Two stage hydrogenation process

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR CONVERTING A HYDROCARBON FEEDSTOCK BOILING ABOVE THE GASOLINE RANGE, AND CONTAINING AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS AND ORGANIC SULFUR COMPOUNDS, TO A SUBSTNATIALLY SULFUR-FREE PRODUCT OIL OF REDUCED AROMATICITY, WHICH COMPRISES: (A) SUBJECTING SAID FEEDSTOCK TO CATALYTIC HYDROFINING IN CONCURRENT FLOW WITH HYDROGEN AT TEMPERATURES BETWEEN ABOUT 600* AND 850*F., AND UNDER SPACE VELOCITY CONDITIONS ADJUSTED TO GIVE AN INCOMPLETE DESULFURIZATION AND REFINING OF SAID FEEDSTOCK; (B) COOLING AND PARTIALLY CONDENSING THE EFFLUENT FROM SAID HYDROFINING AND THEN SEPARATING THE SAME INTO A LIQUID PHASE AND A VAPOR PHASE; (C) STRIPPING THE SEPARATED LIQUID PHASE EFFLUENT FROM SAID HYDROFINING TO REMOVE DISSOLVED HYDROGEN SULFIDE; (D) PASSING SAID STRIPPED LIQUID PHASE FROM STEP (C) DOWNWARDLY IN A HYDROGENATION ZONE THROUGH A BED OF GRANULAR HYDROGENATION CATALYST COMPRISING A GROUP VIII NOBLE METAL, IN COUNTER-CURRENT CONTACT WITH A RISING HYDROGEN STREAM AND AT A HYDROGENATION TEMPERATURE AND PRESSURE CORRELATED TO MAINTAIN THE MAJOR PORTION OF FEED IN THE LIQUID PHASE, AND CONTROLLING THE HYDROGEN/OIL RATION THEREIN SO AS TO PROVIDE (A) BETWEEN ABOUT 200 AND 12,000 S.C.F. OF HYDROGEN PER BARREL OF FEED, AND (B) A SULFUR/HYDROGEN INPUT RATIO THEREOF BETWEEN ABOUT 1 AND 80 GMS. PER 1,000 S.C.F. OF HYDROGEN; (E) RECOVERING FROM SAID HYDROGENATION ZONE AN OVERHEAD VAPOR PHASE EFFLUENT COMPRISING HYDROGEN AND A SMALL PROPORTION OF LOW-BOILING HYDROCARBONS; AND (F) RECOVERING A SUBSTANTIALY SULFUR-FREE OIL OF REDUCED AROMATICITY FROM THE BOTTOM OF SAID HYDROGENATION ZONE.