Deep conversion combining the demetallization and the conversion of crudes, residues, or heavy oils into light liquids with pure or impure oxygenated compounds

A process for the conversion of hydrocarbons comprising residues and/or heavy distillates which may be laden with impurities into lighter liquid products, the process comprising:

• (a) preheating a hydrocarbon load comprising residues and/or heavy distillates to a first temperature which is below the temperature sufficient for conversion of the hydrocarbons of the residues and/or heavy distillates to smaller molecules;
• and
• (b) treating the pre-heated hydrocarbon load with a jet of gas at a second temperature, wherein the resulting gas-load mixture has a temperature insufficient to initiate conversion of the hydrocarbons of the residues and/or heavy distillates to smaller molecules for the conditions under which the gas-load mixture is maintained, the jet of gas having a speed which is sufficient to mechanically shear residue and/or heavy distillate molecules of the load so as to initiate conversion of hydrocarbon molecules comprising said residues and/or heavy distillates in said pretreated hydrocarbon load to smaller molecules, wherein the treating of the pre-heated load is carried out in an injector, and-wherein the speed of the jet does not, under the ambient conditions found within the injector, promoter the formation of gas;
• (c) injecting the treated load from the injector into a reactor configured to enable to conversion reactions initiated by the jet to achieve equilibrium, wherein the reactor is operated at a second temperature, wherein the second temperature is higher than the first temperature and the reactor is not filled with catalyst.

A process for the conversion of a hydrocarbon load comprising residues and/or heavy distillates which may be laden with impurities, said hydrocarbon load requiring a minimum conversion activation barrier to be exceeded to cause heavy molecules in the load to break into lighter molecules, the process comprising:

• (a) preheating the hydrocarbon load to a temperature that is below a temperature sufficient to overcome the minimum conversion activation barrier;
• (b) driving into a restricted zone a superheated gas and the pre-heated hydrocarbon load of step (a) to produce a driving force in the mixture comprising the superheated gas and the hydrocarbon load, wherein the temperature of the superheated gas and the hydrocarbon load of step (a) are selected such that the mixture has a temperature insufficient to overcome said minimum conversion activation barrier for the pressure and residence time within said restricted zone, but wherein such temperatures are selected such that the temperature of the mixture in conjunction with the kinetic energy supplied by said driving force under the pressure and residence time in the restricted zone is sufficient to overcome said minimum conversion activation barrier;
• and further wherein the driving force is selected to be below a force that produces more than about 4 weight percent gas based on the weight of the processed hydrocarbon load upon conversion of the hydrocarbon load;
• (c) injecting the mixture of step (b) into a reactor configured to allow thermodynamic equilibrium to be attained, wherein said reactor does not comprise a fluidized bed, and has a temperature, pressure and residence time insufficient in themselves for thermal cracking of the hydrocarbons in said mixture.