUGH SAID BED OF CATALYST AT SUFFICIENT VELOCITY AND IN SUCH QUANTITY TO CAUSE LIFTING OF CATALYST IN SAID BED, CONTINUOUSLY TRANSPORTING CATALYST SO LIFTED TOGETHER WITH AND UNDER THE IMPELLING INFLUENCE OF SAID HYDROCARBONS VERTICALLY UPWARD AT CONTROLLED VELOCITY THROUGH A LONG LATERALLY CONFINED PATH OF SUBSTANTIALLY SMALLER LATERAL CROSS SECTION THAN THAT OF SAID TRANSFER ZONE, EFFECTING CATALYTIC CRACKING OF A PORTION OF SAID HYDROCARBONS WHILE IN CONTACT WITH CATALYST DURING SUCH UPWARD TRANSPORTATION, DISCHARGING THE CATALYST AND TRANSPORTING VAPORS AT THE TOP OF SAID PATH INTO AN EXPANDED VAPOR-DISENGAGING ZONE THEREBY CAUSING SAID CATALYST AS A RESULT OF CONSEQUENT DECREASE IN VELOCITY TO SETTLE OUT FROM THE IMPELLING INFLUENCE OF TRANSPORTING VAPORS, THE CATALYST THUS SETTLING OUT BEING CONTAMINATED WITH CARBONACEOUS DEPOSIT AS A RESULT OF THE CRACKING OF HYDROCARBON EFFECTED DURING SAID UPWARD TRANSPORTATION, SUPPORTING THE CATALYST THUS SETTLED OUT TO FORM A COMPACT BED OF CONTAMINATED CATALYST BELOW SAID DISENGAGING ZONE, WITHDRAWING CONTAMINATED CATALYST FROM THE BOTTOM OF THE LAST NAMED BED THEREBY CAUSING DESCENT OF CATALYST TO A POINT OF DISCHARGE FROM SAID COMPACT BED, PASSING INERT GAS UPWARDLY THROUGH THE SAID BED OF CONTAMINATED CATALYST INTO SAID DISENGAGING ZONE TO PURGE SAID CATALYST OF OCCLUDED AND ADHERING VAPORIZABLE PRODUCTS THEREIN, DISCHARGING PURGE VAPORS TOGETHER WITH VAPOROUS PRODUCTS DISENGAGED FROM CATALYST IN SAID VAPOR DISENGAGING ZONE ABOVE SAID BED, PASSING THE THUS PURGED CATALYST DIRECTLY TO A REGENERATION ZONE, EFFECTING DOWNWARD MOVEMENT OF CATALYST IN SAID REGENERATION ZONE AS A COMPACT MASS, PASSING REGENERATING GAS THROUGH SAID MOVING COMPACT MASS OF CATALYST IN SAID REGENERATION ZONE TO EFFECT COMBUSTION OF CARBONACEOUS DEPOSIT IN SAID CATALYST AND THEREBY HEATING SAID CATALYST TO DESIRED TEMPERATURE FOR REUSE IN CONTACTING HYDROCARBONS, DISCHARGING THE THUS REGENERATED CATALYST FROM SAID REGENERATION ZONE AND CONTINUOUSLY FEEDING THE DISCHARGED CATALYST FROM SAID REGENERATION ZONE TO SAID TRANSFER ZONE AS A CONTINUOUS UNINTERRUPTED CONFINED COLUMN, THE CATALYST BEING FED TO SAID TRANSFER ZONE AT A RATE CONTROLLED BY THE RATE OF REMOVAL OF CATALYST FROM THE BED OF CATALYST FORMED IN SAID TRANSFER ZONE, WHICH REMOVAL OF CATALYST CONTINUOUSLY TAKES PLACE UNDER THE IMPELLING INFLUENCE OF HYDROCARBONS INTRODUCED INTO SAID TRANSFER ZONE, THE VELOCITY AND RATE OF INTRODUCTION OF SAID HYDROCARBONS INTO SAID TRANSFER ZONE BEING SELECTED TO CAUSE TRANSPORTATION OF THE CATALYST THROUGH SAID CONFINED PATH ABOVE SAID TRANSFER ZONE AT DESIRED WEIGHT RATIOS OF CATALYST TO HYDROCABONS, AND THE LINEAR VELOCITY OF SAID HYDROCARBONS THROUGH SAID UPWARD PATH BEING CONTROLLED WITH RELATION TO THE TOTAL LENGTH OF SAID PATH SO THAT SAID HYDROCARBONS TRANSVERSE SAID PATH IN NOT LESS THAN ONE AND ONE-HALF SECONDS, THE SAID WEIGHT RATIOS, LINEAR VELOCITY, AND LENGTH OF SAID PATH BEING SO CORRELATED THAT SUBSTANTIAL CRACKING OF THE HYDROCARBONS IS EFFECTED DURING ENGAGEMENT OF SAID HYDROCARBONS IN THE RECITED UPWARD TRANSPORTATION OF CATALYST.