Jeffrey L Heineman

US Patent:

20050033098, Feb 10, 2005

Filed:

Aug 5, 2003

Appl. No.:

10/635763

Inventors:

Charles Sumner - Livingston NJ, US
Jeffrey Heineman - Madison NJ, US
Christopher Di Biase - Wharton NJ, US

International Classification:

C07C007/163

US Classification:

585258000

Abstract:

The charge gas from the thermal cracking of a hydrocarbon feedstock is processed in a front-end catalytic distillation hydrogenation system of an olefins plant to more effectively recover ethylene and propylene product and to process the by-products. The rate of fouling in the system is reduced by employing two columns in the system with the first column operating at a higher pressure and the second column operating at a lower pressure. The hydrogenation as well as fractionation takes place in the first column while the second column is only a fractionator. The temperature of the bottoms from each column is maintained at a temperature less than 200 C. to avoid fouling.