US1722042A - Catalytic cracking of hydrocarbons - Google Patents

Description

July 23, 1929. G. EGLOFF CATALYTIC CRACKING OF HYDROCARBONS n 33 c N .v /4

Original Filed Jan. '7. 1921 Patented July 23, 1929.

UNITED STATES 1,722,042 PATENT OFFICE.

GUSTAV EGLOFF, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO UNIVERSAL OIL PRODUCTS COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF SOUTH DAKOTA.

CATALYTIC CRACKING OF HYDBOCARBONS.

Application filed January 7, 1921, Serial No. 435,580. Renewe'd May 12, 1927.

This invention relates to the catalytic cracking of hydrocarbon oils and refers more particularly to the cracking of hydrocarbon oils, expanded Vapors of which are catalyzed to light oils under high pressure.

Among the salient objects of my invention are to provide a process of cracking hydrocarbon oils by means of pressure in excess of 1,000 pounds to the square inch and passing the vapors from the expanded liquid through catalyzers such as the oxides of metal, as calcium oxide, converting same into light oils; to provide a crackin process for the converting of the generate vapors from the expansion of the liquid under pressure by means of catalyzers under high pressure; to provide a cracking process of catalyzing the generated vapors resulting from the expansion of the hydrocarbon liquid, passing from a low volume container to a large volume container in the presence of a catalyzer; to provide a cracking process of converting hydrocarbon oils to light oils by means of heat and pressure and passing the vapors formed due to expansion through a layer of catalytic material which increases the velocity of the cracking reaction and simultaneously desulphurizes and purifies the conversion products of the reaction; to provide a process of converting heavy hydrocarbon oil into light oils by means of high pressure and subjecting the generated vapors to the action of the chloride of a metal such as zinc chloride, which acts catalytically on the generated vapors, thereby increasing the velocity of the conversion reaction.

The single figure represents a view, partly in side elevation and partly in vertical cross section, of my improved apparatus.

Referring in detail to the drawing, 1 designates a furnace of a cracking system, 2 the burners set therein and provided with stack 3. 41 is a heating coil through which the raw oil of the system is pumped by means of pump 5. Upon coil 4 is placed a pressure gauge 6 and control valve 7. To control valve 7 pipe connection 8 is attached to expansion chamber 9. In said expansion chamber 9 is placed a perforated tray 10 having catalytic mate rial such as the oxide of a metal or the chloride of a metal placed thereon. Pipe 12 connected ,with condenser coil 13 has control valve 14 set therein. Condenser coil 13 is set in water condenser box 14. Pipe 15 attached to receiver 16 has a control valve 17. To receiver 16 it attached gauge glass 18 for determining the liquid level therein, and a pressure gauge 19 is set upon the to of said receiver. Pressure distillate pipe 20 1s a liquid drawofi having valve 21 connected therewith. Attached to expansion chamber 9 is a residuum drawofi' pipe 22 having valve 23 as a control.

A typical method of operation of this apparatus and process was to charge the heating coils with the raw oil to be treated and heat same until a pressure of upwards of 1,000 pounds is reached as indicated by the gauge. Control valve 7 is slowly opened while more raw oil is pumped into the heating coil. The oil flowing out of the heating coil through the control valve 7, passes into the expansion chamber 9 extending therein. The vapors from the oil pass up through the catalytic material on the pan 10 and control valve 14 is kept closed until the same pressure as that on the heating coil is obtained. The'valve 14 is then slowly opened until the pressure is uniform to the uncondensable gas pipe 24 and control valve 25. When 1,000 pounds pressure is reached on the entire system, pressure distillate is drawn ofl through valve 21 and pressure controlled by the uncondensable gas valve 25. The raw oil pump feeds oil into the system continuously until the end of the operating cycle. However, we have found that with certain oils, a differential pressure is advisable to use between the heating coil and expansion chamber and the water condenser.

For example, a pressure of 1.000 pounds may be maintained upon the heating coil, and 300 pounds on the expansion chamber; between the expansion chamber and the receiver, that is, between valve 14 and valve 17 the pressure may drop between 300 and 150 pounds and 7 5 pounds pressure -on the receiver.

With fuel oils and heavy asphaltic oils, I have found that a diilerential pressure is advisable to use in different parts of the apparat-us for high velocity conversion to light oils. However, there are even exceptions of this. When particularly refractory oils are to be cracked, such as Pine Island gas oil or the like, a high pressure should be used throughout the system, for commercial conversion to gasoline and kerosene.

I claim as my invention:

A process of cracking petroleum oil, consisting in passing oil in a continuously advancmg stream through a cracklng zone where said oil is subjected to a cracking temin the chamber to pass through a catalytic perature while maintained under a superatbed comprising a relatively thin layer of a 1 mospheric pressure, in introducing the oil metallic oxide supported in the vapor space to an enlarged chamber where vaporization of said chamber, in discharging vapors from 5 thereof occurs, in reducing the pressure in the chamber, and in condensing said vapors said chamber below the pressure maintained for collect-ion as pressure distillate. on the oil in the stream but above atmospheric, in causing the vapors from the oil GUSTAV EGLOFF.

Images