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  • How are catalyst suppliers further enhancing catalyst formulations for refiners focused on processing a wider array of feedstocks (such as renewables, plastic waste, and heavy crudes)?

    Mar-2024

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  • Benoit Durupt, AXENS, benoit.durupt@axens.net

    Reaching the ambitious objective of producing more sustainable fuels or petrochemical products is a big challenge for all players in the oil industry. It involves processing new types of feedstocks with a wide range of properties.

    To be viable, this evolution needs to rely on existing assets and reliable, flexible, and proven processes. Hydroprocessing is an appropriate example of this kind of technology, which operators can have confidence in due to its 70 years of existence. It is used in almost every refinery in the world to treat a range of feedstocks to meet the following objectives:
    • Producing sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) or hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) through co-processing or a hydroprocessed esters and fatty acids (HEFA) process such as the proprietary Vegan technology, processing various types of lipidic feedstocks.
    • Performing chemical recycling of plastics through co-processing or the proprietary Rewind Mix process.

    Axens has provided more than 300 licences and several hundred thousand tons of top-ranked hydroprocessing catalysts throughout the years, as well as high-standard technical services. The recent launch of a dedicated catalyst series (700 series) is designed to ensure reliable processing of renewable feedstocks with the highest yields of SAF and HVO during long cycles, either in co-processing or dedicated units. The 700 series also contains dedicated products for processing pyoils from waste plastics, allowing its smooth re-incorporation in a steam cracker without any detrimental impact on operation.

    Overall, significant work has been done on the support and active phase of the catalysts to take into account all the specificities of those new feedstocks while maintaining the highest flexibility of the global catalytic system. Minimising the environmental impact of our catalysts is essential. As a consequence, sustainability is one pillar of the development of the 700 series, with a particular focus on:
    • Outstanding activity and stability during the operation to minimise the need for catalyst replacement.
    • Full regenerability and rejuvenability through the proprietary Revival process to recover up to 95% of its activity after a full operating cycle, thus minimising consumption of metals and minerals required for new catalysts.

     

    Apr-2024


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