Disulfides process to eliminate reentry into a mercaptan extraction process.

摘要

Reentry disulphides are eliminated in a continuous process for treating a sour hydrocarbon stream by extracting the mercaptans contained in the hydrocarbon stream 1 with a disulphide-free alkaline solution in an extraction zone 3, oxidizing the mercaptans to disulphides in the presence of an oxidation catalyst, in oxidation zone 6, separating a major portion of the disulphides from the alkaline solution at 9, reducing the residual disulphides in the alkaline solution to mercaptans and recycling the resulting substantially disulphide-free alkaline solution from the reduction zone 12 to the extraction zone 3. The reduction of the disulphides to mercaptans may be carried out by hydrogenation or by electrochemical reduction.