Butene dehydrogenation followed by oil and water quenching of the dehydrogenation product effluent

Claim 1

IN THE DEHYDROGENATION OF BUTENE TO BUTADIENE IN THE PRESENCE OF LARGE AMOUNTS OF STEAM, WHEREIN REACTION PRODUCT EFFLUENT IS QUENCHED FIRST WITH OIL TO LOWER THE TEMPERATURE AND REMOVE EMULSION-FORMING CONTAMINANTS, THEN QUENCHED WITH WATER TO FURTHER LOWER THE TEMPERATURE AND REMOVE ADDITIONAL EMULSION FORMING CONTAMINANTS, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES PASSING DEHYDROGENATION PRODUCT EFFLUENT CONTAINING STEAM AND EMULSION-FORMING CONTAMINANTS INTO A LOWER ZONE OF A QUENCH TOWER COMPRISING AN UPPER AND LOWER ZONE, CONTACTING THE ASCENDING REACTION PRODUCT EFFULENT IN SAID LOWER ZONE WITH A DOWNWARD FLOW OF QUENCH OIL HAVING AN INITIAL BOILING POINT ABOVE THE TEMPERATURE OF THE INCOMING GASEOUS REACTION PRODUCT MAINTAINING SAID LOWER ZONE AT A TEMPERATURE ABOVE THE BOI-LING POINT OF WATER, WITHDRAWING FROM SAID LOWER ZONE QUENCH OIL CONTAINING SOME OF THE EMULSION-FORMING CONTAMINANTS, PASSING GASEOUS REACTION PRODUCT EFFLUENT UPWARDLY IN THE ABSENCE OF ENTRAINED LIQUID QUENCH OIL INTO SAID UPPER ZONE, CONTACTING SAID REACTION PRODUCT EFFLUENT IN SAID UPPER ZONE WITH A DOWNWARD FLOW OF WATER AT REDUCED TEMPERATURES WHEREBY ADDITIONAL EMULSION-FORMING CONTAMINANT IS REMOVED, WITHDRAWING REACTION PRODUCT EFFLUENT HAVING A SUBSTANTIALLY REDUCED EMULSION FORMING CONTAMINANT CONTENT FROM SAID UPPER ZONE, SAID REACTION PRODUCT EFFLUENT ALSO CONTAINING WATER VAPOR, RECYCLING CONDENSED WATER TO SAID UPPER ZONE AND FINALLY RECOVERING CRUDE BUTADIENE PRODUCT.