Process and apparatus for absorbing natural gasoline

Claim 1

IN A PROCESS FOR ABSORBING NATURAL GASOLINE FROM RAW NATURAL GAS COMPRISING THE STEPS OF: (1) CONTACTING SSAID RAW NATURAL GAS WITH PRE-SATURATED LEAN OIL TO SEPARATELY RECOVER A RICH OIL CONTAINING A NATURAL GASOLINE FRACTION AND A RESIDUE GAS; (2) PASSING THE RICH OIL OF STEP (1) TO A DE-ETHANIZER AND SEPARATELY RECOVERING AN ETHANE-RICH STREAM AND A DE-ETHANIZED RICH OIL; (3) PASSING THE ETHANE-RICH STREAM OF STEP (2) TO A PRE-SATURATOR; (4) CONTACTING LEAN OIL WITH SAID ETHANE-RICH STREAM IN THE PRE-SATURATOR OF STEP (3) TO SEPARATELY RECOVER AN UNABSORBED LIGHT GAS STREAM AND A PRE-SATURATED LEAN OIL STREAM; AND (5) PASSING THE PRE-SATURATED LEAN OIL STREAM OF STEP (4) TO STEO (1) AS LEAN OIL FEED THERETO; THE IMPROVEMENT COMPRISING THE STEPS OF: (A) PASSING THE ETHANE-RICH STREAM OF STEP (2) IN INDIRECT HEAT EXCHANGE WITH THE UNABSORBED LIGHT GAS STREAM FROM STEP (4) TO COOL SAID ETHANERICH STREAM BEFORE PASSING SAME TO STEP (4); AND (B) PASSING THE COOLED ETHANE-RICH STREAM OF STEP (A) INTO SAID PRE-SATURATOR AT DIFFERENT TRAY LEVELS THEREIN.