Olefin production utilizing whole crude oil and mild catalytic cracking

1. In a method for operating an olefin production plant that employs a pyrolysis furnace to severely thermally crack hydrocarbon molecules for the subsequent processing of said cracked molecules in said plant, said furnace having in its interior a convection heating section and a separate radiant heating section, said radiant heating section being employed for said severe cracking, the improvement comprising providing whole crude oil as the primary feedstock to said furnace, preheating said feedstock to a temperature of from about 500° F. to about 750° F. to form a mixture of vaporous and liquid hydrocarbons, collecting said mixture in a vaporization/mild catalytic cracking unit, in said unit separating said vaporous hydrocarbons from said liquid hydrocarbons, passing said vaporous hydrocarbons to said radiant heating section, retaining said liquid hydrocarbons in said unit, providing at least one catalyst bed in said unit which is effective for mildly catalytically cracking at least a portion of said retained liquid hydrocarbons, introducing steam into said unit to mix with said liquid hydrocarbons in the presence of said catalyst in said unit to dilute said liquid hydrocarbons and heat same to a temperature of from about 800° F. to about 1,300° F. thereby forming additional vaporous hydrocarbons, and removing said additional vaporous hydrocarbons to said radiant heating section.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said whole crude oil feed is mixed with steam at least one of before and during said preheating.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein said preheating is carried out in said convection heating section.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein essentially all vaporous hydrocarbons are separated from said liquid hydrocarbons in said unit so that primarily only hydrocarbon liquid retained in said unit is subjected to both higher steam to liquid hydrocarbon ratios and higher steam temperatures to cause essentially only additional vaporization of said liquid hydrocarbons.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein said hydrocarbon liquids that are retained in said mild catalytic cracking unit are essentially evenly distributed across the cross section of said unit.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein said steam is introduced into said unit at a steam/hydrocarbon dilution ratio of from about 0.3/1 to about 5/1.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein said steam is introduced into said unit at a temperature of from about 1,000° F. to about 1,300° F.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein said unit is employed in the interior of said convection heating section.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein said unit is employed outside said furnace but in fluid communication with the interior of said furnace.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein said unit is in fluid communication with said convection heating section.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the retention of liquid hydrocarbons in said unit is continued until said liquid hydrocarbons are converted to vaporous hydrocarbons by at least one of vaporization and mild catalytic cracking and removed from said unit to said radiant heating section.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein said whole crude oil feed stream is straight run crude oil that has not been subjected to any distillation, fractionation, and the like prior to its introduction into said unit.

13. The method of claim 4 wherein, in addition to said additional vaporization, at least a portion of said retained liquid hydrocarbons in said unit when encountering said higher steam/liquid hydrocarbon ratios and higher steam temperatures undergoes mild thermal catalytic cracking to reduce the molecular weight of at least some of said retained liquid hydrocarbons thereby facilitating the vaporization of same and effecting good utilization of said feed stock as a source of vaporous hydrocarbon feed for said radiant section with minimal solid residue formation in said unit.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein hydrogen is introduced into said unit to mix with said steam and liquid hydrocarbons.

15. The method of claim 1 wherein said hydrogen is introduced into said unit in an amount effective to at least in part 1) reduce fouling in said unit, 2) facilitate catalytic cracking of said liquid hydrocarbons, and 3) enhance vaporization of said liquid hydrocarbons.

16. The method of claim 1 wherein said catalyst is mildly acidic, and has a large surface area of at least about 80 square meters per gram, and a pore volume of at least about 0.28 cubic centimeters per gram.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein said catalyst is at least one selected from the group consisting of alumina, silica/alumina, mole sieves, and clay.