The Lummus Company

Harold Unger

Morgan C Sze

Roger P Van Driesen

Thomas M Bennett

In a hydrogenation operation employing an ebullated catalytic bed, recycle is recovered from the hydrogenated product with at least 25%, by volume, of the recycle boiling above 950.degree. F. The recycle is cooled to a temperature of from 350.degree. to 600.degree. F. to separate coke precursors, prior to recycle to the hydrogenation. Higher conversion levels can be achieved by effecting recycle in such manner.

Hydrogenation of high boiling hydrocarbons

A pyrolysis fuel oil is treated by soaking in the presence of sulfur for a period of time sufficient to react the highly unsaturated compounds present in the oil, followed by heating the soaked fuel oil at a temperature of from 850.degree. F. to 1100.degree. F. and an outlet pressure of from 300 to 600 psig to provide a treated feed having an API gravity of -3.degree. or less. The feed may be employed for the production of needle coke and/or carbon black and/or electrode binder pitch.

Feedstock treatment

A carbon steel reactor can be used for producing formaldehyde from methanol by passivating the reactor with respect to formic acid production by treatment with either hydrogen sulfide in the absence of oxygen or a mixture of sulfur dioxide and oxygen.

Growing community of inventors

Fort Lee, NJ, United States of America

Harold Unger