Method and apparatus for controlling temperature in olefin carbonylation

Claim 1

A METHOD OF CONDUCTING WITHIN CONTROLLED RANGES OF TEMPERATURE REACTIONS AT SUPER-ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE IN THE LIQUID PHASE BETWEEN REACTANTS OF WHICH AT LEAST ONE IS GASEOUS, THE MOLAR RATIO OF GAS TO LIQUID THEORETICALLY REQUIRED BEING RELATIVELY SMALL, WHICH COMPRISES PASSING GASEOUS REACTANT UPWARDLY THROUGH A VERTICALLY ELONGATED REACTION ZONE COUNTERCURRENTLY TO THE LIQUID COMPONENT, BOTH BEING AT DESIRED TEMPERATURE AND IN DESIRED PROPORTIONS AND SIMULTANEOUSLY CONTROLLING THE TEMPERATURE OF THE REACTANTS IN SAID ZONE BY PASSING A GREATER AMOUNT OF SAID GASEOUS REACTANT THAN FED TO SAID ZONE PER UNIT OF TIME THROUGH A PLURALITY OF PATHS IN INDIRECT HEAT TRANSFER WITH THE LIQUID AND IN THE FORM OF A CLOSE NETWORK WHICH BRINGS THE ASCENDING GAS INTO INTIMATE CONTACT WITH SAID LIQUID, CONTINUOUSLY MIXING THE STREAM OF GAS FROM THE REACTION VESSEL AND FROM THE SAID PATHS RESPECTIVELY TOGETHER WITH MAKEUP GAS AS DESIRED TO OBTAIN THE GAS FOR RECYCLING TO THE REACTION ZONE AND TO THE PATHS, THE TEMPERATURE OF THE GAS AND ITS PROPORTION BEING CONTROLLED TO GIVE THE DESIRED CONDITIONS IN THE REACTION ZONE.

Claim 2

A METHOD OF CONDUCTING WITHIN CONTROLLED RANGES OF TEMPERATURE REACTIONS AT SUPER-ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE IN THE LIQUID PHASE BETWEEN REACTANTS OF WHICH AT LEAST ONE IS GASEOUS, THE MOLAR RATIO OF GAS TO LIQUID THEORETICALLY REQUIRED BEING RELATIVELY SMALL, WHICH COMPRISES PASSING GASEOUS REACTANT UPWARDLY THROUGH A VERTICALLY ELONGATED REACTION ZONE COUNTERCURRENTLY TO THE LIQUID COMPONENT, BOTH BEING AT DESIRED TEMPERATURE AND IN DESIRED PROPORTIONS AND SIMULTANEOUSLY CONTROLLING THE TEMPERATURE OF THE REACTANTS IN SAID ZONE BY PASSING A GREATER AMOUNT OF SAID GASEOUS REACTANT THAN FED TO SAID ZONE PER UNIT OF TIME THROUGH A PLURALITY OF PATHS IN INDIRECT HEAT TRANSFER WITH THE LIQUID AND IN THE FORM OF A CLOSE NETWORK WHICH BRINGS THE ASCENDING GAS INTO INTIMATE CONTACT WITH SAID LIQUID, CONTINUOUSLY MIXING THE STREAM OF GAS FROM THE REACTION VESSEL AND FROM THE SAID PATHS RESPECTIVELY TOGETHER WITH MAKEUP GAS AS DESIRED TO OBTAIN THE GAS FOR RECYCLING TO THE REACTION ZONE AND TO THE PATHS, THE TEMPERATURE OF THE GAS AND ITS PROPORTION BEING CONTROLLED TO GIVE THE DESIRED CONDITIONS IN THE REACTION ZONE.