Process for hydrogen treatment and catalytic cracking of petroleum hydrocarbons

Claim 1

THE PROCESS WHICH COMPRISES IN COMBINATION SUBJECTING A MEMBER OF THE GROUP CONSISTING OF CRUDE PETROLEUM AND RESIDUAL FRACTIONS THEREOF WHICH CONTAIN VANADIUM IN AMOUNTS ABOVE 2 AND BELOW 1500 PARTS PER MILLION AND SULFUR IN AMOUNTS BETWEEN ABOUT 0.20 AND 10.0 PERCENT BY WEIGHT AND WHICH HAS A SULFUR-TO-VANADIUM RATIO ABOVE 200 TO A FIRST DISTILLATION TO REMOVE LOWER BOILING STRAIGHT RUN FRACTIONS, SAID DISTILLATION BEING TERMINATED BEFORE A SULFUR TO VANADIUM RATIO BELOW ABOUT 200 IS REACHED, SUBJECTING THE UNDISTILLED RESIDUE FROM THE FIRST DISTILLATION TO CONTACT WITH HYDROGEN AT A PRESSURE BETWEEN ABOUT 1750 AND 4500 P.S.I.G., AT A TEMPERATURE OF BETWEEN ABOUT 750* AND 815*F., AT A LIQUID HOURLY SPACE VELOCITY BETWEEN ABOUT 0.25 AND 10 AT A HYDROGEN RECYCLE RATE OF BETWEEN ABOUT 1000 AND 20,000 S.C.F./BBL. IN THE PRESENCE OF A SULF-ACTIVE HYDROGENATION CATALYST, SUBJECTING THE PRODUCT FROM THE HYDROGENATION TREATMENT TO A SECOND DISTILLATION TO REMOVE MATERIALS BOILING BELOW ABOUT GAS OIL AND TO OBTAIN AN UNDISTILLED RESIDUE CONSTITUTING GAS OIL AND HIGHER BOILING PORTIONS AND SUBJECTING THE UNDISTILLED RESIDUE FROM THE SECOND DISTILLATION WITHOUT ELIMINATION OF ANY OF THE COMPONENTS THEREOF TO CATALYTIC CRACKING TO CONVERT THE UNDISTILLED RESIDUE INTO LOWER BOILING HYDROCARBONS.