1. A process for the preparation of 2,3,3,3-tetrafluoropropene (1234yf), the process comprising:
(a) contacting 1,1,2,3,3,3-hexafluoropropene (1216) with hydrogen in the presence of a hydrogenation catalyst to produce 1,1,2,3,3,3-hexafluoropropane (236ea);
(b) dehydrofluorinating 236ea to produce 1,2,3,3,3-pentafluoropropene (1225ye);
(c) contacting 1225ye with hydrogen in the presence of a hydrogenation catalyst to produce 1,2,3,3,3-pentafluoropropane (245eb); and
(d) dehydrofluorinating 245eb to produce 1234yf,
wherein steps (a) andor (c) is carried out with a diluent gas stream that comprises an excess of one or both of the feedstocks 1216 andor 1225ye, respectively.
2. A process according to claim 1 wherein steps (a) and (c) are carried out in the same reactor, optionally wherein steps (a) and (c) are carried out simultaneously.
3. A process according to claim 1 wherein steps (b) and (d) are carried out in the same reactor, optionally wherein steps (b) and (d) are carried out simultaneously.
4. A process according to claim 1, wherein steps (a) and (c) are carried out at a temperature of from \u221225 to 275\xb0 C. and a pressure of from 0 to 40 bara.
5. A process according to claim 1, wherein steps (a) and (c) are carried out in the vapour phase at a temperature of from 0 to 250\xb0 C., optionally wherein steps (a) and (c) are carried out in the vapour phase at a temperature of from 20 to 200\xb0 C., preferably from 50 to 150\xb0 C.
6. A process according to claim 1, wherein the ratio of hydrogen:1216 in step (a) andor hydrogen:1225ye in step (c) is from 1:1 to 40:1.
7. A process according to claim 1, wherein the hydrogenation catalyst in step (a) and wherein the hydrogenation catalyst in step (c) comprise a supported or unsupported transition metal selected from Ni, Pd, Pt, Re, Rh, Ru and mixtures thereof and is used in an amount of from 0.01 to 30% by weight based on the total weight of the components which make up steps (a) and (c).
8. A process according to claim 7 wherein the or each hydrogenation catalyst is supported on alumina, titania, silica, zirconia (or fluorides of the foregoing), calcium fluoride, carbon andor barium sulphate, optionally wherein the or each hydrogenation catalyst is palladium supported on carbon (PdC).
9. A process according to claim 1, wherein steps (b) and (d) are carried out at a temperature of from \u221270 to 1000\xb0 C. and a pressure of from 0 to 30 bara.
10. A process according to claim 1, wherein steps (b) and (d) are carried out in the presence of a catalyst comprising activated carbon, a main group metal andor a transition metal.
11. A process according to claim 10 wherein steps (b) and (d) are carried out in the presence of a catalyst comprising a transition metal, optionally wherein the catalyst comprising a transition metal comprises chromia.
12. A process according to claim 1, wherein steps (b) and (d) are carried out at a temperature of from 0 to 400\xb0 C. and a pressure of from 0.01 to 25 bara.
13. A process according to claim 18, wherein steps (b) and (d) are carried out at a temperature of from 200 to 360\xb0 C. and a pressure of from 1 to 10 bara.
14. A process according to claim 1, wherein steps (b) and (d) are carried out in the presence of a base.
15. A process according to claim 14 wherein steps (b) and (d) are carried out at a temperature of from \u221250 to 300\xb0 C., preferably wherein steps (b) and (d) are carried out at a temperature of from 20 to 250\xb0 C.
16. A process according to claim 14 wherein the base is selected from a metal hydroxide, a metal amide and mixtures thereof.
17. A process according to claim 14 wherein the base is an alkali metal hydroxide, optionally wherein the alkali metal hydroxide is selected from sodium hydroxide and potassium hydroxide.
18. A process according to claim 14 wherein the base is an alkaline earth metal hydroxide, optionally wherein the alkaline earth metal hydroxide is calcium hydroxide.
19. A process according to claim 14 wherein steps (b) and (d) are carried out in a solvent, optionally wherein the solvent is selected from water, alcohols, diols, polyols, polar aprotic solvents and mixtures thereof, optionally wherein the process is carried out in the presence of a co-solvent or diluent.
20. A process according to claim 19 wherein steps (b) and (d) are carried out in the presence of a catalyst, optionally wherein the catalyst is a crown ether or a quaternary ammonium salt.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A method for providing security for a drone delivering a package of goods to a delivery destination, comprising:
providing, by the drone, a notification to a device of a purchaser, that the drone has arrived near the delivery destination;
hovering, by the drone, at a secure altitude from a landing zone at the delivery destination;
receiving, by the drone, a purchase code associated with a purchase of the package of goods;
authenticating, by the drone, the purchase code as a condition for landing the drone;
landing, by the drone, in the landing zone at the delivery destination when the purchase code is authenticated; and
aborting the landing, by the drone, in the landing zone at the delivery destination when the purchase code is not authenticated.
2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:
releasing, by the drone, the package of goods when the purchase code is authenticated and the landing by the drone in the landing zone is complete; and
confirming, by the drone, a delivery of the package of goods when the package of goods is released.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein confirming, by the drone, the delivery of the package of goods comprises at least one of:
scanning a delivery code associated with the package of goods by a device of the purchaser, and providing the delivery code to a server by the device of the purchaser; and
capturing images of one or more of: the released package of goods, the purchaser, and the landing zone.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the purchase code is a one-time code, the method further comprising:
conducting, by a server, a purchase transaction for the purchase of the package of goods with a device of a purchaser of the package of goods; and
providing the one-time purchase code, by the server, to the device of the purchaser of the package of goods.
5. The method of claim 1, further comprising guiding the landing by the drone in the landing zone by a landing pad in the landing zone, the landing pad including one or more of: a visual landing aid, an optical landing aid, and a radio landing aid.
6. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining a location of the landing zone based on a current location of a device of the purchaser.
7. The method of claim 1, further comprising navigating, by the drone, to the delivery destination using GNSS navigation.
8. The method of claim 7, further comprising navigating, by the drone, to the delivery destination using an alternative navigation method comprising:
receiving a radio signal from one or more communication nodes along a travel route to the delivery destination, the radio signal including information about the one or more communication nodes;
determining a location of the one or more communication nodes based on the information about the communication node in the received radio signal; and
determining a position of the drone based at least in part on the location of the one or more communication nodes.
9. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing the delivery destination, by the device of the purchaser, to a server, wherein the delivery destination is at least one of a street address, GNSS coordinates, and a map section, wherein an input of the map section is received as a user input on an interactive map displayed on a user interface of the device of the purchaser.
10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:
monitoring, by one or more of the drone and a server, one or more social media applications for an indication that drone information has been posted; and
executing, by the one or more of the drone and the server, a secure navigation mode for the drone in response to the monitoring.
11. A drone device for delivering a package of goods to a delivery destination, comprising:
a memory;
a radio module; and
a processor coupled to the memory and radio module, wherein the processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations comprising:
providing a notification to a device of a purchaser that the drone device has arrived near the delivery destination;
hovering at a secure altitude from a landing zone at the delivery destination;
receiving a purchase code associated with a purchase of the package of goods;
authenticating the purchase code as a condition for landing the drone device;
landing in the landing zone at the delivery destination when the purchase code is authenticated; and
aborting the landing in the landing zone at the delivery destination when the purchase code is not authenticated.
12. The drone device of claim 11, wherein the processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations further comprising:
releasing the package of goods when the purchase code is authenticated and the landing by the drone device in the landing zone is complete; and
confirming a delivery of the package of goods when the package of goods is released.
13. The drone device of claim 11, further comprising one or more of: a camera and a landing device coupled to the processor, wherein processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations further comprising guiding landing in the landing zone at the delivery destination by interacting with a landing pad in the landing zone, wherein interacting with the landing pad includes interacting with one or more of: a visual landing aid, an optical landing aid, and a radio landing aid of the landing pad.
14. The drone device of claim 11, further comprising a GNSS module coupled to the processor, wherein the processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations further comprising navigating to the delivery destination using GNSS navigation.
15. The drone device of claim 14, wherein the processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations further comprising navigating to the delivery destination using an alternative navigation method comprising:
receiving a radio signal from one or more communication nodes along a travel route to the delivery destination, the radio signal including information about the one or more communication nodes;
determining a location of the one or more communication nodes based on the information about the communication node in the received radio signal; and
determining a position of the drone device based on the location of the one or more communication nodes.
16. The drone device of claim 11, wherein the processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations further comprising:
monitoring one or more social media applications for an indication that drone information has been posted; and
executing a secure navigation mode for the drone device in response to the monitoring.
17. A drone for securely delivering a package of goods to a delivery destination, comprising:
means for providing a notification to a device of a purchaser, that the drone has arrived near the delivery destination;
means for hovering at a secure altitude from a landing zone at the delivery destination;
means for receiving a purchase code associated with a purchase of the package of goods;
means for authenticating the purchase code as a condition for landing the drone;
means for landing in the landing zone at the delivery destination when the purchase code is authenticated; and
means for aborting the landing in the landing zone at the delivery destination when the purchase code is not authenticated.
18. The drone of claim 17, further comprising:
means for releasing the package of goods when the purchase code is authenticated and the landing by the drone in the landing zone is complete; and
means for confirming a delivery of the package of goods when the package of goods is released.
19. The drone of claim 18, wherein means for confirming the delivery of the package of goods comprises at least one of:
means for scanning a delivery code associated with the package of goods and providing the delivery code to a server; and
means for capturing images of one or more of: the released package of goods, the purchaser, and the landing zone.
20. The drone of claim 17, wherein the purchase code is a one-time code.
21. The drone of claim 17, further comprising means for guiding the landing by the drone in the landing zone by interacting with a landing pad in the landing zone, the landing pad including one or more of: a visual landing aid, an optical landing aid, and a radio landing aid.
22. The drone of claim 21, further comprising means for navigating to the delivery destination using GNSS navigation and alternative navigation methods comprising:
means for receiving a radio signal from one or more communication nodes along a travel route to the delivery destination, the radio signal including information about the one or more communication nodes;
means for determining a location of the one or more communication nodes based on the information about the communication node in the received radio signal; and
means for determining a position of the drone based on the location of the one or more communication nodes.
23. The drone of claim 17, further comprising means for receiving the delivery destination from a server, wherein the delivery destination is at least one of a street address, GNSS coordinates, and a map section, wherein an input of the map section is received as a user input on an interactive map displayed on a user interface of the device of the purchaser.
24. The drone of claim 16, further comprising:
means for monitoring one or more social media applications for an indication that drone information has been posted; and
means for executing a secure navigation mode for the drone in response to the monitoring.
25. A system for providing secure package delivery at a delivery destination, the system comprising:
a drone comprising a drone processor;
a purchaser device comprising a purchaser device processor and configured to communicate with the drone through a communication link; and
a server configured to communicate with one or both of the drone and the purchaser device through respective communication links,
wherein the drone processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations comprising:
providing a notification to the purchaser device that the drone has arrived near a delivery destination;
hovering at a secure altitude from a landing zone at the delivery destination;
receiving a purchase code from the purchaser device, the purchase code associated with a purchase of a package of goods;
landing in the landing zone at the delivery destination in response to authentication of the purchase code; and
aborting the landing in response to non-authentication of the purchase code.
26. The system of claim 25, wherein the drone processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations further comprising:
releasing the package of goods when the purchase code is authenticated and the landing by the drone in the landing zone is complete; and
sending a message to the server confirming delivery of the package of goods when the package of goods is released.
27. The system of claim 25, further comprising a landing pad, wherein the drone processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations further comprising guiding the landing of the drone in the landing zone by interacting with the landing pad in the landing zone, the landing pad including one or more of: a visual landing aid, an optical landing aid, and a radio landing aid.
28. The system of claim 25, wherein the drone processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations further comprising:
receiving from the server a purchase code associated with a purchase of goods in the package of goods that was previously sent to the purchaser device;
comparing the purchase code received from the purchaser device to the purchase code received from the server;
authenticating the purchase code in response to the purchase code received from the purchaser device matching the purchase code received from the server; and
not authenticating the purchase code in response to the purchase code received from the purchaser device not matching the purchase code received from the server.
29. The system of claim 25, wherein the server is configured with server-executable instructions to perform operations comprising:
receiving the purchase code from the drone;
comparing the received purchase code with a purchase code associated with the package of goods that was previously sent to the purchaser device;
sending a message to the drone indicating authentication of the purchase code in response to the purchase code received from the drone matching the purchase code that was previously sent to the purchaser device; and
sending a message to the drone indicating non-authentication of the purchase code in response to the purchase code received from the drone not matching the purchase code that was previously sent to the purchaser device.
30. The system of claim 25, wherein:
the purchaser device processor further comprises a camera and the purchaser device processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations further comprising:
imaging a delivery code associated with the package of goods;
determining the delivery code from an image of the delivery code; and
sending the delivery code to the server; and
the server is configured with server-executable instructions to perform operations further comprising:
receiving the delivery code from the purchaser device;
comparing the received delivery code to a delivery code assigned to the package of goods in advance by the server; and
recording confirmation of delivery of the package of goods in response to the received delivery code matching the delivery code assigned to the package of goods in advance by the server.