APPARATUS FOR CONTACTING A GAS AND A LIQUID

Abstract: The apparatus comprises a vessel (12) containing a main bed (21) of solids and an auxiliary bed (22) of solids above, and spaced from, the main bed. A plurality of liquid by-pass tubes (24) extend through the auxiliary bed from the bottom thereof to a level somewhat above the top level of the auxiliary bed. The liquid by-pass tubes (24) present a higher pressure drop for the flow of liquid than the auxiliary bed when the latter is not fouled, so that as the pressure drop of the auxiliary bed rises due to fouling, liquid eventu­ ally passes preferentially through the liquid by-pass tubes (24). There may also be a plurality of gas by-pass tubes (23) which extend upward through the auxiliary bed from the bottom thereof to a level above the tops of the liquid by-pass tubes (24). The gas by-pass tubes (23) present a higher pressure for gas flow than the non-fouled auxiliary bed so that gas passes preferentially through the gas by-pass tubes (23) only when the auxiliary bed is fouled.

Description: Apparatus for Contacting a Gas and a Liquid This invention relates to apparatus for contact ing gases and liquids. For example, the apparatus can be used for a liquid and gas mixture reacting in a fixed bed. The invention is also applicable to packed absorption towers operating with cocurrent gas liquid flow. In the normal operation of fixed bed hydropro cessing oil refining reactors, the top of the catalyst bed often becomes fouled or plugged by organometallic compounds, polymeric material, carbonaceous deposits and particulates, The plugging of the catalyst bed is undesirable, since the resultant increase in pressure drop necessitates costly shut-downs and requires time-consuming repairs and main penance. In an effort to overcome this problem, many schemes have been devised, wherein each reactor is provided with more than one catalyst bed, and a plugged bed is bypassed to extend the operating life of the reactor. One such bypass scheme is shown in U.S. Patent No. 3,509,043. In this reactor, catalyst bed bypass tubes are designed to burst open when the initial catalyst bed becomes fouled, and when a predetermined pressure drop is reached within the reactor. Under normal circumstances this bypass design will provide a workable means for extending the operability of the reactor. However, such a system is particularly sensitive to sudden changes in the feed flow rate of the reaction materials. These changes can often cause a premature bursting of the rupture discs. Another U.S. patent illustrating the use of rup ture discs is illustrated in Patent No. 3,796,655. In In this system, the bypassed material is directed upwardly in order to provide a dislodging backflow, and thus, unfoul the crusted or plugged catalyst bed. The bypassing schemes of these and other inventions achieve bypassing of the fouled catalyst bed with low pressure drop. High pressure drop bypassing is undesirable since the higher pressure drop puts a strain on the pumps and compressors which maintain the flow rate of the materials through the reactor. The low pressure drop for bypassing is achieved by employing a moving or a destructible component such as a rupture disc. These moving or destructible components are not reliable and can fail to operate or can operate prematurely. It is one object of the invention to provide a two phase, liquid and gas, fixed bed, contact apparatus, for example, a reactor, having an appreciably extended operating life; It is a further object of this invention to provide an apparatus capable of effecting a material bypass from a clogged or fouled bed to another bed with a low pressure drop. The present invention provides apparatus for contacting a gas and a liquid comprising a vessel, means for introducing a gas and a liquid into the vessel, at least one main bed of solids disposed in said vessel, and when required, means for the exit of gas and liquid from the vessel, and wherein the apparatus further comprises at least one auxiliary bed of solids disposed in said vessel above (and spaced apart from) said main bed for the passage therethrough of gas and liquid, at least one liquid by-pass conduit within said vessel extending through the auxiliary bed (e.g. from the bottom of the auxiliary bed) up to a level at least as high as (and preferably higher than) the top level of the auxiliary bed and presenting a higher pressure drop for the passage of liquid therethrough than the auxiliary bed when the latter is not fouled whereby, during operation, liquid passes preferentially through the auxiliary bed when the pressure drop therethrough is less than the pressure drop through the liquid by-pass conduit, and liquid passes preferentially through the liquid by-pass conduit when the pressure drop therethrough is exceeded by the pressure drop through the auxiliary bed. The apparatus may comprise at least one gas by-pass conduit within the said vessel and extending through the auxiliary bed (e.g. from the bottom thereof) up to a level above the top of the liquid by-pass conduit and presenting a higher pressure drop for the passage of gas therethrough than the auxiliary bed when the latter is not fouled, whereby during operation, gas passes preferentially through the auxiliary bed when the r pressure drop therethrough is less than the pressure drop through the gas by-pass conduit, and gas passes preferentially through the gas by-pass conduit when the pressure drop therethrough is exceeded by the pressure drop through the auxiliary bed. Thus, the apparatus of the invention may comprise a reactor for reacting a liquid and gas mixture in a fixed bed. The said reactor may comprise a reaction vessel into which both liquid and gas are introduced. The reactor may have a main bed disposed therein, and at least one auxiliary bed disposed above the main bed. The auxiliary bed may have separate liquid and gas bypasses comprising relatively different lengths of hollow tubing extending through the auxiliary bed. The gas bypass tubing may project to a greater height above the auxiliary bed than the liquid bypass tubing. This tubing arrangement provides a low pressure drop bypass for both said liquid and gas to the main bed, when the auxiliary bed becomes fouled. The reactor will normally additionally contain a flow distributor above each bed to distribute or spread the reactants relatively evenly over and/or through the entire bed. A typical reactor of the invention can be a hydroprocessing reactor wherein different petroleum fractions are treated with hydrogen gas. The bed of solid particles in the hydroprocessing reactor may be a catalyst containing a metal or a mixture of metals selected from the group of cobalt, molybdenum and nickel disposed on an alumina support. The reaction may remove, for example, impurities such as sulfur via a hydrodesulfurization reaction. Other important reactions taking place in a hydroprocessing reactor may include hydrogenation, hydrodenitrogenation, hydrotreating, hydrofinishing and hydrocracking. The invention is also applicable to absorption towers. The invention will be better understood and will become more apparent with reference to the following detailed description considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings described below. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 is a schematic view of a typical known hydroprocessing reactor having a single fixed bed without the bypassing apparatus of this invention; Figure la is a schematic view of the known reactor of Figure 1, depicting the fouling of the bed; Figure 2 illustrates a reactor and bypassing apparatus of the invention in schematic view; Figure 2a depicts in schematic view an alternate embodiment of the apparatus shown in Figure 2; Figures 3 and 4 show a graphical comparison of the extended operation time of the reactor and bypassing apparatus of the invention illustrated in Figure 2 as compared with the prior art reactor of Figure 1; Figure 5 illustrates another reactor and bypassing apparatus of the invention in schematic view; Figure 5a depicts in schematic view an alternate embodiment of the apparatus shown in Figure 5; Figures 6 and 6a illustrate in schematic view still other embodiments of the invention, Figure 6a being a further modification of an alternate embodiment depicted in Figure 6; and Figure 7 shows a graphical comparison of the extended operation time of the reactor and bypassing apparatus of the invention illustrated in Figure 6 as compared with the prior art reactor of Figure 1. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The invention will be described with reference to an apparatus for contacting and reacting a liquid and a gas, with particular reference to hydroprocessing. Generally speaking, fixed bed hydroprocessing reactors of the type shown schematically in Figure 1 are often limited in their operation by a build-up in the pressure drop in the catalyst bed 11, as the bed becomes fouled or plugged by impurities and particulates contained in the feed stock, as shown in Figure la. The reactor 10 comprises a vessel or reaction chamber 12. The feed stock, generally a petroleum fraction is fed into the mouth 13 of the vessel 12 along with a treating gas, such as hydrogen, as shown by arrow 14. A flow distributor 15 disposed above the catalytic bed 11 distributes the liquid and gas so that the catalyst bed 11 is evenly saturated. The reaction products leave the vessel 12 through exit port 16, as shown by arrow 17. Figure la shows the reactor of Figure 1 with a plugged catalyst bed 11, as illustrated by the crusted top portion 18 of. bed 11. The plugging of the reactor 10 is accompanied by a rapid build-up in pressure drop, as aforementioned. Referring now to Figures 2 and 2a, like components have been given the same designation for the sake of brevity. The reactor 10' is comprised of a reaction vessel 12 having an inlet 13 and an outlet 16, as mentioned before. The invention has a main catalyst bed 21 and an auxiliary catalyst bed 22 disposed above the bed 21, as shown. Distributors 15 are located above each bed 21 and 22, respectively. The auxiliary catalyst bed 22 comprises different lengths of hollow tubing 23 and 24 extending therethrough. The longer tubes 23 project to a greater height above the auxiliary bed, than tubes 24. When the catalyst bed 22 is not fouled or plugged, the bed 22 has a low resistance to flow in comparison to the resistance of the bypass tubing 23 and 24, a substantial part of the incoming materials will pass through the bed 22 to enter bed 21. A small amount of the materials will pass through tubing 23 and 24 before entering bed 21. As the bed 22 becomes plugged and the resistance of bed 22 to flow increases, the incoming liquid will take the path of least resistance, and flow down through the shorter tubing 24, because the liquid will seek its lowest level, namely, the top of bed 22 and the adjacent short tubing 24. The incoming treating gas will then be free to flow in separate fashion through the longer tubing 23. Thus, the liquid and gas will flow to the main catalyst bed 21 through separate respective tubes 24 and 23, where it will now react. The result of this inventive arrangement is that the reactors operating life is extended because the reactor vessel 10' continues to operate despite the fouling of the upper catalyst bed 22. An important feature of the invention is the low pressure drop accompanying the separate flow of the liquid and gas through respective tubes 24 and 23. This pressure drop would otherwise be high, if the tubing were of equal lengths and heights above bed 22, and the liquid and the gas had a mixed flow through the bypass tubing. Because of this feature, the operating life of the reactor is extended many fold. As an illustration, assume that the height of the auxiliary bed 22 is 0.9144 metres (three feet). Under the typical gas and liquid flow rates used in commercial hydroprocessing reactors, the pressure drop across an unfouled catalyst bed of 0.9144 metres (three feet) S 2 height it about 70.31 g/cm2 (1 psi). The tubes 23 and 24 are sized so that it all the gas flows through the short and long tubes 24 and 23, the tubing pressure drop will be much higher than the pressure drop of unfouled bed 22. As an illustration and for the sake of discussion, 2 assume that the tubing pressure drop is 703.07 g/cm (10 psi) (10 times the pressure drop of the unfouled catalyst bed 22). When the catalyst bed 22 is not fouled, the majority of the materials will, therefore, flow through the catalyst bed 22. A small flow of gas through the tubes 23 and 24 will not create any significant maldistribution problem. Any flow maldistribution will be corrected by the distributor 15 disposed above bed 21. As the bed 22 begins to foul, an increasing fraction of the gas flow will be directed to the tubes 23 and 24. Until the bed 22 is severely fouled, the liquid will continue to flow through the bed 22, because the liquid seeks its lowest level. When the bed 22 is severely fouled so that the liquid can no longer flow through it, the liquid flow will be directed to the short tubes 24. Because only the longer tubes 23-will now be available for gas flow, the pressure drop will be 2 higher than 703.07 g/cm2 (10 psi). In this illustration, the pressure drop will be, say 1.75768 kg/cm2 (25 psi). Note that if all the tubes were of the same elevation above the bed and the gas and liquid flowed in the tubes as a two phase gas-liquid mixture, the bypassing 2 pressure drop will be much higher than 1.75768 kg/cm2 (25 psi). Thus, the fouled catalyst bed is bypassed with a pressure 2 drop of only 1.75768 kg/cm2 (25 psi). If this fouled catalyst bed was not bypassed, the pressure differential would build up rapidly and force a unit shutdown. Figure 2a illustrates another embodiment of the invention depicted in Figure 2. In this embodiment the single auxiliary catalyst bed 22 of the Figure 2 is replaced by at least two auxiliary catalyst beds herein designated 22a and 22b. Each of these beds operate in the same manner as described above, and each auxiliary bed will increase the operating life of the reactor in its own right. In this fashion, the operating life of the reactor 10' can be extended in multiples of the several fold increases common to only one auxiliary bed and bypass arrangement, as shown in Figure 2. Referring now to the embodiments shown in Figures 5 and 5a, again like components have been given the same designation for the sake of brevity. The reactor 10' is comprised of a reaction vessel 12 having an inlet 13 and an outlet 16, as mentioned before. The invention has a main catalyst bed 21 and an auxiliary catalyst bed 22 disposed above the bed 21 as shown. The auxiliary catalyst bed 22 in Figure 5 comprises generally different lengths of hollow tubing 23 and 24, respectively extending therethrough. The tubes 24 have flow receptacles 26 at the top. A flow distributor 27 is disposed above the auxiliary bed 22 to evenly distribute the liquid to the liquid flow receptacles 26 as shown in Figure 5. The distributor 27 can be chosen from many types of distributors that are used in fixed bed reactors with two phase gas and liquid flow. One such distributor which is particularly suitable is described in U.S. Patent No. 3,524,731. A distributor 115 is also disposed above the main bed 21. The purpose of distributor 115 is to evenly saturate the bed. When the auxiliary bed 22 is not fouled or clogged, the auxiliary bed 22 offers a low resistance to flow in comparison to the bypass tubing 23 and 24. Under the condition of no fouling, only a very small fraction of the liquid passes through the tubes 24. The majority of the liquid spills from the flow receptacles 26 as shown by spill-over arrows 29, and passes through the catalyst bed 22. Similarly, the majority of gas passes through the unfouled bed 22, because the gas bypass tubes 23 offer higher resistance to flow in comparison to the unfouled bed 22. No gas passes through the liquid bypass tubes 24, because the liquid is spilling from the flow receptacles 26, and the liquid inside these flow receptacles provides a liquid seal which prevents the bypassing of gas through the tubes 24. The liquid spilling from the flow receptacles 26 seeks its lowest level and flows through the auxiliary bed 22. Therefore, only gas is free to flow through the aas bypass tubes 23. As the catalyst bed 22 fouls, the pressure drop across the bed 22 increases. The increased pressure drop forces the liquid through the bypass tubes 24, and the gas through the bypass tubes 23. Thus, the liquid and gas will now enter the main bed 21 through separate respective tubes 24 and 23. The result of this inventive arrangement is that the reactor's operating life is extended because the reactor vessel 10' continues to operate despite the fouling of the upper catalyst bed 22. An important feature of the invention is the low pressure drop accompanying the separate flow of liquid and gas through respective tubes 24 and 23. The pressure drop for bypassing the fouled catalyst bed 22 would otherwise be high, if the bypass tubes 24 and 23 had a mixture of gas and liquid flowing through them. Because of this feature, the operating life of the reactor is extended many fold. As an illustration, assume that the height of the auxiliary bed 22 is 0.9144 metres (three feet). Under the typical gas and liquid flow rates used in commercial hydroprocessing reactors, the pressure drop across an unfouled catalyst bed of 0.9144 metres (three feet) height is about 70.307 g/cm2 (1 psi). The tubes 24 and 23 are sized so that if all liquid and gas flow through respective tubes 24 and 23, the tubing pressure drop will be much higher than the pressure drop of the unfouled bed 22. As an illustration, and for the sake of discussion, assume that if all the liquid flows through the tubes 24, the pressure drop 2 across the tubes 24 is 1.40614 kg/cm2 (20 psi), and if all the gas flows through the tubes 23, the pressure drop across the tubes 1.40614 2 kg/cm2 (20 psi) (20 times the pressure drop of the unfouled catalyst bed 22). When the catalyst bed 22 is not fouled, the majority of gas and liquid will, therefore, flow through the catalyst bed 22. Only a very small fraction of the liquid will pass through the tubes 24. No gas will flow through the tubes 24 because of the liquid seal in the flow receptacles 26. Only a small fraction of the gas will pass through the tubes 23. As the bed 22 begins to foul, increasing fractions of gas and liquid will be diverted to the respective tubes 23 and 24. A completely plugged bed 22 will be bypassed with a pressure drop of 1.40614 kg/cm2 (20 psi). If the bed 22 was not bypassed, the pressure drop would build up rapidly and force a unit shutdown. Figure 5a illustrates another embodiment of the invention depicted in Figure 5. In this embodiment, the single auxiliary catalyst bed 22 of Figure 5 is replaced by at least two auxiliary catalyst beds herein designated 22a and 22b. Each of these beds operates in the same manner as described above, and each auxiliary bed will increase the operating life of the reactor in its own right. In this fashion, the operating life of the reactor 10' can be extended in multiples of the several fold increases common to only one auxiliary bed and bypass arrangement, as shown in Figure 5. Figure 6 illustrates another embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, the auxiliary catalyst bed 22 has only the liquid bypass tubes 24. The gas bypass tubes 23 may not be necessary under some conditions. An example will be a situation when the fouled catalyst bed 22 retains enough permeability for the gas to flow through it. Such a situation may exist in reactors operating with a very low gas to liquid ratio. After the bed 22 is fouled, the liquid bypasses through the tubes 24. The gas will pass through the fouled bed itself. Figure 6a illustrates a modification of the alternate embodiment of the invention as depicted in Figure 6. In this modified embodiment, the single auxiliary catalyst bed 22 of Figure 6 is replaced by at least two auxiliary catalyst beds 22c and 22d, respectively, each of which have only liquid bypass tubing 24, as shown. The operating life of the reactor can be extended in multiples of the several fold increases common to only one auxiliary bed as aforementioned. Although the invention has been described in relation to a hydroprocessing reactor, the invention is not necessarily limited to such a reactor. The invention includes other reactors in which other liquid and gas mixtures react in fixed beds of catalyst or solids. The invention also includes apparatus which uses similar flow arrangements. An example where similar flow arrangement may be used is a packed absorption tower with cocurrent flow of gas nd liquid. In this example, the fixed or packed bed of solids does not have a catalytic role. The fixed bed of solids only facilitates contacting between the gas and the liquid. Many modifications will naturally occur to the skilled practitioner of this art. For example, as described in U.S. Patent 3,524,731, horizontal splash plates or baffles can be provided beneath the liquid and gas bypass tubes. These splash plates would distribute the bypassed material over a larger area of main bed 21. These splash plates or baffles can thus substitute for the flow distributor tray 15. Similarly, as also described in the above U.S. Patent 3,524,731, cap plates may be provided above the longer gas bypass tubes 23 to prevent the liquid from above entering the tubes 23. Tubes 23 or 24 do not have to be the same size. EXAMPLE 1 Fouled catalyst bypassing for improving reactor run lengths has been demonstrated in an accelerated or simulated fouling test in the laboratory. Pressure drop build up in a 15.24 cms (six inch) diameter column packed with 1.585 mms (1/16 inch) catalyst extrudates was measured using water and nitrogen feed. Catalyst fouling was produced by spiking the liquid feed with either coke or polymer particles. In the first set of experiments, the contaminants in the feed were coke particles. Figure 3 shows the pressure drop build up without any bypassing and also when one auxiliary catalyst bed as shown in Figure 2 was bypassed as per the invention. Without catalyst bypassing, the rapid pressure drop build up necessitated that the reactor be shutdown in thirty minutes, as shown by curve A. The reactor run length of thirty minutes in the accelerated fouling test corresponds to a run length of several weeks to several months in a commercial reactor. With catalyst bypassing, the reactor was run for 120 minutes (Curve B), and could have been run longer. The leveling off of pressure drop is attributed to settling of heavy coke particles above the top auxiliary catalyst bed 22 (Figure 2). Since the bypassed flow contained no contaminant coke particles, the lower bed 21 did not foul and the pressure drop remained constant. In a second set of experiments, contaminants in the feed were polymer particles. The polymer particles used had a density very close to that of water and, therefore, had no significant settling tendency. Thus, the bypassed flow produced fouling of the lower catalyst bed 21. Figure 4 shows the advantageous effect of catalyst bypassing on reactor run length. The reactor run length increased by a factor of three, from 13 minutes (Curve C) to 38.5 minutes (Curve D). The above drawings being of an exemplary and schematic nature are only meant to give an understanding of the invention. EXAMPLE 2 Fouled catalyst bypassing for improving reactor run lengths has been demonstrated in an accelerated or simulated fouling test in the laboratory. Pressure drop build up in a 15.24 cms (six inch) diameter column packed with 1.585 mms (1/16 inch) catalyst extrudates of cobalt and molybdenum on an alumina support, was measured using water and nitrogen feed. Catalyst fouling was produced by spiking the liquid feed with polymer particles. The polymer particles had a density that was very close to that of water and, therefore, the polymer particles had no significant settling tendency. Figure 7 shows the advantageous effect of catalyst bypassing on reactor run length. Without catalyst bypassing, the rapid pressure drop build up necessitated that the reactor be shut-down in 5.5 minutes, as shown by curve A. This reactor run length of 5.5 minutes in the accelerated fouling test corresponds to a run length of several weeks to several months in a commercial reactor. When one auxiliary catalyst bed as shown in Figure 3 was bypassed as per the invention, the reactor run length increased by a factor of about four, from 5.5 minutes (curve A) to 21.0 minutes (curve B). The above drawings being of an exemplary and schematic nature are only meant to give an understanding of the invention. In both the examples, the liquid mass velocity was 12680 kg/h.m2 (2600 lbs/hr. ft2) and the gas mass velocity was 370 kg/h.m2 (75 lbs/hr. ft2).

Claims: CLAIMS 1. Apparatus for contacting a gas and a liquid comprising a vessel (12); means (13) for introducing a gas and a liquid into the vessel (12); and at least one main bed (21) of solids disposed in said vessel (12), and when required, means (16) for the exit of gas and liquid from the vessel, characterized in that the apparatus further comprises at least one auxiliary bed (22) of solids disposed in said vessel above said main bed (21) for the passage therethrough of gas and liquid; at least one liquid by-pass conduit (24) within said vessel extending through the auxiliary bed (22) up to a level at least as high as the top level of the auxiliary bed and presenting a higher pressure drop for the passage of liquid therethrough than the auxiliary bed when the latter is not fouled, whereby during operation, liquid passes preferentially through the auxiliary bed when the pressure drop therethrough is less than the pressure drop through the liquid by-pass conduit (24), and liquid passes preferentially through the liquid by-pass conduit when the pressure drop therethrough is exceeded by the pressure drop through the auxiliary bed. the 2. Apparatus as in claim 1 characterized in thatlliquid by-pass conduit (24) extends up to a level higher than the top level of the auxiliary bed. 3. Apparatus as in claim 1 or claim 2 characterized in that the liquid by-pass conduit (24) comprises a receptacle (26) at its top end disposed for receiving liquid passing downwards in the vessel whereby when the pressure drop through the liquid by-pass conduit exceeds the pressure drop through the auxiliary bed, the liquid by-pass conduit serves as a liquid seal, and liquid is distributed to the auxiliary bed (22) by spilling from the receptacle (26). 4. Apparatus as in any one of claims 1 EMI15.1 3 characterized by comprising at least one gas by-pass conduit (23) within said vessel and extending through the auxiliary bed (22) up to a level above the top of the liquid by-pass conduit (24) and presenting a higher pressure drop for the passage of gas therethrough than the auxiliary bed when the latter is not fouled whereby, during operation, gas passes preferentially through the auxiliary bed when the pressure drop therethrough is less than the pressure drop through the gas by-pass conduit (23), and gas passes preferentially through the gas by-pass conduit (23) when the pressure drop therethrough is exceeded by the pressure drop through the auxiliary bed (22). 5. Apparatus as in any one of claims 1 to 4 characterized by at least two auxiliary beds (22a,22b,Fig-2a) disposed in tiers above said main bed (21), each auxiliary bed having at least one by-pass conduit (23,2it). 6. Apparatus as in any one of claims 1 to 5 characterized by comprising a distributor (15) above each bed (21,22). 7. Apparatus as in any one of claims 1 to 6 characterized in that the beds comprise at least one catalyst. 8. Apparatus as in claim 7 characterized in that said catalyst comprises one or more metals seleted from cobalt, molybdenum and nickel disposed on an alumina support. 9. The use of apparatus according to claim 7 or claim 8 in a process selected from at least one of the following: hydrogenation, hydrodesulfurization, hydrodenitrogenation, hydrotreating, hydrofinishing and hydrocracking.

Inventors: GUPTA, RAMESH
Applicants: EXXON RESEARCH AND ENGINEERING COMPANY
Application year: 1981
Main classification: B01J8
IPC codes: B01J8, C10G49