Hydrocarbon conversion

Claim 1

THE PROCESS FOR THERMALLY TREATING A HEAVY HYDROCARBON CHARGE TO SIMULTANEOUSLY PRODUCE COKE AND PREDOMINANT YIELDS OF GASEOUS UNSATURATED HYDROCARBONS HAVING LESS THAN FOUR CARBON ATOMS TO THE MOLECULE WHICH COMPRISES CONTINUOUSLY MOVING A CONTINUOUS GRAVITYPACKED COLUMN OF HEATED SOLID COKE PARTICLES DOWNWARDLY BY GRAVITY THROUGH A COKING OPERATION, CONTINUOUSLY INTRODUCING SAID HEAVY HYDROCARBON, THE MAJOR PORTION OF WHICH IS IN THE LIQUID PHASE, TO THE UPPER PART OF SAID COLUMN WHEREBY A PORTION OF SAID HYDROCARBON CHARGE IS VAPORIZED, MAINTAINING THE TEMPERATURE OF SAID COLUMN IN SAID COKING OPERATION AT APPROXIMATELY 900*F.-1050* F. WHEREBY THE LIQUID PORTION OF SAID HYDROCARBON CHARGE IS MILDLY CRACKED, THE UNVAPORIZED PORTION OF SAID HYDROCARBON CHARGE BEING ULTIMATELY CONVERTED TO DRY COKE ON THE SOLID COKE PARTICLES AND TO ADDITIONAL VAPORS, PASSING SAID COKED SOLID COKE PARTICLES THROUGH A LOWER PART OF SAID COKING OPERATION WHEREIN SAID COKE IS DRIED ON SAID SOLID COKED PARTICLES, COMBINING SAID FIRST-MENTIONED VAPORS AND SAID ADDITIONAL VAPORS TO FORM A COMBINED VAPOR FROM SAID COKING OPERATION, PASSING SAID COMBINED VAPOR TO AN INDEPENDENT VAPOR-CRACKING OPERATION CON-