presulfiding process

presulfiding process
The purpose of this publication is to present an overview of the presulfiding
process.
Petroleum refining is a sophisticated technology combining many different
chemical reactions. Hydrocracking includes breaking the viscosity of heavy
and light fuel oils, treating C 5 + fractions produced in steam crackers,
producing lubricants, and converting gas-oils to more valuable products.
Hydrodenitrification is used to process feedstock with catalysts in a
hydrogen environment without splitting molecules into lower boiling
hydrocarbons and to remove nitrogen. The hydrodesulfurization process is
done in the presence of hydrogen to remove sulfur from hydrocarbon
molecules in feedstocks such as naphtha and gas-oils derived from straight
and vacuum runs. Reforming increases the octane of gasoline by rearranging
hydrocarbon molecules without altering the number of carbon atoms. It also
is used to produce aromatics in the gasoline boiling range.
Hydrodealkylation converts toluene to benzene and methane.
A variety of metallic catalysts may be used for the preceding processes. Pre-
sulfiding is often done to enhance activity as in hydrodesulfurization or
control hyperactivity as with fresh or regenerated catalyst used for
hydrocracking. Under certain operating conditions, such as
hydrodealkylation, presulfiding selectively poisons the active sites that may
degrade benzene.
Depending on the weight and type of metals present, catalysts are classified
as monometallic, bimetallic, and multimetallic. Catalysts are normally small
extrudates about l/20 th to l/l6 th inch in diameter with a cylindrical or
configured shape. Only the catalyst’s metallic surface is active. During
presulfiding, sulfur is deposited on the catalyst’s homogenous surface. In
situ presulfided catalysts facilitate chemical reactions to convert feedstocks
into final end-use products, but they do not become part of the finished
products. Also It has been found that the hydrodesulfurization (HDS)
activity of the regenerated catalyst was even lower than that of spent
catalyst. This confirmed that the deactivation occurs by metals from the
feed. HR-TEM results indicates that low HDS activity of the regenerated
catalyst was observed may be due to the phase change from type II to type I
Co-Mo-S during the high-temperature regeneration process. Also, the HDS
activity of the spent catalysts showed that Ni deposited from the feed
perform the autocatalysis function. The higher hydrocracking activity of the
regenerated catalyst suggests that bare alumina-support takes part in the
cracking activity, particularly at a higher reaction temperature. The amount
of MCR and n-heptane analyzed during the reaction at different contact
times concluded that sediments are formed during the early stage of the
 reaction. As the reaction precedes these sediments agglomerated and
separated out from the liquid hydrocarbons.

TOTSUCAT CATALYST SULFIDING
Eurecat's TOTSUCAT ex-situ pre-sulfiding process successfully activates
hydroprocessing catalyst and enables refiners to simplify and accelerate their
hydrotreating unit start-up procedure. Totsucat® sulfided catalyst can also be
passivated to allow for loading under air. Using ex-situ pre-activated catalyst
(Totsucat®) will save money, reduce start-up time, and it moves the
potentially hazardous sulfiding process away from the refinery.

TOTSUCAT TYPES
 Totsucat G: Naphtha
 Totsucat D: ULSD
 Totsucat E: Vacuum Gas Oil
 Totsucat N: Hydrocracking Pre-Treat
 Totsucat HC: Hydrocracking
 Totsucat TG: Tail Gas
 Totsucat SG: Syn-Gas

TOTSUCAT® HC-AP
Totsucat® HC-AP® eliminates the use of ammonia during hydrocracking
catalyst start-up while still controlling the catalyst exotherms.

CFP - CRACKED FEED PROTECTION

The CFP (cracked feed protection) process is an extension of the
Totsucat® catalyst sulfiding process. The CFP treatment allows for the
 immediate introduction of cracked stocks instead of waiting 2-3 days. The CFP
process includes the catalyst sulfiding, activation, and cracked feed protection.

PASSIVATION
The Passivation process allows for the safe loading of sulfided and activated
catalysts under air. Passivation can be applied to both Totsucat® sulfiding
and CFP treatments. The Passivation process eliminates the need for inert
loading.

CATALYST CONDITIONING
Eurecat preconditioning services can be applied to a wide range of fresh and
regenerated materials including nickel, cobalt, copper, chrome, iron and zinc
based catalysts, noble metal (palladium and platinum) based catalysts,
zeolites and adsorbents.
 Highly flexible and efficient facilities (batch/continuous
process,counter/co-current configuration, wide range of operating
conditions,and use of various chemical atmospheres.
 Highly trained and experienced staff of technical experts and
operators
 Laboratory and pilot plant capability for catalyst operation
 Latest analytical capability for catalyst characterization
 Assurance of quality control during industrial campaigns
 Commitment to high quality and environmental standards
 Co-operation under possible confidential secrecy agreement
CASE - (CATALYST ACTIVITY AND
SELECTIVITY ENHANCEMENT)
Various types of treatments tailored for different catalysts and applications.

SULFIDING COMPARISON
 TOTSUCAT® BENEFITS
 Load-and-Go reactor startups
 Minimized flaring to met new flare/emissions
regulations
 No exotherms upon start-up
 Minimal sour water formation
 No additional H2 needed at startup
 No H2S release into fuel gas
 No odor incidents from sulfiding chemicals
 No handling of sulfiding chemicals
 Catalyst performance is maximized
 Upset conditions will not damage the catalyst
 Totsucat+Passivation allows for loading under air