Heavy Fossil Hydrocarbon Conversion and Upgrading Using Radio-Frequency or Microwave Energy

2:

• The method of claim 1, wherein the catalyst comprises one or more of iron, char, and/or a promoter of dielectric discharge.

3:

• The method of claim 1, wherein the pressure in the reaction zone is from between 0.9 atm and 7 atm.

4:

• The method of claim 1, wherein the reactants are exposed within the reaction zone for residence time from between 5 milliseconds and 30 seconds.

5:

• The method of claim 1 wherein the paraffins comprise straight chained hydrocarbons.

6:

• The method of claim 1 wherein the exposing selectively converts the HFH to paraffins rather than aromatic hydrocarbons.

8:

• The method of claim 7, wherein the reactants are exposed within the reaction zone for residence time from between 5 milliseconds and 30 seconds.

9:

• The method of claim 7, further comprising separating a flowable portion of the product from a remainder of the product, the flowable portion of the product comprising alkylated aromatic hydrocarbons and paraffins.

10:

• The method of claim 9 wherein the remainder of the product comprises unflowable aromatic hydrocarbons.

12:

• The method of claim 11 wherein the product comprises gaseous, liquid flowable, and non-flowable materials, and wherein the method further comprises separating at least one of the gaseous, liquid flowable, and non-flowable materials from the product of the reaction zone.

13:

• The method of claim 12 wherein the liquid flowable material comprises paraffins.

14:

• The method of claim 12 wherein the liquid flowable material comprises alkylated aromatics.

15:

• The method of claim 12 wherein the liquid flowable material comprises both alkylated aromatics and paraffins.

16:

• The method of claim 12 wherein the gaseous material comprises single ring aromatics.

18:

• The HFH reaction product of claim 17, wherein the reaction zone comprises one or more of a fluidized bed reactor, an entrained flow reactor, a free fall reactor, an ebulating bed reactor, and/or a moving bed reactor.

19:

• The HFH reaction product of claim 17, wherein the catalyst comprises one or more of nickel, cobalt, molybdenum, carbon, copper, alumina, silica, and/or oxygen.

20:

• The HFH reaction product of claim 17, wherein the catalyst and the HFH are admixed.

21:

• The HFH reaction product of claim 17, further comprising a plasma in or near the reaction zone.

22:

• The HFH reaction product of claim 17, wherein the catalyst has a concentration between 0.5 and 10 wt % relative to the HFH.