US1599629A - Apparatus for hydrogenating oils - Google Patents

Description

Sept. 14 1926.

E. I... ANDERSON APPARATUS FOR HYDROGENATING OILS 4 Filed March .26J 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet l sept. 14 ,1926.

E. L. ANDERSON APPARATUS FOR HYDROGENATING OILS Filed March 26, 1923 2 sheets-sheet 2 Patented Sept. 14, 1926.

UNITED STATESPATENT OFFICE# EDWARD L. AiDERsoN," or LONG REACH, cALIEoRNIA, .AssierlxToR- E oNE-EoURTHTo EDWARD RfTHERIEAU, oE LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA.

ArrARATUs FOR HXDRGENATING oI'Ls.

'Application inea March 26, 1923. serial No. 627,637.

This invention relates to apparatus for hydrogenating oils, such as crude hydrocarbons or relatively* heavy hydrocarbon products, to increase their capacity or to produce from them lighter hydrocarbons ofV lower boiling points. The invention has for its general object the provision of processV and apparatus to get, at minimum cost, a maximum productlon'of Vlightgravity and low boiling point hydrocarbons.

According to this 4invention. the desired lend'is reached by hydrogenating the heavier and high boiling point hydrocarbons to produce lighter products; and the invention is applicable to the productionof motor fuel, kerosene, distillates, and lubricating stock,

all without the necessity of further refiningI before being marketable.` The invention in its broader aspects issomewhat s1m1lar to my invention entitled Process -and appa?v ratus forv obtaining gasolinel fromfnatural gas for which I have filed application Serial No. 597,851, on October th, 192,2.l Insaid application, although I have described the invention as directedV most particularly to the recoveryand manufacture of gasoline from natural gas; yet that invention includes the generalprocess of combining natural gas with a heavier hydrocarbomthereby to produce a light hydrocarbon.. In that invention, as also in the present one, the combination is effected by heat and catalytic action.

, -But the present invention, although it at least in part functions to combine natural gas with a heavy hydrocarbon, is more particularly directed to production of the light hydrocarbons from the heavier hydrocar- Y vbons on which the process operates'.

Bearing in mind-these preliminary statements, the present invention will now be best understood from adetailed description of a preferred form of apparatus and preferred" process procedures illustrative of the invention, reference for this purpose being had to vthe accompanying drawingsin which:

Fig. 1 is a diagram :illustrating a complete.

-apparatus for carrying on the rocess';

Fig. 2 is an enlarged longitudinal vertical' section of the heating andfcatalyzing pier-- tion of' the apparatus, together lwith gram illustrating the controls;

Fig. 3 is. an enlarged detail section on line 3 3 of Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a fragmentary' section on line 4-4 of Fig.43;V and Avap'r take-olf Fig. 5 is an enlarged detail section on line 5 5 @f Fig. 2. A '1 w f In the drawings I show at-llO and 11 an o1l tank Aand a water tank into which suit` able air pressure may be introduced through pipes l2 and 13 to ,maintain .a steady lfeed pressure above the liquids inthe tanks.- The liquids feed out from the tanksthr'ough pipes 14 and 15 controlled .by' valveslf and 17 so that the amount and proportion of the two liquids that flow into the common feed pipe 18 may be controlled. This feed pipe 18 leads into chamber 19 and in this chamber the mixed liquids, illustrated at L in be in disk form and composed of spirally' arranged coils 27 of'bare resistance wire held between arms 27a that, with hubs 27h, form the frame of the elements. AThese frames maybe made of insulating mate-rial. One end of each spiral coil may be connected by wire 28 to lead wire 29 `in the shaft 25, and the other end connected by "wire 30 to shaft 25 and thus through that 'shaft and the shell .0f chamber 19 to lea'dwire 41. vThe resistance'coils are preferablycomposedof the nickel chromium alloy known `asnichrome,

.which material has' catalytic properties. In

this apparatus, asin the apparatus of my' co'- pendinglapplicat-ion, I combine; in a single element both the heating a'nd"catalyticl functions, 'with the advantage of supplying'the heat close to the catalytic element.

At the endof shaft 25' a pulley 3 1 is provlde'd', typical of means ofrotating the shaft, and thezelements26. .These are ordinarily rotated :at comparatively' slow speed, 4say about 6() revolutions per minute.

Leading-upwardly from the'fupperpart of :chamber 19 there is alstandpipei surrounded by heat insulation 36 and containing an- `otherheating and catalyticcoil 37 of bare wire arranged as shown in Figs. 2 and 5. At the upper end of standpipe 3 5 there is a pipe 38 that leads to condenser p 39, and 'from theV condenser the condensate .goes through pipe 33 to tank 34 where the ilo 4 going to elements 26.

fixed gases may be separated. Although I show here only a single condenser it'will be readily understood that I may utilize. any

Pyrometers P may be located at dierent places in chamber 19 and standpipe 35 to indicate the temperature of the liquids and vapors, and these pyrometers may be connected by wires 44 to an indicator 45.

In the operation of the apparatus oil and water are fed into chamber 19 continuously in such quantity as to keep a proper body of mixed liquid in' the chamber; and the rotation of elements 26 serves to mix, and preferably to emulsify the liquids, so as to get them into intimate admixture. Of course, the same result pmayrlbe had by feeding oil and water emulsion into the chamber, adding either oil-or Water to make the proper proportion between the two liquids.

The heating elements 26 are, for the treatment of the average run of cru'de oil or its heavier derivatives, maintained at a temperature of say from 600 to 800 F. and in any case high enough to cause the evaporation of the water and practically all of the oil. Whatever residue is left may be withdrawn from time to time through the plugged opening at 50. Under the influence of heat the hydrocarbons are not only vaporized but ma .be also to a certain extent cracked;

vwhile the Water is vaporized, and under the action' of heat and catalysis, is dissociated into its elements hydrogen and oxygen. These elements, un'der the iniuence of heat and catalysis react to combine with the hydrocarbon, to a. certain extent at least, in chamber 19. Consequently, there passes upwardly through standpipe 35 a mixture of` fixed gases and vapors from the hydrocarbons and also the gases resulting from the water vapor, together with vapors that are the products' of the combinations that'take place in chamber 19. In standpipe 35- the temperature of the coils is maintained ty ically at from about 400 F. to about 600 Vand under 'the influence of heat and catalysis the remaining unsaturated hydrocarbons are supplied with' hydrogen that comes from the water, an'd thus vapors of lighter hydrocarbons fare evolved. To Va certain extent this addition of hydrogen takes place with reference `to all ofthe unsaturated hydrocarbon light hydrocarbons that may vapors that pass through standpipe 35; with the result that the vapors emerging through pipe 38 are all, or at least most of them, carrying more hydrogen than they did originally, even though some of them may then carry less hydrogen than others. rIhe final product, if condensed at one step, will have in it a mixture of hydrocarbons of different specific gravities; but not only does this final product have a larger percentage of light hydrocarbons (motor fuel, etc.) than it did originally, but also the average spe-- cific gravity of the final product is lower than the average gravity of the original substance.

In addition to nascent hydrogen being produced by the operation of heat and catalysis, the Water is also to a certain extent decomposed by the electric current that iows through it between different parts of the coils and between the coils an'd the Walls of the device, which are grounded as described.

' Free carbon that may be formed in the various reactions is taken up by the oxygen to form carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide, which pass olf with the other fixed gases resulting from the process. Natural gas may also be passed into the vaporizing chamber 19 Where it mixes with the hydrocarbon and water vapors, this gas also supplying hydrogenfor these .reactions and supplying also be combined with the heavier hydrocarbons of the vapors. Also, if gas is introduced, this process 'recovers the light liquid hydrocarbons that are carried in the gas, in the same general manner as they are recovered in the invention describedin my co-pending application. The apparatus here described may be operated either with liquid hydrocarbons Iture in chamber 19 of about 800 F.,and in standpipe 35 of about 600 F., I obtain a final product of an averagegravity about 26 B. containing approximately 18 percent of gasoline,'22 percent of kerosene, '20 percent of stove distillate, and 35 percent of lubricating stock; the remainder being heavy residue and fixed as.

'Having described a preerred form of my invention, I claim-:- V 1.. Apparatus of the character herein described, comprising a chamber 'adapted to contain a. partial charge of liquid hydrocarbons and water, a rotatable shaft extending through the chamber, a plurality of disk like lao A partially in the liquid charge and elements mounted on the shaft and standing partially in the liquid charge and partially in the space in the chamber above the liquid level, each of said elements including a heat and catalytic element.

2. Apparatus of the character herein described, comprising a chamber adapted to contain a partial charge of liquid hydrocarbons and water, a rotatable shaft extending through the chamber, a plurality of disk like elements mounted on the shaft and standing artially in the space in the chamber above the liquid level, each of said elements including a heat and catalytic element; a vapor standpipe extending from the chamber, and a heat and catalytic element in said vapor stan'dpipe.

3. Apparatus of the character herein described, comprising a chamber adapted to contain a bons and water, a rotatable shaft extending through the chamber, a plurality of disk like elements mounted on the shaft and standing partially in the liquid charge and partially in the space in the chamber above the liquid level, each of said elements including a heat and catalytic element; a vapor standpipe extending from the chamber, and a heat and catalytic element in said vapor standpipe; means to feed liquid hydrocarbons and Water into the chamber, and a vapor take-off pipe leading from the upper end of the stand pipe to a condenser.

'In witness that I claim the' foregoing I have hereunto subscribed my name this 16th day of January, 1923.

EDWARD 1:..A ANDERSON. y

partial charge of liquid hydrocar- 20

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