Apparatus for vaporization of liquids

Abstract

Prior to carrying out a gaseous phase chemical reaction, a liquid phase organic compound which is prone to degrade is vaporized at elevated pressures with the aid of a second compound which together with the organic compound produces a mixture having a boiling point less than that of the organic compound. In one embodiment of the invention, vaporization is effected by co-vaporizing a mixture of the two compounds in a vaporiser. In another embodiment, the first compound is injected into a hot gaseous stream and undergoes atomization into droplets which then vaporize within the gaseous stream. The second compound is used to assist the atomization process and/or to sweep atomized droplets of the first compound away from hot surfaces where the first compound would otherwise tend to undergo degradation if the droplets are allowed to reside in contact with such surfaces.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.