Fischer-Tropsch Refining

The Fischer-Tropsch process is gaining recognition again due to the world-wide increase in energy needs and decrease in oil availability. The increasing interest in utilizing biomass as a potential renewable feedstock in energy generation is further supporting this development.
The book covers the production and refining of Fischer-Tropsch syncrude to fuels and chemicals systematically and comprehensively, presenting a wealth of new knowledge and material. As such, it deals extensively with aspects of engineering, chemistry and catalysis. This handbook and ready reference adopts a fundamental approach, looking at the molecules and their transformation from feed to product. Numerous examples illustrate the possibilities and limitations of Fischer-Tropsch syncrude as feesdstock.
Of great interest to everyone interested in refining - not just Fischer-Tropsch specialists.

From the Contents:

• Fischer-Tropsch Facilities and Refineries at a Glance
• Production of Fischer-Tropsch Syncrude
• Industrial Fischer-Tropsch Facilities
• Synthetic Transportation Fuels
• Refining Technology
• Refinery Design

Autorentext
Arno de Klerk has been active in the field of Fischer-Tropsch refining for more than 15 years. Most of his industrial career was spent at Sasol, where he headed the Fischer-Tropsch Refinery Catalysis group from 2001-2008. Presently, he is the Nexen Professor of Catalytic Reaction Engineering in the Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering at the University of Alberta. He is registered as professional engineer in both South Africa and Canada (Alberta), holding a PhD in Chemical Engineering and an MSc in Chemistry. Professor de Klerk received the Innovation Award from the South African Institution of Chemical Engineers for his work on refining and refining catalysis on three occasions.

Inhalt

Preface xix

Part I Introduction 1

1 FischerTropsch Facilities at a Glance 3

1.1 Introduction 3

1.2 Feed-to-Syngas Conversion 4

1.2.1 Feed Logistics and Feed Preparation 5

1.2.2 Syngas Production 5

1.2.3 Syngas Cleaning and Conditioning 7

1.3 Syngas-to-Syncrude Conversion 8

1.4 Syncrude-to-Product Conversion 10

1.4.1 Upgrading versus Refining 10

1.4.2 Fuels versus Chemicals 11

1.4.3 Crude Oil Compared to Syncrude 12

1.5 Indirect Liquefaction Economics 14

1.5.1 Feed Cost 14

1.5.2 Product Pricing 15

1.5.3 Capital Cost 17

References 19

2 Refining and Refineries at a Glance 21

2.1 Introduction 21

2.2 Conventional Crude Oil 22

2.2.1 Hydrocarbons in Crude Oil 23

2.2.2 Sulfur Compounds in Crude Oil 23

2.2.3 Nitrogen Compounds in Crude Oil 25

2.2.4 Oxygenates in Crude Oil 25

2.2.5 Metals in Crude Oil 26

2.2.6 Physical Properties 27

2.3 Products from Crude Oil 28

2.3.1 Boiling Range and Product Quality 29

2.4 Evolution of Crude Oil Refineries 31

2.4.1 First-Generation Crude Oil Refineries 32

2.4.2 Second-Generation Crude Oil Refineries 33

2.4.3 Third-Generation Crude Oil Refineries 36

2.4.4 Fourth-Generation Crude Oil Refineries 39

2.4.5 Petrochemical Refineries 43

2.4.6 Lubricant Base Oil Refineries 44

References 46

Part II Production of FischerTropsch Syncrude 49

3 Synthesis Gas Production, Cleaning, and Conditioning 51

3.1 Introduction 51

3.2 Raw Materials 51

3.2.1 Natural Gas 51

3.2.2 Solid Carbon Sources 52

3.3 Syngas from Natural Gas 53

3.3.1 Natural Gas Cleaning 55

3.3.2 Adiabatic Prereforming 55

3.3.3 Steam Reforming 56

3.3.4 Adiabatic Oxidative Reforming 56

3.3.5 Gas Reforming Comparison 57

3.4 Syngas from Solid Carbon Sources 58

3.4.1 Gasification of Heteroatoms 59

3.4.2 Low-Temperature Moving Bed Gasification 60

3.4.3 Medium-Temperature Fluidized Bed Gasification 62

3.4.4 High-Temperature Entrained Flow Gasification 64

3.4.5 Gasification Comparison 66

3.5 Syngas Cleaning 66

3.5.1 Acid Gas Removal 67

3.6 Syngas Conditioning 69

3.6.1 Water Gas Shift Conversion 69

3.7 Air Separation Unit 70

References 71

4 FischerTropsch Synthesis 73

4.1 Introduction 73

4.2 FischerTropsch Mechanism 74

4.3 FischerTropsch Product Selectivity 77

4.3.1 Probability of Chain Growth 78

4.3.2 Hydrogenation versus Desorption 80

4.3.3 Readsorption Chemistry 81

4.4 Selectivity Manipulation in FischerTropsch Synthesis 81

4.4.1 FischerTropsch Catalyst Formulation 81

4.4.2 FischerTropsch Operating Conditions 83

4.4.3 FischerTropsch Reaction Engineering 84

4.5 FischerTropsch Catalyst Deactivation 88

4.5.1 Poisoning by Syngas Contaminants 89

4.5.2 Volatile Metal Carbonyl Formation 90

4.5.3 Metal Carboxylate Formation 91

4.5.4 Mechanical Catalyst Degradation 92

4.5.5 Deactivation of Fe-HTFT Catalysts 93

4.5.6 Deactivation of Fe-LTFT Catalysts 93

4.5.7 Deactivation of Co-LTFT Catalysts 95

References 99

5 FischerTropsch Gas Loop 105

5.1 Introduction 105

5.2 Gas Loop Configurations 107

5.2.1 Open Gas Loop Design 107

5.2.2 Closed Gas Loop Design 108

5.3 Syncrude Cooling and Separation 109

5.3.1 Pressure Separation 110

5.3.2 Cryogenic Separation 110

5.3.3 Oxygenate Partitioning 111 5.3.4 HTFT Syncrude Recovery 113<...