Patent ID: 8114273

Claim:
A process for hydrotreating a heteroatom-containing distillate boiling range feed, which process comprises a) contacting said distillate boiling range feed in a first hydrotreating zone in the presence of hydrogen, with a catalytically effective amount of a hydrotreating catalyst at hydrotreating conditions to result in a first liquid phase product having a reduced amount of sulfur, and a first vapor phase, which vapor phase contains hydrogen, light hydrocarbons, hydrogen sulfide and ammonia; b) separating the first liquid phase and the first vapor phase; c) removing hydrogen sulfide and ammonia from said first vapor phase with a basic scrubbing solution in order to form a scrubbed first vapor phase; d) removing light hydrocarbons from said scrubbed first vapor phase thereby increasing its hydrogen concentration, in a rapid cycle pressure swing adsorption unit containing a plurality of adsorbent beds and having a total cycle time of less than about 30 seconds and a pressure drop within each adsorbent bed of greater than about 5 inches of water per foot of bed length; e) feeding at least a portion of the scrubbed first vapor phase having an increased concentration of hydrogen to a second hydrotreating zone; f) contacting said first liquid phase product in a second hydrotreating zone in the presence of hydrogen at least a portion of which is obtained from the scrubbed first vapor phase of step d) above, with a catalytically effective amount of a hydrotreating catalyst at hydrotreating conditions to result in a second liquid phase product having a reduced amount of sulfur, and a second vapor phase product, which second vapor phase product contains light hydrocarbons, hydrogen sulfide and hydrogen; g) separating the second liquid phase product from the second vapor phase; h) removing hydrogen sulfide from said second vapor phase with a basic scrubbing solution in order to form a scrubbed second vapor phase; and i) feeding at least a portion of the scrubbed second vapor phase product to said first hydrotreating zone, wherein said removing step d) results in a recovery of a purified hydrogen-containing gas stream, relative to said hydrogen-containing make-up treat gas, said vapor phase product, or both, so as to exhibit (iv) a rate of recovery (R%) greater than 80% for a product purity to feed ratio (P%/F%) greater than 1.1, (v) a rate of recovery (R%) greater than 90% for a product purity to feed ratio (P%/F%) less than 1.1 but greater than 0, or (vi) both (iv) and (v).