Apparatus and process for recovering cobalt from liquid aldehyde

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR REMOVING DISSOLVED COBALT CARBONYL FROM THE LIQUID ALDEHYDE PRODUCT RESULTING FROM THE REACTION OF OLEFINIC ORGANIC COMPOUNDS WITH CO AND H2 IN THE PRESENCE OF A COBALT CATALYST WHICH COMPRISES PASSING SAID COBALT-CONTAMINATED ALDEHYDE PRODUCT INTO A CATALYST REMOVAL ZONE, PASSING WATER INTO SAID ZONE, MAINTAINING IN SAID ZONE AT LEAST ONE FLEXIBLE HEAT TRANSFER SURFACE AT LEAST PARTIALLY IMMERSED IN LIQUID, SUPPLYING HEAT TO SAID LIQUID WHEREBY SAID COBALT CARBONYL IS CONVERTED INTO INSOLUBLE FORMS OF COBALT AND WHEREBY AT LEAST A PORTION OF SAID COBALT DEPOSITS AS A SCALE ON SAID FLEXIBLE HEAT TRANSFER SURFACE, WITHDRAWING AN ALDEHYDE PRODUCT FROM SAID ZONE SUBSTANTIALLY COMPLETELY FREE FROM DISSOLVED COBALT, FLEXING AND CONCOMITANTLY SPRAYING WATER UPON SAID HEAT TRANSFER SURFACE WHEREBY DEPOSITED SCALE IS CRACKED AND LOOSENED AND WITHDRAWING COBALT-COMPRISING SOLIDS FROM SAID ZONE.