Hydrogen fluoride alkylation process

Claim 1

A HYDROGEN FLUORIDE CATALYZED ALKYLATION PROCESS WHICH COMPRISES (1) CONTACTING IN THE LIQUID STATE, A HYDROCARBON FEED AND A CATALYST, AT A TEMPREATURE OF THE ORDER OF 30*-130* F., FOR A TIME TO CONVERT SUBSTANTIALLY ALL OF THE OLEFINS IN SAID FEED TO ALKYLATE HYDROCARBONS, AT A VOLUME RATIO OF CATALYST TO FEED OF AT LEAST ABOUT 0.6, SAID FEED COMPRISING ISOBUTANE AND AT LEAST ONE OLEFIN CONTAINING 3-5 CARBON ATOMS IN A MOLAR RATIO OF ISOBUTANE TO OLEFIN OF AT LEAST ABOUT 2, SAID CATALYST CONSISTING ESSENTIALLY OF LIQUID HYDROGEN FLUORIDE AND DISSOLVED ALAKLI METAL FLUORIDE, IN AN AMOUNT ON THE ORDER OF 1-5 MOLES OF SAID ALKALI METAL FLUORIDE PER 100 MOLES OF HYDROGEN FLUORIDE PRESENT, (2) SEPARATING A LIQUID CATALYST PHASE FROM A LIQUID HYDROCARBON PHASE CONTAINING ALKYLATE HYDROCARBONS, SAID HYDROCARBONS PHASE CONTAINING SOME CATALYST PHASE MATERIAL, (3) SEPARATING ALKYLATE HYDROCARBONS FROM SAID HYDROCARBONS PHASE, (4) DISTILLATIVELY REMOVING ESSENTIALLY ALL OF THE HYDROGEN FLUORIDE FROM SAID CATALYST PHASE, (5) CONTACTING THE DISTIALLATION RESIDUE INCLUDING ALAKLI METAL FLUORIDE FROM SAID STEP 4 WITH A LIQUID HYDROCARBON HAVING A BOILING POINT ABOVE THAT OF HYDROGEN FLUORIDE TO DISSOLVE THE HYDROCARBONS PRESENT IN SAID RESIDUE, (6) SEPARATING HYDROCARBON SOLUTION OBTAINED IN SAID STEP 5 FROM SOLID ALKALI METAL FLUORIDE AND (7) RECYCLING SAID ALKALI METAL FLUORIDE TO SAID STEP 1.