TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - INORGANIC CHEMISTRY - Preferred Components: The metal of the metal oxide is magnesium, calcium, vanadium, chromium, manganese, iron, cobalt, nickel, copper, zinc or tin. The metal oxide is supported on a solid carrier and is contained in a bed in a vessel.    TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - ORGANIC CHEMISTRY - Preferred Process: The step (a) comprises: contacting the gaseous stream with water, which comprises neutralizing the hydrobromic acid to form an aqueous solution comprising water and a metal bromide salt, where the metal of the metal bromide salt includes copper, zinc, iron, cobalt, nickel, manganese, calcium or magnesium bromide; and reacting hydrobromic acid with the metal oxide to form reaction products comprising a metal bromide and steam. The step (b) comprises either: oxidizing the aqueous solution containing the metal bromide salt to form bromine and a reaction product including a metal hydroxide and/or a metal oxy-bromide species, and separating the bromine from the reaction product; oxidizing the metal bromide salt to form oxidation products comprising the bromine and the metal oxide, and separating the bromine from the metal oxide; or reacting metal bromide with an oxygen containing gas to obtain reaction products comprising the metal oxide and the bromine, where the bromine obtained is recycled to step (c). In the step (b), the water that contacts the gaseous stream comprises the reaction product. In the process, the hydrobromic acid dissolves into the water forming a hydrobromic acid solution, and the process further comprises vaporizing the hydrobromic acid solution, and reacting the vaporized hydrobromic acid solution with a metal oxide to form the reaction product comprising the metal bromide salt. The metal bromide salt is contained on a porous support. The process further comprises reacting alkyl bromides in the presence of the hydrobromic acid and a synthetic crystalline aluminosilicate catalyst to form reaction products comprising the hydrocarbons. EXAMPLE - No suitable example given.