Patent ID: 8822747

Claim:
A combined xylene isomerization and transalkylation process comprising: isomerizing a feed stream in an isomerization reactor in the presence of an isomerization catalyst under isomerization conditions to produce an isomerization product; transalkylating a feed stream in a transalkylation reactor in the presence of a transalkylating catalyst under transalkylating conditions to produce a transalkylation product; separating the isomerization product in an isomerization separator to produce an isomerization separator bottoms stream; separating the transalkylation product in a transalkylation separator to produce a transalkylation separator bottoms stream; providing a split shell fractionation column having a baffle separating the fractionation column into two sides, the fractionation column having an isomerization inlet on the isomerization side of the baffle and a transalkylation inlet on the transalkylation side of the baffle, the baffle extending from a bottom of the column to a location above a highest inlet; introducing the isomerization separator bottoms stream into the isomerization side of the fractionation column through the isomerization inlet; introducing the transalkylation separator bottoms stream into the transalkylation side of the fractionation column through the transalkylation inlet; fractionating the isomerization separator bottom stream in the isomerization side of the fractionation column to produce a fractionation column isomerization bottoms stream; fractionating the transalkylation separator bottom stream in the transalkylation side of the fractionation column to produce a fractionation column transalkylation bottoms stream.