A method for facilitating the distribution of the flow of one or more streams within a bed vessel is provided. Disposed within the bed vessel are internal materials and structures including multiple operating zones. One type of operating zone can be a processing zone composed of one or more beds of solid processing material. Another type of operating zone can be a treating zone. Treating zones can facilitate the distribution of the one or more streams fed to processing zones. The distribution can facilitate contact between the feed streams and the processing materials contained in the processing zones.

The present invention relates to a process for obtaining an olefin by metathesis including the steps of i) feeding at least one stream with at least one olefin as starting material to at least one first reactor with at least one pre-bed having at least one compound selected from the group of alkaline earth oxides and ii) feeding the stream leaving the at least one first reactor to at least one second reactor downstream to the at least one first reactor including at least one main bed having a) at least one first catalyst component and b) at least one second catalyst component. The first and second catalyst are physically mixed with each other. The operational temperature of the at least one first reactor is lower than the operational temperature of the at least one second reactor.

Systems and methods for hydrogen generation via ammonia decomposition that utilize a fixed bed reactor configured to receive inflows of NH.sub.3 and oxidant and to produce an outflow of high purity H.sub.2. The fixed bed reactor contains a fixed bed of a NH.sub.3 decomposition catalyst wherewith the NH.sub.3 decomposes to form N.sub.2 and H.sub.2; a plurality of ceramic hollows fibers with a high surface to volume ratio disposed in the fixed bed, the hollow fibers having an H.sub.2 selective membrane disposed thereon for extracting H.sub.2 from N.sub.2 and to form a permeate of the high purity H.sub.2 and a retentate of primarily N.sub.2; and a catalytic H.sub.2 burner also disposed in the fixed bed, the catalytic H.sub.2 burner for burning a portion of the H.sub.2 with the oxidant to provide thermal energy for the NH.sub.3 decomposition.

A method for facilitating the distribution of the flow of one or more streams within a bed vessel is provided. Disposed within the bed vessel are internal materials and structures including multiple operating zones. One type of operating zone can be a processing zone composed of one or more beds of solid processing material. Another type of operating zone can be a treating zone. Treating zones can facilitate the distribution of the one or more streams fed to processing zones. The distribution can facilitate contact between the feed streams and the processing materials contained in the processing zones.

The invention relates to long chain alcohol, to processes for catalytically producing long chain alcohol from carbon monoxide and molecular hydrogen, to equipment useful in such processes, and to the use of long chain alcohol, e.g., for producing fuel, lubricating oil, detergent, and plasticizer. The catalyst is mesoporous and comprises iron and copper.

Reactor (1) for catalytic chemical reactions, comprising: a partially open outer vessel (2) comprising a manhole (6) for accessing to the interior, and at least one internal wall (5) comprising a plurality of panels (5.1, 5.2, . . . 5.n) assembled inside the vessel (2) so as to form said wall (5); the panels are flexible and deformable so that they may be inserted through said manhole (6), and the resulting wall (5) is not self-supporting and rests against a load-bearing wall (7) of the reactor.

A catalyst system is disclosed for producing para-xylene from a C.sub.8 hydrocarbon mixture comprising ethylbenzene and at least one xylene isomer other than para-xylene. The catalyst system comprises a first catalyst bed and a second catalyst bed. The first catalyst bed comprises a first zeolite and a rhenium hydrogenation component. The first zeolite has a constraint index from 1 to 12, an average crystal size from 0.1 to 1 micron and has been selectivated to have an ortho-xylene sorption time of greater than 1200 minutes based on its capacity to sorb 30% of the equilibrium capacity of ortho-xylene at 120? C. and an ortho-xylene partial pressure of 4.5?0.8 mm of mercury. The second catalyst bed comprises a second zeolite and a rhenium hydrogenation component. The second zeolite has a constraint index ranging from 1 to 12 and an average crystal size of less than 0.1 micron.

A oxygen transfer agent useful for the oxidative dehydrogenation of saturated hydrocarbons includes at least one mixed oxide derived from manganese or compounds thereof, as well as a promoter, such as tungsten and/or phosphorus. The oxygen transfer agent may also include an alkali metal or compounds thereof, boron or compounds thereof, an oxide of an alkaline earth metal, and an oxide containing one or more of one or more of manganese, lithium, boron, and magnesium. A reactor is at least partially filled with the oxygen transfer agent in the form of a fixed or circulating bed and provides an unsaturated hydrocarbon product, such as ethylene and/or propylene. The oxygen transfer agent may be regenerated using oxygen.

Reactor (1) for catalytic chemical reactions, comprising: a partially open outer vessel (2) comprising a manhole (6) for accessing to the interior, and at least one internal wall (5) comprising a plurality of panels (5.1, 5.2, . . . 5.n) assembled inside the vessel (2) so as to form said wall (5); the panels are flexible and deformable so that they may be inserted through said manhole (6), and the resulting wall (5) is not self-supporting and rests against a load-bearing wall (7) of the reactor.

Disclosed is a catalyst composition and its use in a process for the conversion of a feedstock containing C.sub.8+ aromatic hydrocarbons to produce light aromatic products, comprising benzene, toluene and xylene. The catalyst composition comprises a first zeolite having a constraint index of 3 to 12, a second zeolite comprising a mordenite zeolite synthesized from TEA or MTEA, at least one first metal of Group 10 of the IUPAC Periodic Table, and at least one second metal of Group 11 to 15 of the IUPAC Periodic Table, wherein said mordenite zeolite has a mesopore surface area of greater than 30 m.sup.2/g and said mordenite zeolite comprises agglomerates composed of primary crystallites, wherein said primary crystallites have an average primary crystal size as measured by TEM of less than 80 nm and an aspect ratio of less than 2.