Combined hydrodesulfurization and reforming process and apparatus therefor

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR THE SIMULTANEOUS DESULFURIZATION AND REFORMING OF GAS-OIL AND NAPHTHA HYDROCARBON FRACTIONS IN THE PRESENCE OF A RECIRCULATING STREAM OF HYDROCARBON CONVERSION CATALYST WHICH COMPRISES RECIRCULATING SAID CATALYST THROUGH A HYDROCSARBON CONTACTING ZONE CONTAINING A DESULFURIZATION ZONE AND A SUBJACENT REFORMING ZONE, AND THROUGH A CATALYST REGENERATION ZONE, DIVIDING THE REGENERATED CATALYST INTO A FIRST AND SECOND CATALYST STREAM PRIOR TO PASSAGE OF SAID CATALYST THROUGH SAID CONTACTING ZONE, PASSING SAID FIRST CATALYST STREAM INTO AND DIRECTLY THROUGH SAID DESULFURIZATION ZONE AS A DOWNWARDLY MOVING BED BY GRAVITY IN DIRECT CONTACT WITH HYDROCARBONS PASSING THERETHROUGH AND THEN THROUGH A SOLIDS FLOW RATE CONTROL ZONE INTO SAID REFORMING ZONE, PASSING SAID SECOND CATALYST STREAM AS A DOWNWARDLY MOVING BED BY GRAVITY INDIRECTLY THROUGH SAID DESULFURIZATION ZONE IN INDIRECT HEAT EXCHANGE REALTION THERETO AND OUT OF DIRECT CONTACT WITH SAID HYDROCARBON AND THROUGH SAID SOLIDS FLOW RATE CONTROL ZONE INTO SAID REFORMING ZONE FOR COMBINATION THEREIN WITH SAID FIRST CATALYST STREAM, SUBSEQUENTLY PASSING THE COMBINED CATALYST STREAM DOWNWARDLY BY GRAVITY AS A MOVING BED THROUGH SAID REFORMING ZONE, MAINTAINING SAID DESULFURIZATION ZONE AT A HYDROCARBON DESULFURIZATION TEMPERATURE AND AT A SUPERATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE MAINTAINING SAID REFORMING ZONE AT A SUBSTANTIALLY HIGHER HYDROCARBON REFORMING TEMPERATURE AND AT SUBSTANTIALLY THE SAME SUPERATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE, PASSING A NAPHTHA HYDROCARBON FRACTION AND HYDROGEN THROUGH SAID REFORMING ZONE IN DIRECT CONTACT WITH SAID COMBINED CATALYST STREAM, COMBINING A GAS OIL HYDROCARBON FRACTION WITH THE THUS TREATED NAPHTHA FRACTION FLOWING FROM SAID REFORMING ZONE, PASSING THE NAPHTHA, GAS OIL, AND HYDROGEN MIXTURE THUS FORMED INTO SAID CONTACTING ZONE AT A POINT BETWEEN SAID DESULFURIZATION AND REFORMING ZONES AND UPWARDLY THROUGH SAID DESULFURIZATION ZONE IN CONTACT WITH SAID FIRST CATALYST STREAM ALONE, REMOVING A CONTACTING ZONE EFFLUENT THEREFROM, COOLING AND PARTIALLY CONDENSING SAID EFFLUENT, SEPARATING AN UNCONDENSED HYDROGEN-RICH GAS, RECIRCULTING AT LEAST PART THEREOF THROUGH SAID CONTACTING ZONE, PASSING SAID COMBINED CATALYST STREAM FROM SAID REFORMING ZONE DOWNWARDLY BY GRAVITY THROUGH A SOLIDS FEEDER ZONE, CONTROLLING THEREIN THE ABSOLUBE CIRCULATION RATE OF SAID CATALYST IN SAID PROCESS, REMOVING THE COMBINED CATALYST STREAM FROM SAID CONTACTING ZONE, REGENERATING SAID CATALYST IN SAID REGENERATION ZONE BY CONTACT WITH AN OXYGENCONTAINING GAS, ELUTRIATING CATALYST FINES FROM THE REGENERATED CATALYST BY DISENGAGING SPENT REGENERATION GASES THEREFROM THROUGH A VARIABLE AREA OF A CONVEYED DENSE MASS OF SAID CATALYST, SUBSEQUENTLY TREATING THE REGENERATED CATALYST WITH A HYDROGEN-CONTAINING GAS TO REMOVE RESIDUAL SULFUR FROM SAID CATALYST, AND PASSING THE THUS TREATED REGENERATED CATALYST BACK INTO SAID CONTACTING ZONE FOR REPASAGE THERETHROUGH.

Claim 3

AN APPARATUS FOR THE CONTACTING OF TWO FLUID STREAMS WITH A RECIRCULATING STREAM OF GRANULAR SOLID CONTACT MATERIAL WHICH COMPRISES AN ELONGATED VERTICAL CONTACT COLUMN ADAPTED TO THE DOWNWAD PASSAGE BY GRAVITY OF A MOVING BED OF SOLID GRANULAR CONTACT MATERIAL AND PROVIDED AT SUCCESSIVELY LOWER LEVELS THEREIN WITH A SOLIDS HOPPER AND SEAL SECTON, A FIRST TREATING SECTION, A SOLIDS FLOW RATE CONTROL SECTION, A SECOND TREATING SECTION, A CONTACT MATERIAL STRIPPING SECTION, AND A RECIPROCATING SOLIDS FEEDER SECTION, A SOLIDS INLET CONDUIT AT THE TOP OF SAID COLUMN, AN INLET CONDUIT FOR A FIRST SOLIDS STREAM FROM SAID HOPPER INTO THE TOP OF SAID FIRST TREATING SECTION, AT LEAST ONE ELONGATED CONDUIT FOR A SECOND SOLIDS STREAM OPENING FROM SAID HOPPER AND EXTENDING ENTIRELY THROUGH SAID FIRST TREATING SECTION THROUGH SAID SOLIDS FLOW RATE CONTROL SECTION INTO THE TOP OF SAID SECTION TREATING SECTION, A SOLIDS OUTLET CONDUIT FOR SAID FIRST SOLIDS STREAM OPENING FROM THE BOTTOM OF SAID FIRST TREATING SECTION THROUGH SAID SOLIDS FLOW RATE CONTROL SECTION INTO THE TOP OF SAID SECOND TREATING SECTION, MEANS BELOW SAID FIRST TREATING SECTION IN SAID SOLIDS FLOW RATE CONTROL SECTION FOR CONTROLLING THE RELATIVE FLOW RATES OF SAID FIRST AND SECOND SOLIDS STREAMS, AT LEAST ONE HEAT EXCHANGE MEANS DISPOSED ALONG EACH OF SAID FIRST AND SECOND TREATING SECTIONS, MEANS FOR PASSING FLUID FROM SAID SECTIONS RESPECTIVELY INTO AND THROUGH SAID HEAT EXCHANGE MEANS AND BACK INTO SAID TREATING SECTIONS, A SOLIDS OUTLET AT THE BOTTOM OF SAID COLUMN COMMUNICATING WITH A SOLIDS REGENERATOR, A SOLIDS-RECEIVING VESSEL COMMUNICATING WITH SAID REGENERATOR AND WITH THE SOLIDS INLET TO SAID COLUMN, MEANS FOR PASSING A TREATING FLUID UPWARDLY THROUGH SAID SOLIDS INLET AND INTO SAID SOLIDSRECEIVING VESSEL, CONTROLLABLE OUTLET MEANS FOR DISENGAGING A FLUID FROM A DENSE MASS OF SOLIDS IN SAID SOLIDS-RECEIVING VESSEL TO ELUTRIATE SOLIDS FINES, MEANS FOR INTRODUCING ONE FLUID STREAM AT THE BOTTOM OF SAID FIRST TREATING SECTION, MEANS FOR INTRODUCING ANOTHER FLUID STREAM INTO THE BOTTOM OF SAID FIRST TREATING SECTION, MEANS FOR CONDUCTING FLUID FLOW OPENING FROM THE TOP OF SAID SECOND TREATING SECTION AND INTO THE BOTTOM OF SAID FIRST TREATING SECTION, EFFLUENT OUTLET MEANS FOR REMOVING A FLUID EFFLUENT AT THE TOP OF SAID FIRST TREATING SECTION, MEANS FOR CONDUCTING MEANS COMMUNICATING WITH SAID EFFLUENT OUTLET MEANS AND COMMUNICATING WITH VAPOR-LIQUID SEPARATOR MEANS, AND A VAPOR RECYCLE CONDUIT AND PUMP MEANS COMMUNICATING FROM SAID SEPARATOR MEANS AND OPENING INTO THE BOTTOM OF SAID COLUMN THROUGH A VAPOR HEATING MEANS.

Claim 4

AN APPARATUS FOR THE CONTACTING OF TWO FLUID STREAMS WITH A RECIRCULATING STREAM OF GRANULAR SOLID CONTACT MATERIAL WHICH COMPRISES AN ELONGATED VERTICAL CONTACT COLUMN ADAPTED TO THE DOWNWAD PASSAGE BY GRAVITY OF A MOVING BED OF SOLID GRANULAR CONTACT MATERIAL AND PROVIDED AT SUCCESSIVELY LOWER LEVELS THEREIN WITH A SOLIDS HOPPER AND SEAL SECTON, A FIRST TREATING SECTION, A SOLIDS FLOW RATE CONTROL SECTION, A SECOND TREATING SECTION, A CONTACT MATERIAL STRIPPING SECTION, AND A RECIPROCATING SOLIDS FEEDER SECTION, A SOLIDS INLET CONDUIT AT THE TOP OF SAID COLUMN, AN INLET CONDUIT FOR A FIRST SOLIDS STREAM FROM SAID HOPPER INTO THE TOP OF SAID FIRST TREATING SECTION, AT LEAST ONE ELONGATED CONDUIT FOR A SECOND SOLIDS STREAM OPENING FROM SAID HOPPER AND EXTENDING ENTIRELY THROUGH SAID FIRST TREATING SECTION THROUGH SAID SOLIDS FLOW RATE CONTROL SECTION INTO THE TOP OF SAID SECTION TREATING SECTION, A SOLIDS OUTLET CONDUIT FOR SAID FIRST SOLIDS STREAM OPENING FROM THE BOTTOM OF SAID FIRST TREATING SECTION THROUGH SAID SOLIDS FLOW RATE CONTROL SECTION INTO THE TOP OF SAID SECOND TREATING SECTION, MEANS BELOW SAID FIRST TREATING SECTION IN SAID SOLIDS FLOW RATE CONTROL SECTION FOR CONTROLLING THE RELATIVE FLOW RATES OF SAID FIRST AND SECOND SOLIDS STREAMS, AT LEAST ONE HEAT EXCHANGE MEANS DISPOSED ALONG EACH OF SAID FIRST AND SECOND TREATING SECTIONS, MEANS FOR PASSING FLUID FROM SAID SECTIONS RESPECTIVELY INTO AND THROUGH SAID HEAT EXCHANGE MEANS AND BACK INTO SAID TREATING SECTIONS, A SOLIDS OUTLET AT THE BOTTOM OF SAID COLUMN COMMUNICATING WITH A SOLIDS REGENERATOR, A SOLIDS-RECEIVING VESSEL COMMUNICATING WITH SAID REGENERATOR AND WITH THE SOLIDS INLET TO SAID COLUMN, MEANS FOR PASSING A TREATING FLUID UPWARDLY THROUGH SAID SOLIDS INLET AND INTO SAID SOLIDSRECEIVING VESSEL, CONTROLLABLE OUTLET MEANS FOR DISENGAGING A FLUID FROM A DENSE MASS OF SOLIDS IN SAID SOLIDS-RECEIVING VESSEL TO ELUTRIATE SOLIDS FINES, MEANS FOR INTRODUCING ONE FLUID STREAM AT THE BOTTOM OF SAID FIRST TREATING SECTION, MEANS FOR INTRODUCING ANOTHER FLUID STREAM INTO THE BOTTOM OF SAID FIRST TREATING SECTION, MEANS FOR CONDUCTING FLUID FLOW OPENING FROM THE TOP OF SAID SECOND TREATING SECTION AND INTO THE BOTTOM OF SAID FIRST TREATING SECTION, EFFLUENT OUTLET MEANS FOR REMOVING A FLUID EFFLUENT AT THE TOP OF SAID FIRST TREATING SECTION, MEANS FOR CONDUCTING MEANS COMMUNICATING WITH SAID EFFLUENT OUTLET MEANS AND COMMUNICATING WITH VAPOR-LIQUID SEPARATOR MEANS, AND A VAPOR RECYCLE CONDUIT AND PUMP MEANS COMMUNICATING FROM SAID SEPARATOR MEANS AND OPENING INTO THE BOTTOM OF SAID COLUMN THROUGH A VAPOR HEATING MEANS.