Patent ID: 6864293

Claim:
A process for producing liquid and, optionally gaseous products from gaseous reactants, which process includes feeding, at a low level, gaseous reactants into a slurry bed of solid particles suspended in a suspension liquid; allowing the gaseous reactants to react as they pass upwardly through the slurry bed, thereby to form liquid and, optionally, gaseous products; withdrawing any gaseous product and unreacted gaseous reactants from a head space above the slurry bed; withdrawing liquid product and/or slurry from the slurry bed to maintain the slurry bed at a desired level; passing boiler water, as a first heat transfer fluid, in indirect heat exchange relationship through the slurry bed to remove heat from the slurry bed; allowing the heated boiler water to flash and separate to form pressurised steam; controlling the pressure of the steam to be substantially constant; and passing a second heat transfer fluid in indirect heat exchange relationship through the slurry bed to remove heat from the slurry bed, wherein the average temperature of the second heat transfer fluid in indirect heat exchange relationship with the slurry bed being lower than the average temperature of the boiler water in indirect heat exchange relationship with the slurry bed.