Patent ID: 8252169

Claim:
A process of processing coal pyrolysis oils containing at least 15% wt of compounds boiling below 360° C. and less than 40% wt boiling at least at 520° C. said coal pyrolysis oil also containing less than 20% wt of particles of coal having a size of less than 1 mm, and at least 1% wt of oxygenated compounds (calculated as oxygen), said process comprising: a) combining a hydrogen stream with coal pyrolysis oil feedstock; b) feeding the combined stream from step a) to a first ebullated-bed reactor to remove compounds including olefins, diolefins, and nitrogen, sulfur, and oxygen contaminates and create a stabilized stream; and c) feeding said stabilized stream to a second ebullated-bed reactor to remove some additional heteroatoms and convert the stream to lower boiling hydrocarbons; and wherein said first ebullated-bed reactor from step b) is always operated at a temperature of at least 15°C. less than said second ebullated-bed reactor of step c) and wherein steps a-c result in the conversion of the 343° C.+ material in said coal pyrolysis oil feedstock in the range of between 10 wt % and 99 wt %.