Chemical reactor

Claim 1

POLYMERIZATION APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF LINEAR POLYMER COMPRISING A CONTAINER FOR REACTING LIQUID, MEANS FOR SUPPLYING REACTING LIQUID TO SAID CONTAINER TO A PREDETERMINED LEVEL, AT LEAST TWO ELONGATED WORMS ROTATABLY MOUNTED IN SAID CONTAINER, THE AXES OF THE WORMS BEING PARALLEL, THE WORMS BEING SINGLE THREADED, HAVING THE SAME PITCH THROUGHOUT THEIR LENGTH AND HAVING THE SAME HAND AND THE SAME DIRECTION OF ROTATION, SAID CONTAINER INCLUDING A WALL FITTING CLOSELY TO THE LOWER EDGES OF THE LANDS OF THE WORMS AND UP TO THE HEIGHT OF SAID PREDETERMINED LEVEL OF LIQUID AND SAID WALL BEING SPACED FROM THE UPPER EDGES, OF THE LANDS OF THE WORMS TO DEFINE A REACTION SPACE ABOVE THE WORMS SUBSTANTIALLY COEXTENSIVE WITH THE WORMS, THE TOP OF THE LANDS OF THE WORMS BEING ABOVE SAID PREDETERMINED LIQUID LEVEL AND SAID WORMS COOPERATING WITH ONE ANOTHER AND WITH SAID WALL OF SAID CONTAINER SO AS TO DEFINE SPACED, SEPARATE CHAMBERS BETWEEN ADJACENT FLANKS FOR HOLDING REACTING LIQUID AND FOR ADVANCING REACTING LIQUID THROUGH THE CONTAINER UPON ROTATION OF SAID WORMS, A LIQUID FILM BEING FORMED ON THE WORMS DURING ROTATION THEREOF, THE FLANKS OF THE LANDS OF THE WORMS BEING ARCUATELY FORMED IN CROSSSECTION TO A CURVATURE HAVING A RADIUS CORRESPONDING TO THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE AXES OF THE WORMS AND DEFINING LAND EDGES AT THE JOINDER OF THE FLANKS WITH THE OUTER SURFACES OF THE WORMS, THE WORMS INTERENGAGING ONE ANOTHER IN EDGE TO FLANK RELATIONSHIP ALONG AT LEAST PARTS OF THEIR LENGTH SO AS TO EXERT A SLIDING AND MUTUAL CLEANING ACTION UPON AT LEAST PARTS OF EACH OTHER DURING THEIR ROTATION FOR CLEANING LIQUID FROM THE WORMS, MEANS FOR CREATING A VACUUM IN THE CONTAINER ABOVE THE LIQUID, MEANS FOR REMOVING REACTION PRODUCT FROM THE CONTAINER, AND MEANS FOR HEATING THE CONTENTS OF THE CONTAINER.