Petroleum residue upgrading with dispersed catalysts: Part 2. Effect of operating conditions Original Research Article

The hydrotreatment of a petroleum residue in the presence of dispersed molybdenite was carried out within a wide range of operating conditions and catalyst loading. The effect of reaction severity as well as of molybdenum concentration on product distribution and quality was studied. Based on the experimental results, a simplified reaction scheme was proposed. The hydroprocessing of the residue was described in terms of the competition between two reactions: the direct conversion of the feedstock to distillate and coke, and the catalytic hydrogenation. Compared to thermal conditions, the presence of dispersed molybdenite controls very well coke formation; however, a trend of increasing formation of solids was observed at high catalyst concentrations. The overall upgrading of the feedstock requires significant amounts of molybdenum as well as relatively high hydrogen pressure.