Recovery of carbon black

Claim 1

comprising: (a) feeding air to an air separation means to form a first gaseous stream comprising at least 95 volume percent nitrogen and a second gaseous stream comprising at least 50 volume percent free oxygen, (b) feeding at least a portion of said second gaseous stream comprising at least 50 volume percent free oxygen to a first carbon black reactor, (c) feeding a feedstock to said first carbon black reactor, (d) combusting at least a portion of said feedstock to said first carbon blak reactor in the presence of said second gaseous stream comprising at least 50 volume percent oxygen to form a hot combustion gas, (e) decomposing at least a portion of said feedstock fed to said first carbon black reactor in the presence of said hot combustion gas of (d) in said first carbon black reactor under conditions conducive to the formation of carbon black to form an effluent of said first carbon black reactor comprising carbon black and residual reaction gas, (f) passing a quench fluid to said first carbon black reactor to cool the effluent of said carbon black reactor to a temperature in the range of about 1200° to about 2000° F., (g) directing the effluent of said first carbon black reactor to a first carbon black separation means wherein at least a portion of said carbon black formed in said first carbon black reactor is separated from said residual reaction gas of the first carbon black reactor, (h) recovering the carbon black formed in said first carbon black reactor and separated from the residual reaction gas of said first carbon black reactor, (i) feeding at least a portion of the residual reaction gas from the first carbon black reactor to a second carbon black reactor as a fuel gas, (j) feeding at least a portion of said second gaseous stream comprising at least 50 volume percent oxygen to said second carbon black reactor, (k) feeding a feedstock to said second carbon black reactor, (l) combusting at least a portion of said residual reaction gas from the first carbon black reactor which is fed to said second carbon black reactor as a fuel gas in the presence of at least a portion of said second gaseous stream comprising at least 50 volume percent oxygen to form a hot combustion gas, (m) combusting at least a portion of said feedstock fed to said second carbon black reactor in the presence of at least a portion of said second gaseous stream comprising at least 50 volume percent oxygen to form a hot combustion gas, (n) decomposing at least a portion of said feedstock fed to said second carbon black reactor in the presence of said hot combustion gas of (l) and (m) and said second carbon black reactor under conditions conducive to the formation of carbon black to form an effluent from said second carbon black reactor comprising carbon black in a residual reaction gas, (o) passing a quench flow to said second carbon black reactor to cool the effluent of said second carbon black reactor to a temperature in the range of about 1200° to about 2000° F., (p) directing the effluent from said second carbon black reactor to a second carbon black separation means wherein at least a portion of said carbon black formed in said second carbon black reactor is separated from said residual reaction gas of said second carbon black reactor, and (q) recovering the carbon black formed in said second carbon black reactor and separated from the residual reaction gas of said second carbon black reactor (r) feeding said carbon black separated from said residual reaction gas of said first carbon black reactor or said second carbon black reactor to a pelleting means, (s) introducing a pelleting agent to said pelleting means, (t) admixing said pelleting agent with said carbon black in said pelleting means to form pellets of carbon black, (u) feeding the pellets of carbon black to a means for removing excess pelleting agent from said pellets of carbon black in the presence of at least a portion of said first gaseous stream comprising at least 95 volume percent nitrogen, and (v) recovering the pellets of carbon black so formed.