Process for converting a liquid feed material into a vapor phase product

Abstract

A liquid feed material such as a heavy hydrocarbon feed in liquid form is contacted with a fluidized bed of heated solid particles which have a bulk horizontal velocity which is generally perpendicular to the flow of a fluidizing medium. The liquid feed material reacts on the solid particles to produce a vapor phase product, which vapor phase product is collected in a vapor collection apparatus.

1 . A process for converting a liquid feed material into a vapor phase product comprising the following steps:
 (a) providing a fluid bed comprising solid particles and a fluidizing medium, wherein providing the fluid bed is comprised of introducing the solid particles to the fluid bed at a solid feed zone located at an upstream horizontal position in the fluid bed, wherein providing the fluid bed is further comprised of introducing the fluidizing medium to the fluid bed so that the fluidizing medium is moving in a substantially vertical fluidizing direction, and wherein the solid particles are at a conversion temperature which is suitable for facilitating the conversion of the liquid feed material to the vapor phase product;   (b) moving the solid particles in a substantially horizontal solid transport direction from the upstream horizontal position to a downstream horizontal position;   (c) introducing substantially all of the liquid feed material directly to the fluid bed, separately from the solid particles and separately from the fluidizing medium, at a liquid feed zone located downstream of the upstream horizontal position and upstream of the downstream horizontal position in order to facilitate the conversion of the liquid feed material into the vapor phase product;   (d) maintaining the solid particles as fluidized solid particles in the liquid feed zone by introducing the fluidizing medium to the fluid bed in the liquid feed zone; and   (e) collecting the vapor phase product.   
     
     
         2 . The process as claimed in  claim 1 , further comprising the step of collecting the solid particles. 
     
     
         3 . The process as claimed in  claim 2  wherein the step of collecting the solid particles is comprised of collecting the solid particles from a solid withdrawal zone located at the downstream horizontal position. 
     
     
         4 . The process as claimed in  claim 3 , further comprising the step of regenerating at least a portion of the solid particles for re-use after collecting the solid particles. 
     
     
         5 . The process as claimed in  claim 4  wherein the step of regenerating the solid particles is comprised of heating the solid particles. 
     
     
         6 . The process as claimed in  claim 5  wherein the step of regenerating the solid particles is comprised of heating the solid particles to the conversion temperature. 
     
     
         7 . The process as claimed in  claim 1  wherein the step of moving the solid particles in the substantially horizontal solid transport direction consists essentially of moving the solid particles under the influence of gravity. 
     
     
         8 . The process as claimed in  claim 7  wherein the upstream horizontal position is at a higher elevation than the downstream horizontal position so that the solid particles move in the solid transport direction from the upstream horizontal position to the downstream horizontal position under the influence of gravity. 
     
     
         9 . The process as claimed in  claim 1  wherein the step of providing the fluid bed is comprised of introducing the fluidizing medium to the fluid bed at a lower vertical position below the solid particles so that the fluidizing direction is substantially upward. 
     
     
         10 . The process as claimed in  claim 1  wherein the step of introducing substantially all of the liquid feed material directly to the fluid bed at the liquid feed zone is comprised of spraying substantially all of the liquid feed material onto the fluid bed so that the liquid feed material contacts the solid particles in the fluid bed as liquid droplets. 
     
     
         11 . The process as claimed in  claim 10  wherein substantially all of the liquid feed material is sprayed within the fluid bed so that the liquid droplets penetrate the fluid bed. 
     
     
         12 . The process as claimed in  claim 10  wherein the liquid feed material is sprayed so that the liquid droplets contact the solid particles in the fluid bed from a spraying direction which is substantially perpendicular to the solid transport direction. 
     
     
         13 . The process as claimed in  claim 10  wherein the spraying direction is a substantially vertical direction. 
     
     
         14 . The process as claimed in  claim 13  wherein the spraying direction is substantially opposite to the fluidizing direction. 
     
     
         15 . The process as claimed in  claim 1 , further comprising the step of quenching the vapor phase product after collecting the vapor phase product in order to minimize further conversion of the vapor phase product. 
     
     
         16 . The process as claimed in  claim 1 , further comprising the step of collecting the fluidizing medium with the vapor phase product at an upper vertical position above the solid particles. 
     
     
         17 . The process as claimed in  claim 16 , further comprising the step of separating the fluidizing medium and the vapor phase product after collecting the fluidizing medium and the vapor phase product. 
     
     
         18 . The process as claimed in  claim 1  wherein the solid particles are moved in the solid transport direction at a rate which is significantly larger than a rate of mixing of the solid particles in the solid transport direction. 
     
     
         19 . The process as claimed in  claim 1  wherein the liquid feed material is comprised of liquid hydrocarbon. 
     
     
         20 . The process as claimed in  claim 1  wherein the liquid feed material is comprised of a heavy hydrocarbon. 
     
     
         21 . The process as claimed in  claim 1  wherein the liquid feed material is comprised of heavy oil or a heavy fraction of a crude oil. 
     
     
         22 . The process as claimed in  claim 1  wherein the solid particles are comprised of an amount of a catalyst which is suitable for use in converting the liquid feed material into the vapor phase product. 
     
     
         23 . The process as claimed in  claim 1  wherein the step of collecting the vapor phase product is comprised of collecting the vapor phase product at a plurality of vapor phase product collection locations spaced horizontally between the upstream horizontal position and the downstream horizontal position. 
     
     
         24 . The process as claimed in  claim 23  wherein the vapor phase product has a composition and wherein the composition of the vapor phase product varies amongst the vapor phase product collection locations. 
     
     
         25 . The process as claimed in  claim 1 , further comprising the step of collecting a vaporized fraction of the liquid feed material at a vapor phase product collection location which is adjacent to the liquid feed zone. 
     
     
         26 . The process as claimed in  claim 1  wherein the liquid feed zone is comprised of an upstream feed zone end and a downstream feed zone end and wherein introducing substantially all of the liquid feed material directly to the fluid bed at the liquid feed zone is comprised of introducing the liquid feed material to the fluid bed at a series of longitudinally spaced feed inlets located between the upstream feed zone end and the downstream feed zone end. 
     
     
         27 . The process as claimed in  claim 26  wherein each of the longitudinally spaced feed inlets is comprised of at least one feed nozzle. 
     
     
         28 . The process as claimed in  claim 27  wherein substantially all of the liquid feed material is sprayed by the feed nozzles onto the fluid bed so that the liquid feed material contacts the solid particles in the fluid bed as liquid droplets. 
     
     
         29 . The process as claimed in  claim 28  wherein substantially all of the liquid feed material is sprayed by the feed nozzles within the fluid bed so that the liquid droplets penetrate the fluid bed. 
     
     
         30 . The process as claimed in  claim 28  wherein the liquid feed material is sprayed by the feed nozzles so that the liquid droplets contact the solid particles in the fluid bed from a spraying direction which is substantially perpendicular to the solid transport direction. 
     
     
         31 . The process as claimed in  claim 28  wherein the spraying direction is a substantially vertical direction. 
     
     
         32 . The process as claimed in  claim 31  wherein the spraying direction is substantially opposite to the fluidizing direction.