Catalysts refining

Compared to amorphous silica-alumina catalysts, the zeolite catalysts are more active and more selective. The higher activity and selectivity translate to more profitable liquid product yields and additional cracking capacity. To take full advantage of the zeolite catalyst, refiners have revamped older units to crack more of the heavier, lower-value feedstocks. 

Ensuring smooth process plant operations by quality/analysis checks at every stage of manufacture, e.g. analysis of raw materials at the time of procurement, progress of reaction, activity of catalysts, refinement of crude products into acceptable grade by controls on flow, temperature, and concentration. Reducing equipment breakdowns by better process control and timely alarms for abnormal situations. 

A knowledge of these compounds is important because they often have undesirable attributes, e.g., unpleasant odor, the SO2 formed by combustion, catalyst poisoning. There are a number of refining processes to eliminate sulfur compounds. 

The refining industry generally seeks either to eliminate asphaltenes or to convert them to lighter materials because the presence of heteroelements cause pollution problems, e.g., sulfur and nitrogen, catalyst poisoning, and corrosion (formation of metal vanadates during combustion). 

These compounds can be malodorous as in the case of quinoline, or they can have a plecisant odor as does indole. They decompose on heating to give organic bases or ammonia that reduce the acidity of refining catalysts in conversion units such as reformers or crackers, and initiate gum formation in distillates (kerosene, gas oil). 

Catalytic cracking is a key refining process along with catalytic reforming and alkylation for the production of gasoline. Operating at low pressure and in the gas phase, it uses the catalyst as a solid heat transfer medium. The reaction temperature is 500-540°C and residence time is on the order of one second. 

It is used in certain nickel-based alloys, such as the "Hastelloys(R)" which are heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant to chemical solutions. Molybdenum oxidizes at elevated temperatures. The metal has found recent application as electrodes for electrically heated glass furnaces and foreheaths. The metal is also used in nuclear energy applications and for missile and aircraft parts. Molybdenum is valuable as a catalyst in the refining of petroleum. It has found applications as a filament material in electronic and electrical applications. Molybdenum is an... 

Acetonitrile also is used as a catalyst and as an ingredient in transition-metal complex catalysts (35,36). There are many uses for it in the photographic industry and for the extraction and refining of copper and by-product ammonium sulfate (37—39). It also is used for dyeing textiles and in coating compositions (40,41). It is an effective stabilizer for chlorinated solvents, particularly in the presence of aluminum, and it has some appflcation in... 

There are environmental concerns over the use of HE catalyst. The refining industry has taken steps to reduce the likelihood of an accidental release and to minimizp the environmental impact in the event of a release. As a result of these environmental concerns, most new units use sulfuric acid catalysts. 

Cationic polymerization of coal-tar fractions has been commercially achieved through the use of strong protic acids, as well as various Lewis acids. Sulfuric acid was the first polymerization catalyst (11). More recent technology has focused on the Friedel-Crafts polymerization of coal fractions to yield resins with higher softening points and better color. Typical Lewis acid catalysts used in these processes are aluminum chloride, boron trifluoride, and various boron trifluoride complexes (12). Cmde feedstocks typically contain 25—75% reactive components and may be refined prior to polymerization (eg, acid or alkali treatment) to remove sulfur and other undesired components. Table 1 illustrates the typical components found in coal-tar fractions and their corresponding properties. 

Figure 2 illustrates the three-step MIBK process employed by Hibernia Scholven (83). This process is designed to permit the intermediate recovery of refined diacetone alcohol and mesityl oxide. In the first step acetone and dilute sodium hydroxide are fed continuously to a reactor at low temperature and with a reactor residence time of approximately one hour. The product is then stabilized with phosphoric acid and stripped of unreacted acetone to yield a cmde diacetone alcohol stream. More phosphoric acid is then added, and the diacetone alcohol dehydrated to mesityl oxide in a distillation column. Mesityl oxide is recovered overhead in this column and fed to a further distillation column where residual acetone is removed and recycled to yield a tails stream containing 98—99% mesityl oxide. The mesityl oxide is then hydrogenated to MIBK in a reactive distillation conducted at atmospheric pressure and 110°C. Simultaneous hydrogenation and rectification are achieved in a column fitted with a palladium catalyst bed, and yields of mesityl oxide to MIBK exceeding 96% are obtained. 

The hquid-phase processes are more energy efficient than the vapor-phase processes, however, they iacur costiy high pressure equipment investment and also produce waste streams containing used catalyst (213). Both methods produce substantial quantities of by-products which cause refining difficulties. The by-products consist primarily of mesitylene [108-67-8] phorone [504-20-17, and the foUowiag xyUtone isomers (215) ... 

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