Catalytic Cracking of Arab Super Light Crude Oil to Light Olefins: An Experimental and Kinetic Study

The catalytic cracking of visbreaker naphtha under industrial conditions has been investigated, aiming the production of an olefin-rich gas stream and high-quality gasoline suitable to be used in the blending of automotive fuels. The runs have been performed in a fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) riser simulator reactor under the following conditions: temperature, 500 and 550 °C; catalyst-to-oil mass ratio, 6 g cat g oil −1; contact time, 3−12 s. Furthermore, the effect of the properties of two commercial equilibrium catalysts on the products has been also assessed. Products have been lumped in dry gas, liquefied petroleum gases (LPG), gasoline, and coke, according to the common fractionation made in refineries. For a proper assessment of the upgrading process, dry gas, LPG, and gasoline lumps have been deeply characterized, assuring the production of both light olefins and gasoline (with average yields of 11 and 82 wt %, respectively). In addition, the gasoline lump produced can be used as a source of benzene, toluene, and xylene (BTX) aromatics (obtaining yields of ca. 10 wt %). Hence, the suitability of the FCC unit for the upgrading of visbreaker naphtha has been assured.

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 53%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Converting the Surplus of Low-Quality Naphtha into More Valuable Products by Feeding It to a Fluid Catalytic Cracking Unit

Palos

Gutiérrez

Fernández

et al. 2020

“…32,33 The CREC riser simulator reactor allows for working at conditions (very short contact times, catalyst/oil ratio, porosity of the bed) similar to those of the industrial unit. [33][34][35]60,61 At zero time, the STPO is injected into the chamber where the catalyst is located turning into gas at once. A turbine located in the upper side of this chamber impels the feedstock ensuring a good catalyst-feed contact and well-mixed conditions.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Among them, it should be pointed out the short contact time, just a few seconds, of the catalyst with the reaction medium. Indeed, the good performance to predict and reproduce the results of the industrial riser reactor is well established. − The experiments have been carried out with three different equilibrated commercial catalysts previously used in industrial FCC units. These catalysts have a different acidity and porous structure, which allows for assessing the effect of these properties on the conversion, yield, and composition of the products.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Production of Non-Conventional Fuels by Catalytic Cracking of Scrap Tires Pyrolysis Oil

Rodríguez

Palos

Gutiérrez

et al. 2019

Different commercial equilibrium fluidized catalytic cracking (FCC) catalysts have been tested in the upgrading of scrap tires pyrolysis oil (STPO) with the aim of obtaining automotive-like fuels. The runs have been performed in a CREC riser simulator reactor under FCC conditions: 470–560 °C; catalyst to oil mass ratio (C/O), 5 gcat gSTPO –1; contact time, 6 s. The performance of the different catalysts, i.e., the extent of cracking reactions and product distribution, has been quantified by means of chromatographic techniques. Quantified product fractions have been the following: dry gas (C1–C2), liquefied petroleum gas (LPG, C3–C4), naphtha (C5–C12), light cycle oil (LCO, C13–C20), and heavy cycle oil (HCO, C20+). Obtained results expose the capacity of the FCC unit for the valorization of STPO, showing the relevance of the properties of the catalyst, i.e., porous structure and acidity, in obtained conversion and product yields.

“…FCC is a key operation for converting heavy oil to light products in refineries, and vacuum gas oil (VGO) is the conventional feedstock of FCC units. However, many researchers have attempted to process crude oil by a catalytic cracking method to obtain light products (e.g., light olefins, naphtha). − In addition, FCC has been successfully employed to process high-acid crude oils in China. , Tian et al proposed a new FCC technology to process high-acid crude oil. The high-acid crude oil is injected into a riser at 200 °C to react over a regenerated catalyst at a high temperature.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Conceptual Coupled Process for Catalytic Cracking of High-Acid Crude Oil

Liu

Chen

et al. 2019

To process high-acid crude oil by catalytic cracking technology, a coupled process (FCD–FCC) involving fluid catalytic deacidification (FCD) of high-acid crude oil over a spent catalyst and fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) of heavy oil over a regenerated catalyst was proposed. Experiments were carried out in a confined fluidized bed reactor to test the feasibility of this process. The results indicate that the spent catalyst can be used for deacidification of high-acid crude oil to restrain the overcracking of light fractions. The optimal reaction conditions for the catalytic deacidification of Dar acidic crude oil are a temperature of 460 °C, a catalyst-to-oil ratio of 5, and a spent catalyst with a coke content of 1.26 wt %. Compared with the direct catalytic cracking of Dar crude oil over a regenerated catalyst, the yields of light oil and desired product increased by 6.10 and 6.78 wt % in the FCD–FCC process, respectively, and the olefin content of naphtha decreased by approximately 16 wt %, although the naphtha yield was lowered by 2.9 wt %. This strategy sheds new light on the processing of high-acid crude oil.