Alkylation process

Claim 1

A ONCE-THROUGH METHOD OF REACTING ISOPARAFFINIC HYDROCARBONS WITH OLEFINIC HYDROCARBONS IN THE PRESENCE OF LIQUID ACID CATALYST MATERIAL FOR THE REACTION, TO FORM BRANCHED CHAIN SATURATED HYDROCARBONS BOILING WITHIN THE GASOLINE RANGE, AND SUBSTANTIALLY FREE FROM POLYMERIZATION PRODUCTS, IN WHICH SAID REACTANT MATERIALS ARE CONTACTED IN A CONFINED REACTION ZONE, COMPRISING MAINTAINING AN EMULSIFIED BODY OF SAID MATERIALS AND PRODUCT IN SAID ZONE WITH AN INTERMEDIATE UPPER LEVEL THEREIN, CONTINUOUSLY VAPORIZING AND WITHDRAWING A PORTION OF UNREACTED ISOPARAFFINIC HYDROCARBONS FROM SAID ZONE ABOVE THE LIQUID LEVEL THEREIN, CONTINUOUSLY WITHDRAWING A PORTION OF THE EMULSIFIED MATERIALS FROM SAID ZONE, SEPARATING SAID MATERIALS INTO A HEAVIER COMPONENT COMPRISING SAID ACID CATALYST, AND A LIGHTER COMPONENT COMPRISING SAID REACTANT MATERIALS AND THE REATION PRODUCT SUBSTANTIALLY FREE OF CATALYST MATERIAL, FRACTIONATING SAID LIGHTER COMPONENT TO RECOVER THEREFROM A PRODUCT COMPONENT AND A SECOND COMPONENT CONSISTING OF UNREACTED ISOPARAFFIN HYDROCARBONS, RECYCLING A STREAM OF SAID RECOVERED ISOPARAFFINIC HYDROCARBONS TO SAID REACTION ZONE, CONTINUOUSLY RECYCLING A STREAM OF SAID SEPARATED HEAVIER COMPONENT COMPRISING SAID ACID CATALYST TO SAID REACTION ZONE, CONTINUOUSLY CONDENSING THE VAPORIZED ISOPARAFFINIC MATERIAL WITHDRAWN FROM SAID REACTION ZONE AND RECYCLING THE CONDENSED ISOPARAFFINIC MATERIAL TO SAID REACTION ZONE, THE STREAMS OF SAID ISOPARAFFINIC MATERIAL AND OF SAID ACID-CONTAINING HEAVIER COMPONENT BEING INTRODUCED INTO SAID REACTION ZONE AS A PLURALITY OF OPPOSED, PAIRED JETS IN IMPINGING CONTACT ONE WITH ANOTHER WITHIN THE BODY OF MATERIALS IN SAID ZONE, AT LEAST A PORTION OF SAID JETTED STREAMS COMPRISING A MIXTURE OF SAID ACID CATALYST AND SAID ISOPARAFFINIC HYDROCARBON MATERIAL, AND CONTINUOUSLY JETTING SAID OLEFINIC HYDROCARBON INTO SAID EMULSIFIED BODY DIRECTLY BETWEEN SAID OPPOSED JET STREAMS AT A PLANE SUBSTANTIALLY COINCIDENT WITH THAT ESTABLISHED BY IMPINGEMENT OF SAID OPPOSED JETS.