Process and apparatus for converting reactant materials

Claim 1

AN IMPROVED METHOD FOR REACTING HYDROCARBONS, COMPRISING PASSING A FLUENT MASS OF PEBBLES INTO THE UPPER PORTION OF A PEBBLE HEATING ZONE AND DOWNWARDLY THEREIN BY GRAVITY; PASSING HOT GASEOUS HEAT EXCHANGE MATERIAL UPWARDLY THROUGH SAID PEBBLE HEATING ZONE IN DIRECT HEAT EXCHANGE WITH PEBBLES THEREIN TO HEAT SAID PEBBLES TO A TEMPERATURE SUFFICIENTLY HIGH TO TRANSFER HEAT TO A HYDRCARBON REACTANT TO HEAT SAME WHEN IN CONTACT THEREWITH TO A TEMPERATURE WITHIN THE LIMITS OF 900-1500* F., REMOVING EFFLUENT FROM THE UPPER PORTION OF SAID PEBBLE HEATING ZONE, GRAVITATING HEATED PEBBLES FROM SAID PEBBLE HEATING ZONE THROUGH AN UNOBSTRUCTED INTERCONNECTING ZONE INTO A REACTION ZONE AND DOWNWARDLY THROUGH THE LAST SAID ZONE TO FORM A CONTIGUOUS PEBBLE MASS THEREIN, PASSING A STREAM OF SOLID PARTICULATE CATALYTIC MATERIAL CONTAINING PARTICLES NOT LARGER THAN 60 MESH AND NOT SMALLER THAN 200 MESH ON TO SAID PEBBLE MASS IN SAID REACTION ZONE TO FORM A CATALYST LAYER SUPERPOSED ON SAID PEBBLE MASS PASSING A HYDROCARBON REACTANT INTO A LOWER PORTION OF SAID REACTION ZONE AND UPWARDLY THERETHROUGH IN DIRECT HEAT EXCHANGE WITH HOT PEBBLES THEREIN TO PREHEAT SAME FOR CATALYTIC CONVERSION DESCRIBED HEREAFTER, WHEREBY SAID HYDROCARBON REACTANT IS PREHEATED TO A TEMPERATURE WITHIN THE LIMITS OF 900-1500* F., PASSING PREHEATED REACTANT MATERIAL FROM SAID PEBBLE MASS UPWARDLY THROUGH SAID SUPERPOSED CATALYST LAYER AT A LINEAR VELOCITY SUFFICIENTLY HIGH TO MAINTAIN SAID CATALYTIC MATERIAL AS A FLUDIZED FIXED BED, WHEREBY CATA-