Tatoray

TM
Aromatics
A
r
o
m
a
t
i
c
s
Application
The Tatoray process is used to selectively convert
toluene, C
9
aromatics (A
9
) and C
10
aromatics (A
10
)
into more valuable benzene and xylenes. In a modern
aromatics complex, this process is integrated between
the aromatics fractionation and xylene recovery sections
of the plant. Toluene is fed to the Tatoray process unit
rather than being blended into the gasoline pool or sold
for solvent applications.
Incorporating a Tatoray unit into an aromatics complex
can more than double the yield of para-xylene from a
given naphtha feedstock. To maximize the production of
para-xylene from the complex, A
9
and A
10
by-product
can be fed with toluene to the Tatoray unit. The avail-
ability of additional methyl groups from the A
9
and A
10
shifts the chemical equilibrium from benzene production
to xylenes production. In recent years, the demand for
para-xylene has outstripped the supply of mixed xylenes
contained in reformate. The Tatoray process therefore
provides an ideal way to produce additional mixed
xylenes from low-value toluene and heavy aromatics.
Process chemistry
The two major reactions in the Tatoray process are
disproportionation and transalklyation. The conversion
of toluene into benzene and xylenes is called toluene
disproportionation. Transalklyation is the conversion of a
mixture of toluene and A
9
/A
10
into xylenes and benzene.
The Tatoray process is designed to function at a much
higher level of conversion per pass than other toluene
disproportionation processes. With a typical 50:50 feed-
stock ratio of toluene and C
9
+
aromatics, the overall
conversion is approximately 50% per pass. This high
conversion level minimizes the amount of unconverted
feed that must be recycled back through the BT frac-
tionation section of the complex which reduces the size
of the benzene and toluene columns, the size of the
Tatoray process unit, and the utility consumption of all
of these units.
The Tatoray process reactions are conducted in a
hydrogen atmosphere to minimize coke formation on the
catalyst. Since there is negligible ring destruction in the
Tatoray process, there is very little hydrogen consump-
tion due to the primary reactions. In addition, the methyl
groups are highly stable at reaction conditions and are
therefore essentially conserved in the reaction. Most of
the hydrogen consumption can therefore be attributed to
the cracking of nonaromatic impurities in the feed to the
Tatoray unit and the dealkylation of C
2
-
C
4
from the A
9
+
.
UOPs TA-20
TM
catalyst has demonstrated higher activity
and higher stability than to its predecessor TA-5
TM
. The
stability of TA-20 is nearly an order of magnitude higher,
which results in improved on-stream efficiency and a
reduction in regeneration frequency. Commercial perform-
ance of this catalyst has been outstanding.
Process description
The Tatoray process uses a flow scheme consisting of a
fixed-bed reactor and a product separation section. The
fresh feed to the Tatoray unit is combined with hydrogen-
rich recycle gas, preheated by exchange with the hot
reactor effluent, and vaporized in a fired heater where it
is raised to reaction temperature. The hot feed vapor
goes to the reactor, where it is sent down-flow over a
fixed bed of catalyst.
The reactor effluent is cooled by exchange with the
combined feed, mixed with make-up gas to replace the
small amount of hydrogen consumed in the reactor, and
then sent to a product separator. Hydrogen-rich gas is
taken off the top of the separator and recycled back to
the reactor. A small portion of the recycle gas is purged
to remove accumulated light ends from the recycle gas
loop. Liquid from the bottom of the separator is sent to a
stripper column.
The C
5
overhead from the stripper is cooled and sepa-
rated into gas and liquid products. The stripper overhead
Stripper
Purge
Gas to
Isomar Unit
Recycle Gas
Toluene from
Toluene Column
Separator Reactor Heater Feed Surge
Drum
C
9
Aromatics
from A
9
Column
Toluene from
Parex Unit
Fuel Gas
Overhead Liquid
Product
Tatoray Process
Tatory 2
gas is exported to the fuel gas system. The overhead
liquid is typically recycled back to the benzene column
so that any benzene in this stream may be recovered as
a product stream, along with the benzene from the ED
Sulfolane
TM
.
Features and benefits
Ability to handle wide range of feedstocks - A
Tatoray unit is capable of processing feedstocks
ranging from 100 wt-% toluene to 100 wt-% A
9
+
.
The ability to process A
9
+
makes more feedstock
available for xylenes production and dramatically
shifts the selectivity of the unit away from benzene.
More PX from naphtha by adding a Tatoray unit -
An aromatics complex without a Tatoray unit can
produce approximately 200,000 MTA of para-xylene
from 25,000 BPSD of Light Arabian naphtha. If an
A
7
Tatoray unit (toluene feed only) is added to the
complex, the same amount of naphtha can produce
280,000 MTA of para-xylene, a 40% increase.
When an A
7
/A
9
+
Tatoray process unit is added to
the complex, the endpoint of the naphtha is
increased from 300 to 360F (149C to 182C) in
order to maximize the amount of A
9
+
precursors in
the feed. The heavier naphtha will produce approxi-
mately 420,000 MTA para-xylene an increase of
110% over the base complex.
Xylenes produced are low in EB - The Tatoray
process produces petrochemical grade benzene
and xylene products. TA-20 shows a high yield of
xylenes which contain an equilibrium distribution of
xylene isomers and is very low in ethyl benzene
(EB). This low EB concentration makes the xylenes
produced by the Tatoray process valuable as feed-
stock to either a Parex
TM
unit or a para-xylene crys-
tallization unit.
Highly stable catalyst - The excellent stability of
TA-20 has allowed operation at higher conversion
and space velocity, while maintaining long cycle
lengths. This translates to higher on-stream times
and capital utilization.
Economics
The investment cost and utility consumption for a typical
Tatoray unit is shown below. The basis for this case is a
unit processing 1680 KMTA (34,800 BPD) of a feed
consisting of 50 wt-% toluene and 50 wt-% A
9
+
. The
investment cost is limited to the Tatoray unit and stripper
column and does not include further downstream product
fractionation.
Estimated Erected Cost, US MM$ 27
(2006 US Gulf coast basis, Inside battery limits only)
Utility Consumption
Electric power, kW 1137
Cooling water, m
3
/h 609
Fuel fired, mmkcal/hr * 9
* does not include fuel credit for light ends
Commercial experience
As of 2006, UOP has licensed a total of 48 Tatoray
units. 42 of these units are in operation and the rest are
in various stages of design and construction. Feedstocks
range from 100 wt-% toluene to a mixture of 30 wt-%
toluene and 70 wt-% A
9
+
. Design feed rates range from
92 to 2700 KMTA ( 2000 to 59,000 BPD).
For more information
Tatoray technology services are available upon request.
For more information, contact your local UOP
representative or our Des Plaines sales office:
e-mail: info@uop.com
fax: +1-847-391-2253
phone: +1-847-391-2000
2006 UOP LLC. All rights reserved.
The information in this document should not be construed as a representation for
which UOP assumes legal responsibility, or an authorization or recommendation
to practice a patented invention without a license.
UOP 4680-17 1106AR0Ah
UOP LLC
25 East Algonquin Road
Des Plaines, IL 60017-5017
U.S.A.
www.uop.com