Silica alumina separation

The preferred catalyst is one which contains 5% of chromium oxides, mainly Cr03, on a finely divided silica-alumina catalyst (75-90% silica) which has been activated by heating to about 250°C. After reaction the mixture is passed to a gas-liquid separator where the ethylene is flashed off, catalyst is then removed from the liquid product of the separator and the polymer separated from the solvent by either flashing off the solvent or precipitating the polymer by cooling. 

NaY zeolite is produced by digesting a mixture of silica, alumina, and caustic for several hours at a prescribed temperature until crystallization occurs (Figure 3-8). Typical sources of silica and alumina are sodium silicate and sodium aluminate. Crystallization of Y-zeolite typically takes 10 hours at about 210°F (100°C). Production of a quality zeolite requires proper control of temperature, time, and pH of the crystallization solution. NaY zeolite is separated after filtering and water-washing of the crystalline solution. 

Since spillover phenomena have been most directly sensed through the use of IR in OH-OD exchange [10] (in addition, in the case of reactions of solids, to phase modification), we used this technique to correlate with the catalytic results. One of the expected results of the action of Hjp is the enhancement of the number of Bronsted sites. FTIR analysis of adsorbed pyridine was then used to determine the relative amounts of the various kinds of acidic sites present. Isotopic exchange (OH-OD) experiments, followed by FTIR measurements, were used to obtain direct evidence of the spillover phenomena. This technique has already been successfully used for this purpose in other systems like Pt mixed or supported on silica, alumina or zeolites [10]. Conner et al. [11] and Roland et al. [12], employed FTIR to follow the deuterium spillover in systems where the source and the acceptor of Hjp were physically distinct phases, separated by a distance of several millimeters. In both cases, a gradient of deuterium concentration as a function of the distance to the source was observed and the zone where deuterium was detected extended with time. If spillover phenomena had not been involved, a gradientless exchange should have been observed. 

Other factors that can influence the separability of components of complex natural mixtures, such as adsorbent particle size and layer thickness, are similar to those used in analytical TLC. Mostly, adsorbents of wide dispersion of particle size — 5 to 40 pm and layers of 0.5 to 1 mm thickness — are used. Although the capacities of layers increase with their thickness, the separation efficiency decreases for thickness above 1.5 mm. Commercially available precoated preparative plates (e.g., silica, alumina, and RP2 plates) with fluorescence indicators and plates with preadsorbent zones are more convenient and commonly used. 

It is also possible to form radical cations and radical anions on the same alumina or silica-alumina surface (88). One of the more interesting observations was that a marked enhancement of the radical anion spectrum for trinitrobenzene results when perylene is adsorbed on an alumina surface, and similarly the radical cation signal is reenforced by adsorption of trinitrobenzene. The linewidths of the spectra confirm that the radical ions are separated by a distance greater than 10 A. This means that the electron must be transfered through the lattice or that the ions separate after the transfer step, which seems unlikely. Oxygen was still required for the formation of the radical cation. 

Licensors offer a variety of catalysts to promote the isomerization— silica alumina by itself or enhanced with a noble metal like platinum or a non-noble metal like chromium. Another uses hydrofluoric acid with boron trifluoride In the case of the noble metal catalytic process, the feed enters a vessel with a fixed catalyst bed at 850°F and 14.5 psi. As is often the case, a small amount of hydrogen is present to reduce the amount of coke laying down on the catalyst. The effluent is processed in a standard fashion to separate the hydrogen, the para- and ortho-xylene, and any unreacted or miscellaneous compounds. Yields of para-xylene are in the 70% range. 

The most commonly employed crystalline materials for liquid adsorptive separations are zeolite-based structured materials. Depending on the specific components and their structural framework, crystalline materials can be zeoUtes (silica, alumina), silicalite (silica) or AlPO-based molecular sieves (alumina, phosphoms oxide). Faujasites (X, Y) and other zeolites (A, ZSM-5, beta, mordenite, etc.) are the most popular materials. This is due to their narrow pore size distribution and the ability to tune or adjust their physicochemical properties, particularly their acidic-basic properties, by the ion exchange of cations, changing the Si02/Al203 ratio and varying the water content. These techniques are described and discussed in Chapter 2. By adjusting the properties almost an infinite number of zeolite materials and desorbent combinations can be studied. 

This paper identifies alumina, rare earths, platinum, and magnesia as important SOx capture materials. Alumina is either incorporated directly into the matrix of a cracking catalyst or added as a separate particle. Cerium is shown to promote the capture of SO2 on high alumina cracking catalyst, alumina, and magnesia. Other rare earths are ranked by their effectiveness. The promotional effect of platinum is shown between 1200 and 1400 F for SO2 capture on alumina. Silica, from free silica or silica-alumina in the matrix of cracking catalyst, acts as a poison by migrating to the additive. 

A very efficient thin layer form of circular paper chromatography makes use of a circular glass disc coated with an adsorbent (silica, alumina or cellulose). The apparatus is called a Chromatotron (available from Harrison Research, USA). The disc is rotated by a motor, and the sample followed by the eluting solvent are allowed to drip onto a central position on the plate. As the plate rotates the solvent elutes the mixture, centrifugally, while separating the components in the form of circles radiating from the central point. When elution is complete the revolving circular plate is stopped and the circular bands are scraped off and extracted with a suitable solvent. 

Although detectable concentrations for several elements could be found after fusion, it is felt that the volatility of mercury and possibly lead and tin would make their determination by lithium tetraborate fusion questionable. Table I shows the elements selected for analysis and the accuracy and precision data for the standards used to check the fusion method. Each standard in Table I was of known composition and siliceous in nature. The standards were separately prepared 10 times so that a statistical evaluation of the results could be made. The standards used were USGS Standards G-2, W-l, BCR-1, commercially prepared silica-alumina based standards, and unfused synthetic standards prepared by the Coal Research Bureau (9, 10, 11, 12). The synthetic standards were used because no commercially prepared standard having... 

Support. In multiphase catalysts, the active catalytic material is often present as the minor component dispersed upon a support sometimes called a carrier. The support may be catalyticaliy inert but it may contribute to the overall catalytic activity. Certain bifunctional catalysts ( 1.2.8) constitute an extreme example of this. In naming such a catalyst, the active component should be listed first, the support second and the two words or phrases should be separated by a solidus, for example, platinum/silica or platinum/silica-alumina. The solidus is sometimes replaced by the word on, for example, platinum on alumina. 

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