Patent ID: 8268941

Claim:
A process for polymerizing or oligomerising a hydrocarbon, the process comprising the steps of: feeding a liquid hydrocarbon reactant into a bulk liquid phase comprising polymeric or oligomeric product admixed with a catalyst, the liquid hydrocarbon reactant having a boiling temperature lower than a bulk temperature of the bulk liquid phase; allowing the liquid hydrocarbon reactant to vaporise to form bubbles rising through the bulk liquid phase and to polymerise or oligomerise to form the polymeric or oligomeric product, with the rising bubbles creating turbulence in the bulk liquid phase, thereby mixing the bulk liquid phase; allowing gaseous components comprising any unreacted vapourise hydrocarbon reactant and any gaseous product that may have formed to disengage from the bulk liquid phase into a head space above the bulk liquid phase; withdrawing the gaseous components from the head space; cooling the gaseous components withdrawn from the head space; forming condensed hydrocarbon reactant and gaseous product; separating the condensed hydrocarbon reactant from the gaseous product; recycling the condensed hydrocarbon reactant in liquid form to the bulk liquid phase; and withdrawing the bulk liquid phase which includes polymeric or oligomeric product from the bulk liquid phase.