Process for the production of high octane gasolines

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR UPGRADING A PETROLEUM DISTILLATE TO A GASOLINE OF HIGH OCTANE RATING AND GOOD VOLATILITY CHARACTERISTICS, WHICH COMPRISES CONTACTING THE FEED, IN THE PRESENCE OF AT LEAST 1500 S.C.F. H2 PER BARREL OF SAID FEED, WITH A CATALYST COMPRISED OF A HYDROGENATING-DEHYDROGENATING COMPONENT DEPOSITED ON AN ACIDIC, ACTIVE CRACKING CATALYST SUPPORT AT TEMPERATURES BETWEEN ABOUT 600 AND 900*F., PRESSURES ABOVE ABOUT 600 P.S.I.G., AND A SPACE RATE OF FROM ABOUT 0.1 TO 15 V./V./HR. IN AN ISOMERIZATION-CRACKING ZONE, THERE BEING CONSUMED IN SAID ZONE FROM ABOUT 1,000 TO 2,000 S.C.F. H2 PER BARREL OF FEED CONVERTED TO PRODUCT BOILING BELOW THE INITIAL BOILING POINT OF SAID FEED, FREEING THE EFFLUENT FROM SAID ZONE OF HYDROGEN AND OTHER NORMALLY GASEOUS COMPONENTS AND, IN A FRACTIONATING ZONE, FRACTIONATING THE REMAINING NORMALLY LIQUID PORTION INTO A LIGHT, PRODUCT GASOLINE FRACTION OF HIGH OCTANE RATING HAVING AN END POINT OF FROM ABOUT 165 TO 225*F., AN INTERMEDIATE FRACTION HAVING AN END POINT OF FROM ABOUT 290 TO 440*F., AND A BOTTOMS FRACTION COMPRISING ANY MATERIAL BOILING ABOVE THE END POINT OF SAID INTERMEDIATE FRACTION, SEPARATING THE SAID INTERMEDIATE FRACTION INTO AN ESSENTIALLY AROMATIC PRODUCT FRACTION AND AN ESSENTIALLY NONAROMATIC FRACTION, CONTACTING SAID NONAROMATIC FRACTION WITH A REFORMING CATALYST IN A REFORMING ZONE UNDER REFORMING CONDITIONS, AND FREEING THE EFFLUENT FROM THE REFORMING ZONE OF HYDROGEN AND OTHER NORMALLY GASEOUS COMPONENTS TO RECOVER A NORMALLY LIQUID PRODUCT GASOLINE FRACTION CHARACTERIZED BY A HIGH OCTANE RATING.