Control of oxygen content of low boiling hydrocarbons

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR SUPPLYING A STREAM OF BUTADIENE HAVING A SUBSTANTIALLY CONSTANT OXYGEN CONTENT IN THE RANGE OF ABOUT 3 TO ABOUT 25 PARTS PER MILLION TO A POLYMERIZATION REACTION FOR THE PREPARATION OF GR-S SYNETHETIC RUBBER WHICH COMPRISES EVAPORATING BUTADIENE FROM THE RESULTING RUBBER LATEX AT SUBATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE; COMPRESSING AND COOLING THE EVAPORTED BUTADINE TO FROM LIQUID BUTADIENE; PASSING THE LIQUEFIED BUTADIENE TO A STORAGE ZONE MAINTAINED AT A PRESSURE GREATER THAN THE VAPOR PRESSURE OF BUTADIENE AND ABOUT 10 TO ABOUT 20 P.S.I. LOWER THAN THAT OF SAID COMPRESSING STEP SO AS TO FORM A LIQUID PHASE AND A VAPOR PHASE; ADDING FRESH BUTADIENE FROM A SUPPLY TO SAID STORAGE ZONE; PASSING A STREAM OF LIQUID BUTADIENE FROM SAID STORAGE ZONE TO AN ANALYZING ZONE WHERE A SIGNAL IS GENERATED REPRESENTATIVE OF THE AMOUNT OF OXYGEN IN THE BUTADIENE; WITHDRAWING VAPOR FROM SAID STORAGE AND PASSING SAME TO SAID COMPRESSING STEP IN AN AMOUNT SUFFICIENT TO MAINTAIN THE OXYGEN CONTENT OF THE BUTADIENE IN SAID STORAGE ZONE AT A SUBSTANTIALLY CONSTANT VALUE IN THE RANGE OF ABOUT 3 TO ABOUT 2K PARTS PER MILLION AS INDICATED BY THE SIGNAL GENERATED IN SAID ANALYZING ZONE; AND REMOVING FROM THE SYSTEM OXYGEN SEPARATED FROM THE BUTADIENE.