Gas absorption for separation of hydrocarbons
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to a separation process for the recovery of low-boiling hydrocarbons, in which a crude gas containing low-boiling and high-boiling hydrocarbons, is subjected to scrubbing to scrub out the high-boiling components, after which the loaded scrubbing agent is subjected to regeneration and recycled to the scrubbing step. 
     In the cracking of gas to recover C 2  H 2  (acetylene), there result as by-products, among others, higher acetylenes, i.e., those with more than two carbon atoms in the molecule. In cracked gas produced by partial oxidation, the percentage of higher acetylenes and higher-boiling components in the crude gas mixture is relatively small; however, in cracked gas produced in an electric arc furnace with the exclusion of oxygen, there are appreciable concentrations of higher acetylenes and other high-boilers, such as aromatics. These heavy, high-boiling components are removed by partial condensation and/or by scrubbing out of the cracked gas. 
     Both chemical and physical scrubbing agents or combinations thereof are used for the scrubbing operation. 
     For a physical scrubbing step, a polar scrubbing agent is used for scrubbing a series of higher-boiling components from the crude gas mixture. Known scrubbing agents of this type are, for example, methanol, NMP (N-methylpyrrolidone) and DMF (dimethylformamide). 
     The regeneration of the scrubbing agent loaded with the scrubbed-out components, optionally takes place by stripping with a stripping gas, by lowering the pressure and/or by raising the temperature of the loaded scrubbing agent, so as to drive out the absorbed components. The regenerated scrubbing agent is then recycled to the scrubbing step. 
     If the scrubbing agent is loaded with temperature-sensitive unsaturated hydrocarbons, which at higher temperatures tend to polymerize or decompose, it is recommended that the regeneration be conducted only by stripping and/or pressure reduction. But such a process, heretofore, had the drawback that if the vapor pressure of the components dissolved in the scrubbing agent were even, in part, below the vapor pressure of the scrubbing agent, the scrubbing agent could be regenerated by stripping only with great difficulty or incompletely. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     An object of one aspect of this invention is to provide an absorption process that separates high-boiling heavy hydrocarbons, including aromatics reliably, economically, and without adversely affecting the environment, from a crude gas mixture, especially a crude gas mixture containing temperature-sensitive unsaturated hydrocarbons. 
     Upon further study of the specification and appended claims, further objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art. 
     These objects are attained according to the invention by conducting the regeneration of the loaded scrubbing agent with the addition of a medium which reduces the solubility of the scrubbed-out hydrocarbons. Of particular advantage is the use of a medium which is completely miscible with the scrubbing agent. 
     A polar scrubbing agent of the type mentioned above is preferably used for the physical scrubbing of a series of high-boiling hydrocarbon components. To achieve complete regeneration according to the invention, the solubility of the scrubbed-out high-boiling components in the scrubbing agent is reduced by the addition of another liquid medium in which the scrubbed-out hydrocarbons are less soluble than in the scrubbing agent. This change in solubility facilitates the regeneration of the scrubbing agent by stripping. 
     According to a preferred modification of the invention, the regeneration is conducted in several stages, and the aforesaid liquid medium is added in at least one stage. As for the type of liquid medium, it is advantageous to employ a strongly polar medium, for example water, by virtue of which the light components are degassed from the loaded scrubbing agent whereas the mixture of the scrubbing agent and the liquid medium on the one hand form a first liquid phase and the heavy components originally dissolved in the scrubbing agent on the other hand form a second liquid phase, which phases can be separated from one another by decanting. 
     Thus, the regeneration is preferably performed in at least two stages: the loaded scrubbing agent in the first stage, optionally with addition of the strongly polar medium, is partly freed of dissolved components by stripping and in a second stage, said strongly polar medium is added to the partially regenerated scrubbing agent. In this second stage, some volatile components are desorbed and the fluid is split into at least two liquid phases, a first phase containing scrubbing agent/medium and a second phase containing most of the less volatile components originally dissolved in the scrubbing agent, which phases are separated from one another by decanting. More specifically, by the addition of the strongly polar medium, the highly volatile dissolved components are degassed while heavy hydrocarbons and the scrubbing agent/medium mixture form two separate liquid phases. The latter phases are then separated from one another by decanting or the like. 
     Since some heavy components can still be dissolved in the mixture of scrubbing agent and medium recovered by decanting, a further regeneration by stripping is advantageously conducted downstream of this stage. In this further regeneration step, components possibly still dissolved in the scrubbing agent/medium mixture are advantageously stripped out with a stripping gas and can also be recovered conventionally. 
     If only a small amount of stripping gas is available for the total regeneration, the gas mixture recovered in the stripping of the phase containing the scrubbing agent/medium mixture can be advantageously used as stripping gas in the first stage of the regeneration. For the purpose of stripping any available gas is suited which has no adverse effects to the total process. In general nitrogen or a split stream of the purified gas or even air are frequently used stripping gases. In the context of producing acetylene in an electric arc furnace it is especially advantageous to use a recycle stream for stripping which is one of the feed streams to the arc furnace and which consists mainly of hydrogen, methane and ethylene. 
     To regenerate the scrubbing agent completely for recycling into the scrubbing stage, it is necessary to remove the strongly polar medium from the scrubbing agent/medium mixture. According to another aspect of the invention the scrubbing agent/medium mixture is advantageously separated in a final stage by a rectification. 
     If the scrubbing agent/medium mixture cannot be stripped completely free of hydrocarbons (because e.g., of lack of stripping gas) then the scrubbing agent/medium mixture to be separated by rectification will contain small portions of hydrocarbons, which will concentrate in the central part of the rectification column. In this case, the concentrated hydrocarbons are removed as one or several side streams by one or more central tap holes and are preferably recycled to the second stage of separation where the decanting step is conducted. 
     The process according to the invention can be applied to a variety of gas absorption separation processes, especially for the recovery of hydrocarbons. By the multiple stop procedure of the present invention, the components dissolved in the scrubbing agent can be recovered as separate enriched fractions. Also, by adjusting the process parameters (pressure, temperature, amount of stripping gas, etc.), and by the addition of part of the light components, relatively poorly soluble in the scrubbing agent, can be removed so efficiently that the phases recovered in the decanting contain only extraordinarily small portions of highly volatile components. Moreover, the separate steps can advantageously be performed in several substeps with the use of several stripping columns or flash drums in order to obtain finer fractions. 
     It is appreciated that &#34;high-boiling&#34; and &#34;low-boiling&#34; are relative terms. According to the preferred embodiment of this invention, high-boiling hydrocarbons contain at least 3 carbon atoms per molecule and low-boiling hydrocarbons contain not more than 4 carbon atoms per molecule. It is foreseeable, however that with particular crude gases and particular conditions, this definition would change. Thus, it is sufficient to define the hydrocarbons in accordance with their relative boiling points as opposed to absolute values. 
     It is likewise appreciated that the term &#34;strongly polar&#34; in describing the medium is also a relative term. It is sufficient, however, that the added medium is more polar than the scrubbing agent so to reduce the solubilities of the hydrocarbons in the scrubbing agent. It is preferred that the added medium be sufficiently polar to be able to split out a separate liquid phase enriched in high boiling components which can be decanted from the scrubbing agent/medium mixture. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING 
     Various other objects, features and attendant advantages of the present invention will be more fully appreciated as the same becomes better understood when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which like reference characters designate the same or similar parts throughout the several views, and wherein: 
     The attached drawing is a schematic block flowsheet of a preferred comprehensive embodiment of the invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING 
     Crude gas 1, which contains the higher boiling components A (A=A 1  +A 2  +A 3  in order of boiling points) to be separated, is scrubbed under pressure in a scrubbing column W with a regenerated scrubbing agent 2. At the head of the scrubbing column, a purified gas stream 3 is removed from the components of A to be separated. Scrubbing agent 4, loaded with components A, collects at the bottom of the scrubbing column and is fed to a first coarse regeneration step. Those of components A, which exhibit the poorest solubility in the scrubbing agent, are released from the scrubbing agent in this first regeneration step R1 by release of pressure, heating and/or introduction of a stripping gas 5 and are removed via overhead conduit 6. In this regeneration step, a small amount of the strongly polar medium (not represented here) can optionally be added to the scrubbing agent to facilitate the evolution of the components. If it is desired to fractionate components A 1   released during this first regeneration step R 1 , it is possible to divide R 1  into separate substeps (for example by using two or more stripping columns or flash drums). In this way, e.g., low-boiling components, which actually are desired in the purified gas stream, but were coabsorbed by the scrubbing agent in scrubbing column W to a small extent, can be selectively separated from the scrubbing agent and again be admixed with the crude gas. 
     Partly regenerated scrubbing agent 7, collecting in the first regeneration step, is mixed in a second regeneration step D with a medium 8 having a stronger polarity than the scrubbing agent, which reduces the solubility of remaining components A 2  +A 3  in the scrubbing agent/medium mixture to such an extent that the liquid splits into two liquid phases. One liquid phase contains mainly the scrubbing agent/medium mixture and only small amounts of component A 3 , while the other phase contains virtually all the components A 2  and the main portion of the high-boilers A 3 , which cannot be separated economically by stripping--if at all+and contains only small amounts of the scrubbing agent/medium mixture. The liquid phases are separated from one another by decanting, and phase 9, containing the components A 2  and most of A 3 , is removed. 
     Scrubbing agent/medium mixture 10, still containing small amounts of component A 3 , is completely freed in a third regeneration step R2 from components A 3  contained therein by stripping with a stripping gas 11 and A 3  components are removed overhead in conduit 12. In a fourth regeneration step, the scrubbing agent/medium mixture 13 is separated into: agent 2 and medium 8 by rectification. Completely regenerated scrubbing agent 2 is recycled into scrubbing column W for scrubbing out other components A. Medium 8 is recycled to at least one of the regeneration stages. As indicated by broken line 14, any residual hydrocarbons, possibly accumulating in rectification column T, can be removed and recycled to the second regeneration stage where the partly regenerated scrubbing agent/medium mixture forms two liquid phases which are separated from each other by decantion. 
     By the above-described four-stage regeneration the scrubbing agent and medium can be completely regenerated, and separated components A can be recovered in fractionated form. 
     The entire disclosure of of corresponding application Federal Republic of German P 40 05 872.7, filed Feb. 24, 1990, is hereby incorporated by reference. 
     Without further elaboration, it is believed that one skilled in the art can, using the preceding description, utilize the present invention to its fullest extent. The following preferred specific embodiment is, therefore, to be construed as merely illustrative, and not limitative of the remainder of the disclosure in any way whatsoever. 
     EXAMPLE 
     The following table shows with reference to the numbering of the FIGURE the efficiency of the process for the freeing of an acetylene crude gas from higher acetylenes and high-boiling hydrocarbons. The symbols listed below are explained as follows: 
     -- inert substances-- contain components such as H 2 , N 2 , O 2  or CO; 
     -- KW 1 -- designates non-acetylenic (i.e., saturated and ethylenically unsaturated) low-boiling hydrocarbons having not more than 4 carbon atoms in the molecule; 
     -- KW 2 -- designates all high-boiling hydrocarbons with 5 or more carbon atoms; 
     -- KW 3 -- designates all aromatics. 
     
                       TABLE                                                       
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(all amounts in kg/h)                                                     
       1    3      5      6    9    11   12   14                          
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Acetylene                                                                 
         5,300  5,000  0    300  0    0    0    0                         
Propyne  200    150    0    50   0    0    0    0                         
C.sub.4 acetylene                                                         
         650    80     0    500  10   0    60   0                         
C.sub.6+ 20     0      0    2    12   0    6    0                         
acetylene                                                                 
Inert    1,400  1,399  60   61   0    60   60   0                         
substances                                                                
KW 1     4,200  4,030  1,100                                              
                            1,270                                         
                                 1    1,100                               
                                           1,100                          
                                                0                         
KW 2     300    0      0    222  70   0    8    30                        
KW 3     300    0      0    100  80   0    120  3                         
T/°C.                                                              
         45     -20    40   30   50   40   50   110                       
p/bar    15     14     2    1.5  1.5  2    1.7  3.2                       
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 Scrubbing agent (2): 5,800 kg/h methanol                                 
 Polar medium (8): 10,000 kg/h water                                      
 
    
     From the foregoing description, one skilled in the art can easily ascertain the essential characteristics of this invention, and without departing from the spirit and scope thereof, can make various changes and modifications of the invention to adapt it to various usages and conditions. 
     In the following claims, the term &#34;loaded scrubbing agent&#34; is intended to mean scrubbing agent containing high-boiling hydrocarbons in saturated or partly saturated concentrations.