Hydrocarbons Research

I considered my role mainly to try to help my colleagnes while jealonsly safegnarding most of my time for research and scholarship. I proceeded in the same way in Cleveland and later in Los Angeles, when starting the Hydrocarbon Research Institute at USC. 1 have been fortunate never to have been bitten by the bug that makes many people feel important by exercising administrative power. ... 

Building the Loker Institute—Hydrocarbons and Hydrocarbon Research... 

The facilities for experimental work were poor, with inadequate wet laboratory space. In our discussions, I mentioned to Kaprielian my interest in significantly extending my previous work into the area of hydrocarbon chemistry. I felt that by establishing a strong program of basic research and graduate education in hydrocarbon chemistry, USC could become a leader in this important field. Because the memory of the first Arab oil embargo was still fresh, this struck a chord with Kaprielian, who felt that he could sell my research interest to the trustees and establish a Hydrocarbon Research Institute at USC that could accommodate me, as well as other chemistry faculty members whose interests could fit into its framework. 

The Lokers had no background or business interest in ehemistry. It was Carl Franklin who told them abont USC s effort to establish a hydrocarbon research institute, and he must have also told them some-... 

Physical facilities help, but do not per se make a research institute. It is the people who work there and their contributions and devoted hard work that is most important. We are nearing a quarter of a century since the Hydrocarbon Research Institute was started at USC. At the beginning in 1977, Sid Benson and I shared the scientific directorship of the Institute and Jerry Segal carried out the administrative responsibilities as executive director. When we moved into our own building in 1979, Bill Stephenson, a physical-organic chemist and a former colleague of mine in Cleveland who subsequently joined us at... 

The objectives of the Loker Hydrocarbon Research Institute have stayed the same since its inception in 1977. They are ... 

The hydrocarbon research program of the Toker Institute was able in many ways to build on and utilize results of our fundamental work on superacid-catalyzed reactions and their mechanistic aspects (includ-... 

Natural Gas Upgrading via Fischer-Tropsch. In the United States, as in other countries, scarcities from World War II revived interest in the synthesis of fuel substances. A study of the economics of Fischer synthesis led to the conclusion that the large-scale production of gasoline from natural gas offered hope for commercial utiHty. In the Hydrocol process (Hydrocarbon Research, Inc.) natural gas was treated with high purity oxygen to produce the synthesis gas which was converted in fluidized beds of kon catalysts (42). 

Toluene Hydrodeall lation. Benzene is produced from the hydrodemethylation of toluene under catalytic or thermal conditions. The main catalytic hydrodealkylation processes are Hydeal (UOP) and DETOL (Houdry) (49). Two widely used thermal processes are HD A (Arco and Hydrocarbon Research Institute) and THD (Gulf). These processes contribute 25—30% of the world s total benzene supply. 

Several processes progressed to demonstration scales but have not been commercialized, primarily because of economic inabiHty to compete with available petroleum products. The H-Coal process developed by Hydrocarbon Research, Inc. was demonstrated at Catiettsburg, Kentucky using a 545 t/d plant and DOE support. The Exxon donor solvent Hquefaction process was not commercialized either. 

Selected Values of Properties of Hydrocarbons, Research Project 44, American Petroleum Institute, New York, 1953. 

The Carthage Hydrocol system was designed by Hydrocarbon Research it operated about 10 years before it was shut down in 1957. The... 

After the Second World War a gas-to-liquids facility that employed an iron-based high-temperature Fischer-Tropsch (Fe-HTFT) process was constructed at Brownsville, Texas. The technology was developed by Hydrocarbon Research, Inc.,20 and the commercial facility was operated by the Carthage Hydrocol Company. The Hydrocol plant was in commercial operation during the period 1951-1957, and it was shut down mainly for economic reasons (the oil price was around US 2 per barrel at that time). 

Benson A process for converting methane to ethylene, developed by Hydrocarbon Research, CA. 

COIL [Concurrent oil] A process for concurrently hydrogenating coal and heavy oil feedstocks. Developed by Hydrocarbon Research. 

Dynacracking A petroleum cracking process which combines the best features of the "catalytic cracking and Thermal cracking processes. It converts heavy oil feedstocks to fuel gas, gasoline, and fuel oil. No catalyst is used. Developed in the 1950s by Hydrocarbon Research, but not commercialized. 

Dynagas A noncatalytic process for hydrogenating coal to produce gas or light oil fuels. Developed by Hydrocarbon Research. 

H-Coal A coal gasification process. Crushed coal is mixed with process-derived oil and catalytically hydrogenated in an ebullated bed under pressure at 455°C. The catalyst is a mixture of cobalt and molybdenum oxides on alumina. Developed by Hydrocarbon Research from the 1960s and piloted in Catlettsburg, KY, from 1980 to 1982. See also CSF, H-Oil, CSF, Synthoil. 

H-Iron [Hydrogen iron] A process for making iron by reducing powdered iron oxides from ores or scrap, using hydrogen. A variation on the process will convert iron/titanium ores to a titanium concentrate and metallic iron. Developed by Hydrocarbon Research and United States Steel Corporation, and used in Pennsylvania and California. See also DR. 

Hy-C Cracking A hydrocracking process. The catalyst is nickel/tungsten on alumina. Developed by Cities Service Research and Development Company and Hydrocarbon Research. 

Ledgemont A process for removing sulfur from coal by an oxidative leach with lime and ammonia. Developed by Hydrocarbon Research. 

Lignol [Lignin phenol] A catalytic process for hydrogenating lignin to a mixture of phenol, benzene, and fuel gas. Developed by Hydrocarbon Research. See also Noguchi. 

Magnaforming A catalytic reforming process developed by the Atlantic Richfield Corporation and Englehard Corporation. First announced in 1965, it was commercialized in 1967 and by 1988, 150 units were operating worldwide. Hydrocarbon Research has installed units in Argentina, Algeria, and the USSR. 

Octafining A process for isomerizing m-xylene to o- and p-xylene, developed by the Atlantic Richfield Company in 1960. The catalyst was originally platinum on an aluminum silicate base now a zeolite base is used. The reaction takes place in a hydrogen atmosphere. Hydrocarbon Research installed units in Argentina and the USSR. 

Loker Hydrocarbon Research Institute and Department of Chemistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089... 

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