Patent ID: 7824523

Claim:
A process for obtaining carbon-based products from hydrocarbons, the process comprising: (A) providing a feed hopper; a feed conveyor having an elongated hollow housing having an elongated opening therein that is surmounted by a vaulted, sealed covering; a first fill chamber with a first control valve in an open position; a second fill chamber with a second control valve in a closed position; a metering means having an elongated hollow housing having an elongated opening therein that is surmounted by a vaulted, sealed covering; a reactor comprising an elongated hollow housing having an elongated opening therein that is surmounted by a vaulted, sealed covering, a rotatable screw, an entry port and an exit port; a catalyst feed vessel having an upper control valve in an open position and a lower control valve in a closed position; a solids collection means; a gas and liquid collection means; a means of providing a negative pressure for the second fill chamber, the metering means, the catalyst feed vessel, and the reactor; and a means of heating the second fill chamber, the metering means, the catalyst feed vessel, and the reactor; (B) feeding a predetermined amount of hydrocarbons into the feed hopper; (C) providing a negative pressure on the second fill chamber, the metering means, the catalyst feed vessel and the reactor by the use of the means of providing a negative pressure; (D) feeding a predetermined amount of hydrocarbons from the feed hopper into the first fill chamber by the use of the feed conveyor and closing the first control valve; (E) opening the second control valve and allowing the contents of the first fill chamber to enter into the second fill chamber and closing the second control valve; (F) heating the reactor using the means of heating; (G) introducing a predetermined amount of catalyst into the catalyst feed vessel and closing the upper control valve; (H) opening the lower control valve of the catalyst feed vessel and allowing the catalyst to enter the heated reactor; (I) metering the contents of the second fill chamber into the entry port of the catalyst containing heated reactor by the use of the metering means and allowing the contents to move through the reactor at a predetermined rate by the use of the rotatable screw, wherein the hydrocarbons react under the influence of the catalyst and provide volatile and solid carbon-based products; and (J) allowing the solid carbon-based products to separate and move from the volatile carbon-based products by gravity to the solids collection means through the exit port of the reactor, and allowing the volatile carbon-based products to move to the gas and liquid collection means through the exit port of the reactor.