Pretreatment process for fluid hydroforming

Claim 1

IN A PROCESS HYDROFORMING HYDROCARBON FRACTIONS BOILING WITHIN THE MOTOR FUEL RANGE IN CONTACT WITH FINELY DIVIDED HYDROFORMING CATALYST PARTICLES COMPRISING MOLOYBDENUM OXIDE UPON AN ALUMINA-CONTAINING SUPPORT IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE FLUIDIZED SOLIDS TECHNIQUE AT TEMPERATURES OF ABOUT 850-950* F. AND AT PRESSURES OF FROM 50 TO 500 LBS. PER SQUARE INCH, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES CONTINUOUSLY WITHDRAWING A STREAM OF SPENT CATALYST PARTICLES FROM A DENSE, FLUIDIZED BED IN THE HYDROFORMING REACTION ZONE, REGENERATING THE WITHDRAWN CATALYST PARTICLES BY BURNING CARBONACEOUS DEPOSITS THEREFROM AT ELEVATED TEMPERATURES IN A SEPARATE REGENERATION ZONE AT SUBSTANTIALLY THE SAME PRESSURE AS IN THE REACTION ZONE, AND THEREBY SIMULTANEOUSLY OXIDIZING THE MOLYBDENUM OXIDE SUBSTANTIALLY COMPLETELY TO MOO3, WITHDRAWING REGENERATED CATALYST PARTICLES FROM THE REGENERATION ZONE, CONTACTING THE WITHDRAWN REGENERATED CATALYST PARTICLES IN A SEPARATE PRETREATMENT ZONE AT SUBSTANTIALLY THE SAME PRESSURE AS IN THE REACTION ZONE WITH AT MOST SUFFICIENT HYDROGEN TO CONVERT THE MOO3 IN THE CATALYST TO M0205. SAID HYDROGEN BEING MIXED WITH DILUENT GAS SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF SCRUBBED FLUE GAS AND NITROGEN IN AN AMOUNT SUFFICIENT TO REDUCE THE PARTIAL PRESSURE OF STREAM IN THE PRETREATMENT ZONE TO BELOW 10 LBS. PER SQ. INCH, AND RECYCLING THE TREATED CATALYST PARTICLES SUBSTANTIALLY FREE FROM WATER VAPOR FORMED AS A BY-PRODUCT IN THE PRETREATMENT TO THE REACTION ZONE.