Apparatus for carrying out gaseous catalytic reactions in liquid medium

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR REACTING A GAS IN THE PRESENCE OF A CATALYST IN A LIQUID MEDIUM THAT IS HELD SUBSTANTIALLY STATIONARY DURING THE REACTION AS THE GAS IN THE FORM OF BUBBLES IS FLOWED UPWARDLY THROUGH THE LIQUID MEDIUM, COMPRISING A REACTOR HAVING A GAS INLET AND A GAS OUTLET, A CYCLINDRICAL VERTICALLY-POSITIONED REACTION OVEN WHOSE DIAMETER IS GREATER THAN 30 CENTIMETERS AND WHOSE HEIGHT IS GREATER THAN 1.5 METERS AND WHICH IS POSITIONED A HEIGHT ABOVE THE GAS INLET OF AT LEAST AS GREAT AS THE DIAMETER OF THE OVEN, LIQUID-TIGHT CASING SURFACES SUBDIVIDING SAID OVEN CROSS MOST OF ITS HORIZONTAL CROSS-SECTION INTO A BUNDLE OF SIMILAR CONTINUOUS AND UNITRRUPTED SHAFTS WHOSE MINIMUM HORIZONTAL DISTANCE IS GREATER THAN 5 CENTIMETERS, SAID BEING OPEN AT THE BOTTOM AND TOP AND TERMINATING AT THEIR TOPS AT A SPACED DISTANCE BELOW THE TOP OF THE REACTOR TO LEAVE A FREE GAS SPACE ABOVE THE TOP LEVEL OF TH ESHAFTS FOR SAID LIQUID MEDIUM, A GUIDE MEMBER MMOUNTED UNDERNEATH THE LOWER EDGE OF TEH PERIMETER OF SAID BUNDLE AND BETWEEN SAID BUNDLE AND THE WALL OF SAID REACTOR AND EXTENDING INWARDLY OF SAID OVEN TOWARD SAID BUNDLE FOR PREVENTING LARGE SMOUNTS OF GAS FROM PENETRATING THE SPACE BETWEEN SAID BUNDLE OF SHAFTS AND THE WALL OF SAID REACTOR.