Two stage hydrogenating process employing two different particle sizes

Claim 1

IN A CHEMICAL REACTION INVOLVING A THREE COMPONENT SYSTEM OF A LIQUID HYDROCARBON OIL, A GASIFORM MATERIAL AND A MASS OF PARTICULATE SOLIDS CONSISTING OF AT LEAST TOW BODIES OF PARTICLES WHICH PARTICLES ARE BETWEEN 1/2" DIAMETER AND 60 MESH (TYLER) WHEREIN EACH OF THESE BODIES OF PARTICLES HAS A DISTINCT FUNCTION, WHEREIN THE LIQUID AND GASIFORM MATERIAL, UNDER TEMPERATURE AND PRESSURE CONDITIONS REQUIRED FOR THE SPECIFIED REACTION, PASS UPWARDLY THROUGH THE MASS OF PARTICULATE SOLIDS IN A REACTION ZONE OF SUBSTANTIALLY UNIFORM CROSS SECTION WITH A LIQUID LINEAR VELOCITY IN THE RANGE OF 5 TO 500 GALLONS PER MINUTE PER SQUARE FOOT OF HORIZONTAL CROSS SECTION OF THE REACTION ZONE SO AS TO EXPAND ONE OF THE BODIES OF PARTICLES AT LEAST 10% ABOVE THE SETTLED STATE OF BODY BUT BELOW A RATE TO CARRY ANY SUBSTANTIAL AMOUNT OF ANY OF THE PARTICULATE SOLIDS OUT OF THE REACTION ZONE, THE LINEAR GAS RATE FOR THE SIZE AND DENSITY OF THE PARTICLES BEING SUFFICIENT TO AID IN PRODUCING A RANDOM MOTION OF EACH GROUP OF THE PARTICLES IN THE LIQUID, BUT, BY ITSELF, INSUFFICIENT TO ACCOMPLISH FLUIDIZATION OF THE PARTICLES, THE IMPROVEMENT IN PROMOTING STRATIFICATION OF THE BODIES OF PARTICLES WHICH COMPRISES USING BODIES OF PARTICULATE SOLIDS OF DIFFERENT FLUIDIZATION CHARACTERISTICS HAVING INDEPENDENT VOIDAGE UNDER THE SAME LIQUID AND GAS FLOW CONDITIONS OF BETWEEN 0.35 AND 0.75 AND HAVING A MINIMUM DIFFERENCE OF FLUID IZED VOIDAGE OF 0.05 AND A MAXIMUM DIFFERENCE OF FLUIDIZED VOIDAGE SUCH THAT THE MORE EASILY FLUIDIZED BODIES ARE NOT CARRIED OUT OF THE REACTION ZONE UNDER NORMAL OPERATING CONDITIONS, AND MAINTAINING THE GAS RATE, AT A GIVEN LIQUID RATE INSUFFICIENT TO CAUSE SUCH EXCESSIVE BACKMIXING AS TENDS TO DESTROY STATIFICATION OF THE TWO BEDS OF PARTICLES.