Davy Process Technology Limited

Bp Exploration Operating Company Limited

Davy Mckee (london) Limited

Other

John Richard Hensman

David Newton

George E Harrison

Josephus Johannes Helena Maria Font Freide

Donald H McKinley

Barry Nay

Andrew George Hiles

Timothy Douglas Gamlin

Christopher Sharp

Rikard Umberto Andersson

John Wilson Kippax

Riyaz Ezzuddin Khambati

Carole Graham

Geoffrey Benedict Smith

Andrew J Roberts

Donald Hugh Mckinley

An apparatus for use in heterogeneous catalytic reactions comprising a column reactor comprising a plurality of trays mounted one above another, each adapted to hold a predetermined liquid volume and a charge of particles of a solid catalyst thereon; means for introducing a liquid phase reactant above the uppermost tray; means for introducing a vapor phase reactant below the lowermost tray; means for removing a liquid phase post-reaction stream from below the lowermost tray; means for removing a vapor phase post-reaction stream from above the uppermost tray; vapor upcomer means associated with each tray adapted to allow vapor to enter that tray from below; undertow means associated with each tray adapted to remove liquid from that tray and the column reactor before being introduced into the column reactor at a lower tray; means for temporarily directing said liquid removed from a tray to bypass at least one lower tray and be reintroduced to the column reactor at a tray located below said at least one bypassed tray; means for removing the liquid and catalyst from said at least one bypassed tray: and means for replacing a liquid and catalyst inventory on said at least one bypassed tray.

Apparatus and method for heterogeneous catalytic reactions

A process for the co-production of a stream of a fatty alcohol having first carbon chain lengths and a stream of a fatty alcohol having a second carbon chain lengths, said second carbon chain lengths being longer than said first carbon chain lengths, said process comprising the steps of: (a) supplying a stream comprising lower alkyl esters of fatty acids having chain lengths comprising the first and second chain lengths to a first vaporization zone and contacting said stream with an amount of hydrogen recycled from step (i) which is sufficient to vaporize the lower alkyl esters of the fatty acids having the first carbon chain lengths into the hydrogen; (b) supplying the hydrogen and the vaporized lower alkyl esters of fatty acids having the first carbon chain lengths to a first reaction zone comprising catalyst and operating under reaction conditions to allow hydrogenation to the desired alcohol having first carbon chain lengths; (c) recovering from the first reaction zone an alcohol product stream having first carbon chain lengths and the hydrogen; (d) supplying the unvaporized lower alkyl esters of the fatty acids having second carbon chain lengths remaining from step (a) to a second vaporization zone; (e) contacting the unvaporized lower alkyl esters having second carbon chain lengths in the second vaporization zone with an amount of hydrogen sufficient to vaporize the lower alkyl esters having fatty acids of the second carbon chain lengths into the hydrogen; (f) supplying the hydrogen and the vaporized lower alkyl esters of fatty acids having second carbon chain lengths to a second reaction zone comprising catalyst and operating under reaction conditions to allow hydrogenation to the desired alcohol having second carbon chain lengths; (g) recovering from the second reaction zone an alcohol product stream having second carbon chain lengths and hydrogen; (h) separating the stream of fatty acid alcohol having the second carbon chain length from hydrogen; and (i) recycling a portion of the hydrogen recovered in step (h) to the first vaporization zone and a portion to the second vaporization zone.

Process for the co-production of a stream of a fatty alcohol having a first carbon chain length and a stream of a fatty alcohol having a second carbon length

A process for the production of N-alkylpyrrolidone from &#x3b3;-butyrolactone and monoalkylamine in the liquid phase comprising the steps of: feeding monoalkylamine and &#x3b3;-butyrolactone, in the absence of water or in the presence of less than about 1 wt % of water, to a reaction zone to form a reaction mixture; heating the reaction mixture; withdrawing a product stream from the reaction zone and passing the stream to a distillation zone comprising at least one distillation column operated at sub-atmospheric pressure; adding water to the distillation zone; isolating at least one overhead stream from the distillation zone comprising monoalkylamine, water and optionally N-alkyl-pyrrolidone and condensing the overhead stream against cooling water.

Process for the preparation of N-alkyl-pyrrolidones

A process for the conversion of synthesis gas to higher hydrocarbons by synthesis gas, at an elevated temperature and pressure, with a suspension of a particulate Fischer-Tropsch catalyst, in a system comprising at least one high shear mixing zone and a reactor vessel wherein the process comprises: (a) passing the suspension and the gaseous stream through the high shear mixing zone wherein the gaseous stream is broken down into gas bubbles and/or irregularly shaped gas voids; (b) discharging suspension having gas bubbles and/or irregularly shaped gas voids dispersed therein from the high shear mixing zone into the reactor vessel; and (c) maintaining the temperature of the suspension discharged into the reactor vessel at the desired reaction temperature by means of an internal heat exchanger positioned within the suspension in the reactor vessel. At least 5% of the exothermic heat of reaction is removed from the system by means of the internal heat exchanger. The remainder of the exothermic heat of reaction may be removed from the system by means of an external heat exchanger and/or through the introduction of a liquid coolant.

Fischer-Tropsch synthesis process

Process for converting synthesis gas to hydrocarbons which comprises contacting a gaseous stream comprising synthesis gas, at an elevated temperature and pressure, with a suspension comprising a particulate Fischer-Tropsch catalyst having a particle size in the range 5 microns to 500 microns, suspended in a liquid medium, in a system comprising at least one high shear mixing zone and a reactor vessel. The suspension and the gaseous stream is passed through the high shear mixing zone(s) wherein the gaseous stream is broken down into gas bubbles. The suspension having gas bubbles dispersed therein is discharged from the high shear mixing zone(s) into the reactor vessel, and suspension comprising the particulate Fischer-Tropsch catalyst suspended in the liquid medium and liquid hydrocarbon products is withdrawn from the reactor vessel and at least a portion of the suspension is recycled to the high shear mixing zone(s) via an external conduit at a flow rate of at least 10,000 mof suspension per hour. A side stream from the suspension flowing through the external conduit is taken and passed directly to a filtration unit.

Process for separating liquid hydrocarbons from a particulate fisher-tropsch catalyst

A process for the conversion of natural gas to higher hydrocarbons in a system comprising (1) a synthesis gas production unit and (2) a Fischer-Tropsch synthesis unit comprising at least one high shear mixing zone and a reactor vessel wherein the units are located abroad a floatable structure. The process comprises the steps of: (a) converting the natural gas to synthesis gas in the synthesis gas production unit; and (b) converting the synthesis gas to higher hydrocarbons, at an elevated temperature and pressure, in the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis unit by (i) passing synthesis gas and a suspension comprising a particulate Fischer-Tropsch catalyst suspended in a liquid medium through the high shear mixing zone(s) wherein the synthesis gas is broken down into gas bubbles and/or irregularly shaped gas voids which are dispersed in the suspension, and (ii) discharging suspension containing the dispersed gas bubbles and/or irregularly shaped gas voids from the high shear mixing zone(s) into the reactor vessel.

Fischer-Tropsch synthesis process carried out on a floatable structure

A process for producing a liquid hydrocarbon product from hydrogen and carbon monoxide comprises: (a) providing a reaction vessel containing a slurry of particles of a particulates Fischer Tropsch catalyst in a liquid medium comprising a hydrocarbon, the particles of catalyst having a particle size range such that no more than about 10% by weight of the particles of catalyst have a particle size which lies in an upper particle size range extending up to a maximum particle size, (b) supplying hydrogen and carbon monoxide to the reaction vessel, (c) maintaining in the reaction vessel reaction conditions effective for conversion of hydrogen and carbon monoxide to a liquid hydrocarbon product by the Fischer Tropsch reaction, (d) maintaining mixing conditions in the reaction vessel sufficient to establish a circulation pattern throughout the reaction vessel including an upflowing path for slurry and a downflowing path for slurry, the upward velocity of the slurry in the upflowing slurry path being greater than about 75% of the mean downward velocity of the particles of catalyst of the upper particle size range when measured in stagant liquid medium, the reaction vessel being substantially devoid of stagnant zones wherein the catalyst particles can settle out of the slurry, (e) recovering from the reaction vessel a liquid stream comprising the liquid hydrocarbon product; and (f) recovering from the reaction vessel an offgas stream comprising methane as well as unreacted hydrogen and carbon monoxide.

Fischer-tropsch process

A process for the conversion of synthesis gas to hydrocarbons by contacting the synthesis gas at an elevated temperature and pressure with a suspension comprising a solid particulate catalyst suspended in a liquid medium, which contacting takes place in a system comprising at least one high shear mixing zone and a reactor vessel wherein the volume of suspension present in the high shear mixing zone(s) is substantially less than the volume of suspension present in the reactor vessel, suspension is mixed with synthesis gas in the high shear mixing zone(s), the resulting mixture of suspension and synthesis gas is discharged from the high shear mixing zone(s) into the reactor vessel and wherein kinetic energy is dissipated to the suspension present in the high shear mixing zone(s) at a rate of at least 0.5 kW/m relative to the total volume of suspension present in the system.

Hydrogenation process

A process is provided for the recovery of an optionally substituted C.sub.7 to C.sub.17 aldehyde from a liquid hydroformylation product medium obtained by rhodium catalyzed hydroformylation of an optionally substituted C.sub.6 to C.sub.16 olefin which contains (i) a rhodium complex hydroformylation catalyst containing rhodium in complex combination with carbon monoxide and with a ligand, (ii) excess ligand, (iii) at least one optionally substituted C.sub.7 to C.sub.17 aldehyde, and (iv) aldehyde condensation products, which process comprises:

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Letchworth, United Kingdom

John Richard Hensman