Carbon recovery

Claim 1

IN A METHOD OF RECOVING CARBONACEOUS SOLID FROM A DISPERSION OF CARBONACEOUS SOLID IN WATER WHEREIN SAID DISPERSION IS CONTACTED WITH A VOLATIL LIQUID HYROCARBON EFFECTING TRANSFER OF SAID CARBONACEOUS SOLID FROM WATER TO SAID HYDROCARBON LIQUID, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES CONTACTING SAID DISPERSION WITH VOLATILE LIQUID HYDROCARBON IN LIQUID PHASE IN AN AMOUNT WITHIN THE RANGE OF 5 TO 30 PARTS BY WEIGHT PER PART CARBONACEOUS SOLID IN A MIXING ZONE AT AN ELEVATED PRESSURE ABOVE ABOUT 100 P.S.I.G. AND AT A TEMPERATURE ABOVE THE TEMPERATURE REQUIRED FOR SUBSTANTIALLY COMPLETE VAPORIZATION OF SAID VOLATILE HYDROCARBON AT A SUBSEQUENTLY REDUCED PRESSURE, SEPARATING AQUEOUS AND OIL PHASES COMPRISING WATER AND A SLURRY OF SOLID PARTICLES IN VOLATILE HYDROCARBON LIQUID RESPECTIVELY AT SAID ELEVATED PRESSURE, PASSING SAID SLURRY TO A VAPORIZATION ZONE MAINTAINED AT A PRESSURE LOWER THAN THE PRESSURE OF SAID MIXING AND SEPARATING STEPS, EFFECTING SUBSTANTIALLY COMPLETE VAPORIZATION OF VOLATILE LIQUID HYDROCARBON FROM SAID SLURRY BY FLASH VAPORIZATION AT SAID REDUCTED PRESSURE FORMING A DISPERSION OF CARBON IN HYDROCARBON VAPOR, AND SEPARATING CARBONACEOUS SOLID SUBSTANTIALLY FREE FROM WATER AND LIQUID HYDROCARBON FROM SAID HYDROCARBON VAPORS.