Contacting liquids by reciprocal dispersion

Claim 1

IN A RECIPROCAL DISPERISON METHOD OF CONTACTING WHEREIN TWO AT LEAST PARTIALLY IMMISCIBLE LIQUIDS HAVING DIFFERENT DENSITIES ARE FLOWED IN COUNTERCURRENT THROUGH A SERIES OF CONFINED CONTACTING STAGES SITUATED AT PROGRESSIVELY DIFFERENT LEVELS AND A LAYER OF EACH OF SAID LIQUIDS SEPARATED FROM ONE ANOTHER BY AN INTERFACE IS MAINTAINED WITHIN EACH OF SAID STAGES, THE IMPROVEMENT COMPRISING THE STEPS OF: RECURRENTLY CHANGING THE LEVELS OF SAID INTERFACES BETWEEN VERTICALLY SPACED LEVELS; DISPERSING LIQUID OF HIGHER DENSITY FROM EACH STAGE INTO THE LAYER OF LIQUID OF LOWER DENSITY IN THE RESPECTIVE ADJACENT LOWER STAGE ANS SIMULTANEOUSLY FLOWING LIQUID OF LOWER DENSITY FROM THE LATTER STAGE TO THE FORMER STAGE DIRECTLY BETWEEN INTERMEDIATE LEVELS OF SAID STAGES WHEN THE INTERFACE LEVELS ARE LOW; AND DISPERSING LIQUID OF LOWER DENSITY FROM EACH STAGE INTO THE LAYER OF LIQUID OF HIGHER DENSITY IN THE RESPECTIVE ADJACENT HIGHER STAGE AND SIMULTANEOUSLY FLOWING LIQUID OF HIGHER DENSITY FROM THE LATTER STAGE TO THE FORMING STAGE DIRECTLY BETWEEN INTERMEDIATE LEVELS OF SAID STAGES WHEN THE INTERFACE LEVELS ARE HIGH.