Patent ID: 7692052
Filing Date: 2010-04-06
Classification: C07C

Abstract:
1. A process for the production of xylenes comprising: (a) passing a hydrocarbonaceous feed stream through a main fractionation zone to provide a naphtha stream having a xylene content greater than about 3% and boiling in the range from about 71° C. (160° F.) to about 216° C. (420° F.); (b) contacting at least an aliquot portion of the naphtha stream with a reforming catalyst in a reforming zone under reforming conditions to produce a reforming zone effluent comprising hydrogen and aromatic compounds; (c) contacting at least a portion of the reforming zone effluent with at least a transalkylation catalyst in a transalkylation zone under transalkylation conditions to produce a liquid hydrocarbonaceous transalkylation effluent and a gaseous stream comprising hydrogen, the transalkylation conditions selected so that the transalkylation effluent comprises xylenes without a substantial non-aromatic co-boiling content and having a xylene content greater than the xylene content of the naphtha stream before contacting the transalkylation catalyst; and (d) after the transalkylation zone, recovering xylenes to provide a xylene product having at least about 90 weight % xylene content.