Process for effecting exothermic reactions between liquids and gases

Claim 1

A HYDROCRACKING PROCESS WHICH COMPRISES MAINTAINING A CONFINED BED OF SOLID HYDROCRACKING CATALYST WITHIN A REACTION ZONE, SAID BED BEING SPACED FROM THE TOP AND BOTTOM OF SAID ZONE, INTRODUCING A HEAVY HYDROCARBON AND HYDROGEN INTO THE SPACE IN THE LOWER PORTION OF THE REACTION ZONE BELOW THE CATALYST BED, PASSING THE RESULTANT HYDROCARBON-HYDROGEN MIXTURE UPWARDLY THROUGH AND EXOTHERMICALLY REACTING THE SAME WITHIN THE CATALYST BED, SEPARATING THE RESULTANT REACTION PRODUCTS INTO A HYDROCARBON LIQUID PHASE AND A HYDROGEN-CONTAINING VAPOR PHASE IN THE SPACE IN THE UPPER PORTION OF THE REACTION ZONE ABOVE THE CATALYST BED, MAINTAINING A BODY OF THE LIQUID PHASE IN THE LAST-MENTIONED SPACE ABOVE THE CATALYST BED WHILE REMOVING A VPOR PHASE EFFLUENT FROM THE REACTION ZONE ABOVE SAID LIQUID BODY, AND CONTINUOUSLY PASSING AT LEAST A PORTION OF THE LIQUID PHASE FROM SAID BODY DOWNWARDLY THROUGH BUT OUT OF CONTACT WITH THE CATALYST BED INTO SAID SPACE BELOW THE CATALYST BED IN AN UNAERATED LIQUID COLUMN OF GREATER DENSITY THAN SAID SAID HYDROCARBON-HYDROGEN MIXTURE PASSING UPWARDLY THROUGH THE CATALYST BED.