Neutralization process and apparatus

Claim 1

A SUBSTANTIALLY ANHYDROUS METHOD FOR CONTINUOUSLY NEUTRALIZING A CONTAIMINATED DEASHING LIQUID CONSISTING ESSENTIALLY OF AN ALIPHATIC ALCOHOL CONTAINING FROM 1 TO 10 CARBON ATOMS, A LOW MOLECULAR WEIGHT ALIPHATIC HYDROCARBON CONTAINING FROM 4 TO 10 CARBON ATOMS AND ACIDIC SUBSTANCES WHICH COMPRISES ESSENTIALLY THE STEPS OF (A) FEEDNG A MOLTEN ALKALI METAL AND A SEPARATE STREAM CONSISTING ESSENTIALLY OF A MIXTURE OF AN ALIPHATIC ALCOHOL CONTAINING FROM 1 TO 10 CARBON ATOMS AND A LOW MOLECULAR WEIGHT ALIPHATIC HYDROCARBON CONTAINING FROM 4 TO 10 CARBON ATOMS TO A REACTION ZONE TO PRODUCE A NEUTRALIZATION MIXTURE CONSISTING ESSENTIALLY OF FROM 2 TO 10% BY WEIGHT OF SAID ALKALI METAL ALKOXIDE AND THE REMAINDER OF A MIXTURE OF ALCOHOL AND LOW MOLECULAR WEIGHT HYDROCARBON, (B) CONTINUOUSLY PASSING THE THUS FORMED NEUTRALIZATION MIXTURE TO AN INTERMEDIATE STORAGE ZONE, (C) CONTINUOUSLY REGULATING THE FLOW RATE OF SAID MOLTEN ALKALI METAL AND THE SEPARATE STREAM OF SAID ALCOHOL AND HYDROCARBON TO THE REACTION ZONE OF STEP (A) IN RESPONSE TO THE LEVEL OF THE NEUTRALIZATION MIXTURE IN SAID INTERMEDIATE STORAGE ZONE OF STEP (B), (D) CONTINUOUSLY WITHDRAWING THE NEUTRALIZATION MIXTURE IN AN AMOUNT OF FROM ABOUT 0.1 TO 5.0% BY WEIGHT BASED ON THE DEASHING LIQUID FROM SAID INTERMEDIATE STORAGE ZONE OF STEP (B) FOR TREATMENT OF THE CONTAMINATED DEASHING LIQUID IN A NEUTRALIZATION ZONE, AND (E) CONTINUOUSLY RECOVERING A NEUTRALIZED LIQUID MIXTURE FROM THE NEUTRALIZATION ZONE OF STEP (D), AND (F) CONTINUOUSLY MEASURING THE PH OF THE RECOVERED NEUTRALIZED SOLVENT MIXTURE, AND REGULATING THE FLOW OF NEUTRALIZATION MIXTURE FROM THE INTERMEDIATE STORAGE ZONE OF STEP (B) TO THE NEUTRALIZATION ZONE OF STEP (D) TO MAINTAIN A PH OF ABOUT 7 TO 9.