Catalytic process

Claim 1

IN A CATALYTIC CONVERSION HAVING AN APPROXIMATELY NEUTRAL TO EXOTHERMIC HEAT BALANCE, THE STEPS COMPRISING PASSING A REACTANT THROUGH A REACTOR CONTAINING A FLUIDIZED CATALYZT BED AT ELEVATED TEMPERATURE AND PRESSURE, MAINTAINING A FLUIDIZED BED OF CATALYST IN A SEPARATE REGENERATOR AT A SUBSTANTIALLY LOWER PRESSURE THAN SAID ELEVATED PRESSURE, TERMINATING THE FLOW OF REACTANT WHEN THE ACTIVITY OF THE CATALYST IN THE REACTOR IS SUBSTANTIALLY REDUCED, DEPRESSURING THE REACTOR, AT LEAST PARTIALLY FILLING A HOPPER BETWEEN THE REGENERATOR AND REACTOR WITH A SUBSTANTIAL AMOUNT OF CATALYST, SAID HOPPER, REACTOR AND REGENERATOR, EACH BEING CONNECTED TO BOTH OF THE OTHERS TO FORM A THREE-VESSEL SYSTEM THROUGH WHICH CATALYST MAY BE MOVED FROM TIME TO TIME AND THE AFORESAID CATALYST AT LEAST PARTIALLY FILLING SAID HOPPER COMING FROM THE NEXT PRECEDING VESSEL IN THE SYSTEM, EMPTYING THE REACTOR CHARGE THE NEXT FOLLOWING VESSEL IN THE SYSTEM, COMPLETING THE FILLING OF THE HOPPER WITH A REACTOR CHARGE OF CATALYST, TRANSFERRING A CHARGE OF ACTIVE CATALYST TO THE REACTOR FROM THE NEXT PRECEDING VESSEL IN THE SYSTEM, REPRESSURING THE REACTOR, AND AGAIN PASSING REACTANT THROUGH THE REACTOR AND, DURING A SUBSTANTIAL PART OF THE TIME IN WHICH THE FLOW OF REACTANT IS TERMINATED, INTRODUCING DEACTIVATED CATALYST INTO THE REGENERATOR FROM THE NEXT PRECEDING VESSEL IN THE SYSTEM AND REMOVING REACTIVATED CATALYST THEREFROM INTO THE NEXT FOLLOWING VESSEL IN THE SYSTEM AND REDUCTION AND REMOVAL BEING AT SUCH RATES AS TO MAINTAIN AN APPROXIMATELY CONSTANT LEVEL OF CATALYST IN THE REGENERATOR.