Hydroconversion of hydrocarbons with separation of products

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR THE HYDROCONVERSION OF AN ASPHALT CONTAINING HYDROCARBON OIL WHICH COMPRISES FORMING AN INTIMATE MIXTURE OF SAID OIL WITH A HYDROGEN-CONTAINING GAS, PASSING SAID MIXTURE AS A CONFINED STREAM THROUGH AN ELONGATED REACTION ZONE AT A TURBULENCE LEVEL OF AT LEAST 25, AT A TEMPERATURE BETWEEN 800 AND 1500*F. AND A PRESSURE BETWEEN ABOUT 500 AND 20,000 P.S.I.G., SAID HYDROCONVERSION BEING ACCOMPANIED BY THE CONSUMPTION OF HYDROGEN, INTRODUCING THE HYDROCONVERSION EFFLUENT INTO A FIRST SEPARATION ZONE MAINTAINED AT SUBSTANTIALLY THE SAME TEMPERATURE AND PRESSURE AS THE REACTION ZONE, SEPARATING THE EFFLUENT IN SAID FIRST SEPARATION ZONE INTO A FIRST PORTION CONSISTING ESSENTIALLY OF GASEOUS MATERIAL AND A SECOND PORTION CONTAINING SUBSTANTIALLY ALL OF THE LIQUID HYDROCONVERSION PRODUCT PRESENT AND A MINOR AMOUNT OF GASEOUS MATERIAL INCLUDING HYDROGEN, QUENCHING SAID SECOND PORTION TO PRECIPITATE SOLID MATERIAL THEREFROM, PASSING SAID QUENCHED PORTION TOGETHER WITH THE PRECIPITATED SOLID MATERIAL TO A SECOND SEPARATION ZONE AND SEPARATING THE PRECIPITATED SOLID MATERIAL FROM THE LIQUID HYDROCONVERSION PRODUCT.