Analysis and deep hydrodesulfurization reactivity of Saudi Arabian gas oils

Design and Evaluation of a Co-Mo-Supported Nano Alumina Ultradeep Hydrodesulfurization Catalyst for Production of Environmentally Friendly Diesel Fuel in a Trickle Bed Reactor

In the present work, a nanocatalyst, γ-Al₂O₃ nanoparticle-supported CoMo, was prepared experimentally and evaluated through a hydrodesulfurization (HDS) process for removing dibenzothiophene (DBT) from diesel fuel systematically in a trickle bed reactor (TBR). The results of the prepared catalyst characterization tests (scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), XRD phase quantification, and Brunner-Emmett-Teller) showed good distribution of active metals (CoMo), difference in surface morphology, and high dispersion of active metals. The catalyst exhibited good metal-support interactions without impacting the surface area significantly. A fully automated TBR reactor was used to evaluate the activity of the prepared catalyst in the HDS process at ranges of operating conditions: temperatures (250-350 °C), pressures (6-10 bar), liquid hourly space velocities (LHSV) (1-3 h^-1), and the activity of the prepared catalyst were compared to a commercial catalyst based on Co-Mo/γ-alumina. The results showed an obvious enhancement in the HDS process using the homemade nanocatalyst compared to the commercial catalyst. It has also been found that an increase in temperature led to an increase in the conversion from 68.77 to 91.57%, a little positive effect on conversion when pressure was increased, and a significant decrease in conversion (from 91.57 to 75.58%) as LHSV was increased. A kinetic model was developed for the HDS process to estimate kinetic parameters and apply the parameters in reactor design. The developed model showed that the DBT concentration in diesel fuel can be reduced significantly, 3000-240 ppm, at the optimum experimental conditions.

Hollow fibers networked with perovskite nanoparticles for H2 production from heavy oil

Design of catalytic materials has been highlighted to build ultraclean use of heavy oil including liquid-to-gas technology to directly convert heavy hydrocarbons into H₂–rich gas fuels. If the H₂ is produced from such heavy oil through high-active and durable catalysts in reforming process that is being constructed in hydrogen infrastructure, it will be addressed into renewable energy systems. Herein, the three different hollow fiber catalysts networked with perovskite nanoparticles, LaCr_0.8Ru_0.2O₃, LaCr_0.8Ru_0.1Ni_0.1O₃, and LaCr_0.8Ni_0.2O₃ were prepared by using activated carbon fiber as a sacrificial template for H₂ production from heavy gas oil reforming. The most important findings were arrived at: (i) catalysts had hollow fibrous architectures with well-crystallized structures, (ii) hollow fibers had a high specific surface area with a particle size of ≈50 nm, and (iii) the Ru substituted ones showed high efficiency for H₂ production with substantial durability under high concentrations of S, N, and aromatic compounds.