Phase contactor

Claim 1

IN A VERTICALLY DISPOSED COLUMN FOR CONTACTING TWO IMMISCIBLE LIQUIDS OF UNLIKE SPECIFIC GRAVITIES, A LIQUIDLIQUID CONTACTING TRAY ASSEMBLY COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, A TRAY OF GENERALLY SAW-TOOTH CROSS-SECTION, SAID TRAY COMPRISING A PLURALITY OF ELONGATED PLATES HAVING THEIR LONGITUDINAL AXES MUTUALLY PARALLEL AND HORIZONTAL AND SUCCESSIVE PLATES BEING JOINED ALONG THE ELONGATED SIDES IN SUCH A MANNER THAT THE TRANSVERSE AXIS OF EVERY OTHER PLATE SLOPES UPWARD FROM THE HORIZONTAL AND THE TRANSVERSE AXIS OF THE ALTERNATE PLATES SLOPES BEING PERFOTHE HORIZONTAL, THE UPWARD SLOPING PLATES BEING PERFORATED AND SLOPING AT A GREATER ANGLE FROM THE HORIZONTAL THAN THE ALTERNATE AND DOWNWARD SLOPING PLATES, SAID DOWNWARD SLOPING PLATES BEING NONPERFORATE, MEANS FOR INTRODUCING ONE LIQUID TO ONE SIDE OF SAID TRAY AT THE EDGE THEREOF ADJACENT A LESS SLOPING PLATE IN SUCH A MANNER THAT THE DIRECTION OF FLOW OF SAID ONE LIQUID ACROSS THE TRAY IS PERPENDICULAR TO THE LONGITUDINAL AXES OF SAID PLATES, EACH SUCCESSIVE PAIR OF SAID SLOPING PLATES BEGINNING WITH THE FIRST PLATE SLOPING AT SAID GREATER ANGLE NEAREST SAID EDGE FORMING AN OUTSIDE ANGLE GREATER THAN A STRAIGHT ANGLE ON SAID ONE SIDE OF SAID TRAY, A SEPARATE PERFORATE BAFFLE PLATE BEING PARALLEL TO THE VERTICAL AXIS OF THE TRAY ASSEMBLY AND BEING ATTACHED TO SAID PLATES ALONG THE LINE OF JUNCTURE FORMING SAID ANGLE GREATER THAN A STRAIGHT ANGLE ON SAID ONE SIDE OF SAID TRAY, MEANS FOR INTRODUCING THE OTHER LIQUID TO THE OTHER SIDE OF SAID TRAY, AND SEPARATE MEANS FOR REMOVING LIQUIDS FROM SAID TRAY.