Process for terpolymeric solvent-free hydrocarbon crumbs

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR PRODUCING SOLVENT-FREE, FINELY DIVIDED CRUMBS OF ABOUT 0.5 TO 5 MM. IN DIAMETER OF A WATERINSOLUBLE HYDROCARBON COPOLYMER OF ETHYLENE, AN A-OLEFIN AND A NON-CONJUGATED HYDROCARBON DIENE, SAID COPOLYMER HAVING A MOONEY VISCOSITY (ML-4/100*C.) OF AT LEAST ABOUT 40, WHICH PROCESS COMPRISES: (I) FORMING AN UNSTABLE OIL-IN-WATER DISPERSION IN A CONTAINUOUS AQUEOUS PHASE BY MIXING WITH HIGH-SHEAR AGITATION (A) A 3 TO 15 WEIGHT PERCENT SOLUTION OF SAID COPOLYMER IN AN INERT ORGANIC SOLVENT WITH (B) WATER CONTAINING FROM ABOUT 0.01 TO 0.1 WEIGHT PERCENT OF A SURFACE-ACTIVE DISPERSING AGENT, AT A TEMPERATURE OF FROM 50* TO 100*C., THE RATIO OF (A) TO (B) BEING WITHIN THE RANGE OF FROM 1:2 TO 1:1; (II) CONTINUOUSLY MIXING SAID DISPERSION WITH STEAM AT A FIRST STAGE WHILE APPLYING VIGOROUS AGITATION TO THE MIXTURE THEREBY REMOVING SOLVENT FROM THE MIXTURE WITH SAID COPOLYMER FORMING INTO CRUMBS, THE RESIDENCE TIME OF SAID COPOLYMER IN THE FIRST STAGE BEING FROM ABOUT 1 TO 5 MINUTES; (III) PASSING THE STEAM TREATED MIXTURE INTO A SECOND STAGE WHERE IT IS AGAIN MIXED WITH STREAM THEREBY REDUCING THE SOLVENT CONTENT OF THE CRUMBS BELOW ABOUT 2 WEIGHT PERCENT, THE RESIDENCE TIME OF THE COPOLYMER IN THE SECOND STAGE BEING FROM ABOUT 2 TO 20 MINUTES; AND (IV) CONTINUOUSLY REMOVING AND SEPARATING THE CRUMBS OF COPOLYMER SO FORMED.