Aromatics from propane/butane

Dehydrocyclodimerization of liquefied petrol gas (propane and butane) can be performed to yield BTX-aromatics (Table2, entry 21). Modified ZSM-5 based catalysts are used, for example in the UOP cyclar process [33], and the process will become attractive for extraction of aromatics from natural gas fields containing further C3-C4 fractions. 

Other reactions that occur over the Cyclar catalyst are isomerization, dealkylation, and transalkylation of the aromatics species formed in the main reaction mechanism. The transalkylation reactions result in a distribution of benzene and alkylbenzenes that depends on the charge stock and process conditions. Slightly more benzene is produced from propane than from butane-rich feedstocks. ... 

A yield of 62 to 67% of aromatic gasoline (dependent on the propane/butane ratio) can be produced by cyclization. The benzene and toluene content of gasoline produced by the Cyclar process is higher than the level of xylenes and C9-aro-matics from conventional platforming processes (Figure 3.54). The construction of a 500 bblpd plant at Grangemouth/UK has been announced. 

In industry, the elimination of asphaltenes from oil involves using propane or butane. The utilization of a lighter paraffin results in the heavier paraffins precipitating along with the asphaltenes thereby diminishing their aromatic character. The oil removed from its asphaltene fraction is known as deasphalted oil or DAO. The precipitated portion is called asphalt. 

Evaporative emissions from vehicle fuel systems have been found to be a complex mixture of aliphatic, olefinic, and aromatic hydrocarbons [20,24,33]. However, the fuel vapor has been shown to consist primarily of five light paraffins with normal boiling points below 50 °C propane, isobutane, n-butane, isopentane, and n-pentane [33]. These five hydrocarbons represent the more volatile components of gasoline, and they constitute from 70 to 80 per cent mass of the total fuel vapor [24,33]. 

When ethylene is reacted at 573 K in the presence of water in static conditions, oligomerization and conjunct polymerization give rise to paraffinic, olefinic and aromatic products (8). Nevertheless, the distribution of the aliphatics and aromatics is quite different from that of the steam-cracking products. In the former a great variety of products is formed they include propane, n-butane, isobutane and isopentane as aliphatics, and toluene, xylenes and ethylbenzene as aromatics (Figure 6B). 

The interaction parameters for binary systems containing water with methane, ethane, propane, n-butane, n-pentane, n-hexane, n-octane, and benzene have been determined using data from the literature. The phase behavior of the paraffin - water systems can be represented very well using the modified procedure. However, the aromatic - water system can not be correlated satisfactorily. Possibly a differetn type of mixing rule will be required for the aromatic - water systems, although this has not as yet been explored. 

The paraffins and 1-alcohols are relatively low-risk compounds. When we make a comparison of their TLV values versus the number of carbon atoms Ac, we find that paraffins from methane to propane are not considered toxic, but the paraffins from butane to nonane are increasingly more toxic with Ac, which is shown in figure 10.4. The 1-alcohols make a curious volcanic curve, starting from the toxic methanol to the relatively harmless ethanol, and the trend is downwards from propanol to butanol. The aromatics are much more toxic, but the lower molecular weight benzene is more toxic than toluene, which is more toxic than the higher molecular weight ethyl benzene. 

The synthesis of intermediates and monomers from alkanes by means of oxidative processes, in part replacing alkenes and aromatics as the traditional building blocks for the chemical industry [2]. Besides the well-known oxidation of n-butane to maleic anhydride, examples of processes implemented at the industrial level are (i) the direct oxidation of ethane to acetic acid, developed by Sabic (ii) the ammoxidation of propane to acrylonitrile, developed by INEOS (former BP) and by Mitsubishi, and recently announced by Asahi to soon become commercial (iii) the partial oxidation of methane to syngas (a demonstration unit is being built by ENI). Many other reactions are currently being investigated, for example, (i) the... 

Product distribution data (Table V) obtained in the hydrocracking of coal, coal oil, anthracene and phenanthrene over a physically mixed NIS-H-zeolon catalyst indicated similarities and differences between the products of coal and coal oil on the one hand and anthracene and phenanthrene on the other hand. There were differences in the conversions which varied in the order coal> anthracene>phenanthrene coal oil. The yield of alkylbenzenes also varied in the order anthracene >phenanthrene>coal oil >coal under the conditions used. The alkylbenzenes and C -C hydrocarbon products from anthracene were similar to the products of phenanthrene. The most predominant component of alkylbenzenes was toluene and xylenes were produced in very small quantities. Methane was the most and butanes the least predominant components of the gaseous product. The products of coal and coal oil were also found to be similar. The most predominant components of alkylbenzenes and gaseous product were benzene and propane respectively. The data also indicated distinct differences between products of coal origin and pure aromatic hydrocarbons. The alkyl-benzene products of coal and coal oil contained more benzene and xylenes and less toluene, ethylbenzene and higher benzenes when compared to the products from anthracene and phenanthrene. The gaseous products of coal and coal oil contained more propane and butanes and less methane and ethane when compared to the products of anthracene and phenanthrene. The differences in the hydrocracked products were obviously due to the differences in the nature of reactants. Coal and coal oil contain hydroaromatic, naphthenic, heterocyclic and aliphatic structures, in addition to polynuclear aromatic structures. Hydrocracking under severe conditions yielded more BTX as shown in Table VI. The yields of BTX obtained from coal, coal oil, anthracene and phenanthrene were respectively 18.5, 25.5, 36.0, and 32.5 percent. Benzene was the most... 

Isotactic Polystyrene. The familiar steam molding of pre-expanded particles has so far not been applied successfully to isotactic polystyrene. However, the polymer has been foamed, according to three disclosed methods. For example, finely divided acetone-insoluble polymer, with a melting point in excess of 200°C., is blended with a liquid selected from methylene chloride, aromatic hydrocarbons, or halogenated aromatic hydrocarbons. This blend is then heated (84). A mixture of molten polymer and methyl chloride, propane, or butane is suddenly depressurized (8). Foam may also be generated in a continuous manner directly from a butyllithium-initiated polymerization conducted in the presence of a 4/1 blend of benzene and petroleum ether (15). 

Natural gas is a naturally occurring mixture of simple hydrocarbons and nonhydrocarbons that exists as a gas at ordinary pressures and temperatures. In the raw state, as produced from the earth, natural gas consists principally of methane (CH4) and ethane (C2H4), with fractional amounts of propane (C3H8), butane (C4H,0), and other hydrocarbons, pentane (C5H,2) and heavier. Occasionally, small traces of light aromatic hydrocarbons such as benzene and toluene may also be present. 

Yields Total aromatics yields as a wt% of fresh feed range from 61% for propane to 66% for mixed butanes feed. Hydrogen yield is approximately 7wt% fresh feed. Typical product distribution is 27% benzene, 43% toluene, 22% C8 aromatics and 8% C9+ aromatics. 

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