Production of acetylene

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF ACETYLENE BY THE PYROLITIC CONVERSION OF HYDROCARBONS WHICH COMPRISES FLOWING A FEED GAS STREAM OF SAID HYDROCARBONS CONCURRENTLY WITH BETWEEN ABOUT 0.2 AND 10 POUNDS OF DISPERSED GRANULAR HEATING SOLIDS, PER S. C. F. OF SAID FEED GAS THROUGH A REACTION ZONE WHEREIN SAID FEED GAS IS HEATED BY SAID HEATING SOLIDS TO BETWEEN ABOUT 1800* AND 3000* F. FOR BETWEEN ABOUT 0.001 AND 0.5 SECOND, THEN IMMEDIATELY FLOWING THE RESULTING GAS-SOLIDS DISPERSION DOWNWARDLY INTO A RELATIVELY LOW-PRESSURE SEPARATION ZONE, MAINTAINING IN SAID SEPARATION ZONE A SUBSTANTIALLY COMPACT, SHARPLY DEFINED STREAM OF QUENCH SOLIDS FLOWING CONCURRENTLY AND SUBSTANTIALLY CONTIGUOUSLY TO AND SURROUNGING, BUT DISCRETE FROM, SAID EMERGING GASSOLIDS DISPERSION WHEREBY THE HOT GASES IN SAID DISPERSION ARE CAUSED TO FLOW CONCURRENTLY AND TRANSVERSELY THROUGH SAID STREAM OF QUENCH SOLIDS BEFORE ANY SUBSTANTIAL INTERMINGLING OF SAID HEATING SOLIDS AND SAID QUENCH SOLIDS HAS OCCURRED, SAID HOT GASES BEING RAPIDLY COOLED THEREBY TO BELOW ABOUT 1400* F., AND RECOVERING ACETYLENE FROM THE COOLED GASES.

Claim 3

AN APPARATUS ADAPTED FOR THE PYROLYSIS OF HYDROCARBONS TO ACETYLENE BY CONTACT WITH GRANULAR HEAT-TRANSFER MEDIA COMPRISING IN COMBINATION AN UPPER SOLIDS HEATING CHAMBER, TUBULAR REACTOR COMMUNICATING WITH THE LOWER PORTION OF SAID HEATING CHAMBER THROUGH A CONSTRICTED THROAT, FEED GAS INLET PORT COMMUNICATING WITH THE LOWER PORTION OF SAID THROAT AND POSITIONED IN SOLIDS-ASPIRATING RELATIONSHIP THEREWITH, A SURGE-VESSEL POSITIONED AROUND SAID REACTOR, THE LOWER PORTION OF SAID SURGE-VESSEL BEING HORIZONTALLY SPACED OUTWARDLY FROM SAID REACTOR, BEING THEREBY ADAPTED TO FLOW A STREAM OF SOLIDS DOWNWARDLY PAST THE LOWER END OF SAID REACTOR, A SOLIDS-RECEIVING VESSEL POSITONED BELOW THE LOWER END OF SAID REACTOR AND COMMUNICATING DIRECTLY THEREWITH, SAID SOLIDS-RECEIVING VESSEL HAVING A GAS OUTLET PORT, A SOLDIS ELEVATOR ADAPTED TO TRANSFER SOLIDS DIRECTLY FROM SAID SOLIDS-RECEIVING VESSEL TO A HOPPER POSITIONED ABOVE SAID HEATING CHAMBER CONDUITS CONNECTING SAID HOPPER WITH SAID SURGE-VESSEL AND WITH SAID HEATING CHAMBER, AND MEANS FOR COOLING SOLIDS FLOWING TO SAID SURGE-VESSEL.

Claim 4

AN APPARATUS ADAPTED FOR THE PYROLYSIS OF HYDROCARBONS TO ACETYLENE BY CONTACT WITH GRANULAR HEAT-TRANSFER MEDIA COMPRISING IN COMBINATION AN UPPER SOLIDS HEATING CHAMBER, TUBULAR REACTOR COMMUNICATING WITH THE LOWER PORTION OF SAID HEATING CHAMBER THROUGH A CONSTRICTED THROAT, FEED GAS INLET PORT COMMUNICATING WITH THE LOWER PORTION OF SAID THROAT AND POSITIONED IN SOLIDS-ASPIRATING RELATIONSHIP THEREWITH, A SURGE-VESSEL POSITIONED AROUND SAID REACTOR, THE LOWER PORTION OF SAID SURGE-VESSEL BEING HORIZONTALLY SPACED OUTWARDLY FROM SAID REACTOR, BEING THEREBY ADAPTED TO FLOW A STREAM OF SOLIDS DOWNWARDLY PAST THE LOWER END OF SAID REACTOR, A SOLIDS-RECEIVING VESSEL POSITONED BELOW THE LOWER END OF SAID REACTOR AND COMMUNICATING DIRECTLY THEREWITH, SAID SOLIDS-RECEIVING VESSEL HAVING A GAS OUTLET PORT, A SOLDIS ELEVATOR ADAPTED TO TRANSFER SOLIDS DIRECTLY FROM SAID SOLIDS-RECEIVING VESSEL TO A HOPPER POSITIONED ABOVE SAID HEATING CHAMBER CONDUITS CONNECTING SAID HOPPER WITH SAID SURGE-VESSEL AND WITH SAID HEATING CHAMBER, AND MEANS FOR COOLING SOLIDS FLOWING TO SAID SURGE-VESSEL.