A novel catalyst for heavy oil hydrocracking

This paper reports the development of novel hydrocracking catalysts supported on high-surface area saponite clay and pillared with either cobalt or nickel oxide. The catalysts were prepared by aging the Co or Ni nitrate solution, followed by addition of saponite, washing, drying and calcination. The catalysts were evaluated for HDS, HDN and hydrocracking activities in a batch autoclave reactor using vacuum gas oil as feedstock. The results show that the HDS, HDN and cracking activities of the novel catalysts are comparable to that of a conventional NiW/Si02-AI2O3 catalyst. The Co catalyst gave better HDS activity while the Ni catalyst showed higher HDN and cracking activity. Calcination before metal loading does not seem to effect the overall performance of the Co catalysts. It should be noted these activities are achieved despite the use only one metal as the active ingredient. The results of this study clearly indicate that the saponite clay based catalysts are a potential alternative to the conventional hydrocracking catalysts.