US Patent 7749375 Hydrodesulfurization process

In one aspect, a hydrodesulfurization process is provided that selectively desulfurizes a hydrocarbon stream with minimal olefin saturation and minimal recombination of sulfur into mercaptans. In another aspect, the process includes a multi-stage reaction zone including at least first and second serial hydrodesulfurization reaction zones that sequentially remove sulfur from a hydrocarbon stream. In yet another aspect, the process is particularly suited to selectively desulfurize an olefinic naphtha hydrocarbon stream, such as FCC naphtha, steam cracked naphtha, coker naphtha, or other gasoline boiling hydrocarbon streams.