SUPPLIERS INTRODUCE MORE THAN 120 NEW REFINING CATALYSTS

Anne K. Rhodes
Refining/Petrochemical Editor

Catalyst manufacturers and vendors worldwide report more than 120 new catalysts introduced over the past year (Table). This is almost twice the some 65 catalysts added last year, and significantly more than the 75 added in 1990.

The fluid catalytic cracking category led the survey in new additions.

This year, the table is limited to only those catalysts that have been made available since OGJ's compilation of refining catalysts was last published (Oct. 14, 1991, p. 43). Respondents were asked to include only those catalysts introduced into commercial service, and to exclude catalysts produced for only a single company.

SURVEY RESULTS

Of the catalysts added this year:

Fluid catalytic cracking catalysts lead the list with 27 new introductions (5 of these listings each cover a series).
Hydrotreating/hydrogenation/saturation catalysts added 23 to the list.
Steam Hydrocarbon reforming catalysts increased by 22.
Catalytic naphtha reforming catalysts increased by 12.
Other refining catalysts up by 11.
Hydrorefining catalysts up by 10.
Hydrocracking catalysts up by 9.

Of the remaining catalysts:

Four are mild hydrocracking catalysts.
Three are elemental sulfur recovery catalysts.
Two are Claus unit tail gas treatment catalysts.
One is an isomerization (C5 and C6) catalyst.
One is a polymerization catalyst.
One is an oxygenate catalyst.

A new FCC combustion promoter was also added to the list as a result of the Journal's survey.

REGULATIONS

Refiners are scrambling to meet environmental regulations, and catalyst manufacturers and vendors are doing their part to help. Many of the catalysts in this list were designed to do just that. One interesting addition this year is Engelhard Corp.'s catalysts for increasing isobutylene yield from the fluid catalytic cracking unit (FCCU). Because isobutylene is a feedstock for methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE), these catalysts will help refiners increase MTBE production.

Another addition of note is the listing of four catalysts for use in the ABB Lummus Crest/Criterion Catalyst Co. LP process for diesel hydrogenation (OGJ, July 1, 1991, p. 55). This process saturates diesel aromatics to comply with expected reductions in diesel aromatics content.

Instituto Mexicano del Petroleo made several additions to its line, including six FCC catalysts and six hydrotreating/hydrogenation/saturation catalysts. Davison Chemical Division of W.R. Grace & Co. and Engelhard Corp. also expanded their FCC lines significantly.

Criterion Catalyst Co. LP made numerous additions to its hydrocracking and hydrotreating/hydrogenation/saturation catalyst offerings, as did ICI Katalco to its steam hydrocarbon reforming catalyst line.

Perhaps the most significant event in the refining catalyst industry this year was the sudden demise of Katalistiks International Inc. The long-term effects of this ease in the overcapacity of recent years have yet to play out.

Katalistiks now exists as "Katalistiks, A Unit of UOP." The division is no longer in the FCCU catalyst business; it now produces only FCC combustion promoters and SO, emissions-control additives. The only catalyst developer that did not respond to this year's catalyst survey was Unocal Science & Technology Division, Brea, Calif.

SCOPE, PURPOSE

OGJ's Worldwide Catalyst Report lists catalysts for practically all refinery catalytic processes. The objectives of this report are:

To list all new catalysts by specific designations (supplier's identification) for their specific process application, such as "fluid catalytic cracking."
To differentiate each catalyst from others in the same category in order to explain how a catalyst differs from others designed for the same process.

Many catalysts appear in "families." Survey respondents were asked to differentiate the lead fancily member from their other families, if they have more than one. Within a family, respondents were asked to point out the differences in a catalyst in terms of the other members of that single family.

Many suppliers are now electing to list only family names--especially in the fluid catalytic cracking category--in order to streamline their listings.

The information in the table is the suppliers' best efforts to meet the objectives of this compilation. Blanks in the table reflect, in most cases, the lack of response from the supplier.

The symbol "p" represents some proprietary aspect of a catalyst that the supplier does not wish to divulge.

The abbreviations used in the compilation are listed immediately following the table. Catalysts available for unrestricted sale are denoted by an "x" in the far right column of the table, and those available only through process licensing arrangements are denoted by an "L" in the same column.

Abbreviations used in the survey table are defined at the end of the table.