Fluidized hydrocracking of residual hydrocarbons

Claim 1

PROCESS FOR HYDROCRACKING CRUDE OIL FRACTIONS AND RESIDUA WHICH COMPRISES INTRODUCING INTO THE LOWER END OF A REACTION VESSEL HYDROGEN AND A HYDROCARBON STREAM CONTAINING A SUBSTANTIAL PORTION OF HYDROCARBONS BOILING ABOVE 1000*F, AND CONTAINING HETERO-ORGANIC CONTAMINANTS SUCH AS NITROGEN, SULFUR, OXYGEN AND ORGANO METALLIC COMPOUNDS AT A TEMPERATURE FROM 700*F. TO 950*F. AND PRESSURE OF 500 TO 5000 POUNDS PER SQUARE INCH, SAID HYDROGEN BEING PRESENT AND FLOWING CONCURRENTLY WITH SAID STREAM AT A RATE OF FROM ABOUT 2,000 TO 50,000 S.C.F./ BARREL OF HYDROCARBON INTRODUCING INTO THE UPPER PORTION OF SAID REACTION VESSEL A CATALYTIC SOLID HAVING A PARTICLE SIZE OF 20 TO 200 MESH, CONTINUOUSLY FLOWING UPWARDLY THROUGH SAID VESSEL SAID HYDROCARBON STREAM AND CONTINUOUSLY FLOWING DOWNWARDLY THROUGH SAID VESSEL SAID CATALYST PARTICLES, THE COUNTERFLOW OF SAID HYDROCARBON STREAM AND SAID PARTICLES BEING THROUGH A PLURALITY OF ALTERNATELY ARRANGED MIXING ZONES AND VELOCITY-MODIFYING ZONES, EACH OF SAID VELOCITY-MODIFYING ZONES COMPRISING A PLURALITY OF SUBSTANTIALLY UNOBSTRUCTED VERTICAL PASSAGEWAYS FOR SAID CONTINUOUS FLOW, EACH OF SAID PASSAGEWAYS BEING EQUALLY ACCESSIBLE TO SAID CATALYST AND SAID HYDROCARBON STREAM, SOME OF SAID PASSAGEWAYS HAVING A CENTRAL PORTION LARGER IN CROSS-SECTIONAL AREA THAN EITHER END THEREOF AND THE REMAINING OF SAID PASSAGEWAYS HAVING A CENTRAL PORTION OF SMALLER CROSS-SECTIONAL AREA THAN EITHER END, SAID ENLARGED CENTRAL PORTIONS PREFERENTIALLY PERMITTING SAID CATALYST TO FLOW DOWNWARDLY THERETHROUGH AND SAID PASSAGEWAYS WITH A SMALLER CROSS-SECTIONAL AREA PERMITTING SAID HYDROCARBON STREAM TO PASS PREFERENTIALLY THERETHROUGH AND WITHDRAWING A PRODUCT STREAM FROM THE TOP OF SAID VESSEL.