Houdry Catofin process

Tucci, E., Dufallo, J. M. and Feldman, R. J., Commercial Performance of the Houdry CATOFIN Process for Isobutylene Production for MTBE, Catalysts, and Catalytic Processes Used in Saudi Arabia Workshop, KFUPM, Nov. 6, 1991. 

Tucci, E.L. Dufallo, J.M. Feldman, R.J. Commercial performance of the Houdry Catofin process for isobutylene production for MTBE, Workshop on Catalysts and Catalytic processes. Research Institute, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals Dhaharan, Saudi Arabia, Nov 6, 1991. 

The Catofin process, which was formerly the property of Air Products (Houdry Division), uses a proprietary chromium catalyst in a fixed-bed reactor operating under vacuum. There are actually multiple reactors operating in cycHc fashion. In sequence, these reactors process feed for about nine minutes and are then regenerated for nine minutes. The chromium catalyst is reduced from Cr to Cr during the regeneration cycle. 

Craig, R.G. Spence, D.C. Catalytic dehydrogenation of liquefied petroleum gas by the Houdry Catofin and Catadiene processes. In Handbook of Petroleum Refining Processes, Robert, A.M., Ed. McGraw-Hill, 1986 Section 4.1. 

Commercially, the oldest dehydrogenation process for the dehydrogenation of propane to propene is the Catofin process (113,114) developed in the late 1980s, which is based on catalysts Houdry developed in the mid-1940s. In this process, the feed is heated to 525-635°C and passed over a chromia-alumina catalyst. 

The old Houdry process has been developed by UCI/Lununus to become the Catofin process while Phillips and UOP have introduced their Star and Ole-flex processes. Linde in Germany has also introduced a process. A range of dif-... 

CATOFIN [CATalytic OleFIN] A version of the Houdry process for converting mixtures of C3 - C5 saturated hydrocarbons into olefins by catalytic dehydrogenation. The catalyst is chromia on alumina in a fixed bed. Developed by Air Products Chemicals owned by United Catalysts, which makes the catalyst, and licensed through ABB Lummus Crest. Nineteen plants were operating worldwide in 1991. In 1994, seven units were used for converting isobutane to isobutylene for making methyl /-butyl ether for use as a gasoline additive. 

In the late 1980s, the application of chromia-alumina catalysts was extended by Houdry to the dehydrogenation of propane to propylene and isobutane to isobutylene. The new process application called Catofin operates on the same cyclic principle as in the former Catadiene process. As of late 2000, a total of eight Catofin units existed for the production of isobutylene (including two converted older Catadiene units) with an aggregate capacity of about 2.8 million metric tons per annum (MTA) of isobutylene. In addition, two Catofin units were built for the production of propylene, but it is understood that only... 

Houdry s Catofin and similar processes employ a cyclic sequence of steps—process, purge, air regeneration, purge, hydrogen reduction, and back to process. 

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