Countercurrent gas chromatography and gas solid adsorption

Claim 1

A CHROMATOGRAPHIC PROCESS FOR SEPARATING THE COMPONENTS OF A MULTI-COMPONENT MIXTURE WHICH COMPRISES MOVING A BED OF SOLIDS THROUGH A FIRST CHROMATOGRAPHIC COLUMN, MOVING A BED OF SOLIDS THROUGH A SECOND CHROMATOGRAPHIC COLUMN, CONTINULALLY TRANSFERRING THE BED EMERGING FROM SAID FIRST COLUMN TO A POINT INTERMEDIATE THE ENDS OF SAID SECOND COLUMN, MAINTAINING A CONTINUOUS FLOW OF CARRIER GAS COUNTER-CURRENT TO THE BED IN EACH OF SAID COLUMNS, FEEDING SAID MULTI-COMPONENT MIXTURE TO BE SEPARATED TO A POINT INTERMEDIATE THE ENDS OF SAID FIRST COLUMN, MAINTAINING RELATIVE FLOW CONDITIONS IN SAID FIRST COLUMN SUCH THAT UPON ENTRANCE OF SAID MIXTURE INTO SAID FIRST COLUMNA FIRST COMPONENT OF THE MIXTURE MOVES COUNTER-CURRENT TO THE BED IN THE FIRST COLUMN AND THE REMAINDER OF THE MIXTURE MOVES IN THE SAME DIRECTION AS THE BED IN THE FIRST COLUMN, AND MAINTAINING RELATIVE FLOW CONDITIONS IN SAID SECOND COLUMN SUCH THAT A SECOND COMPONENT OF THE MIXTURE, AFTER ELUTION FROM SAID SECOND COLUMN WITH CARRIER GAS, MOVES COUNTER-CURRENT TO THE BED IN SAID SECOND COLUMN AND THE REMAINDER OF THE MIXTURE MOVES IN THE SAME DIRECTION AS THE BED IN SAID SECOND COLUMN.