TITLE: Innovative catalyst system for slurry-phase Fischer-Tropsch synthesis: Cobalt plus a water-gas-shift catalyst. Final technical report.

AUTHOR: C. N. Satterfield;   I. C. Yates;   C. Chanenchuk.

INST.  AUTHOR: Massachusetts Inst. of Tech., Cambridge. Dept. of Chemical Engineering.

SPONSOR: Department of Energy, Washington, DC.

LANGUAGE: English

PUB.  TYPE: Technical Report

PUB.  COUNTRY: United States

SOURCE: Department of Energy [DE],  Jul 91,  121p.

NTIS ORDER NO.:  DE92011275INW

ABSTRACT:

The feasibility of using a mechanical mixture of a Co/MgO/SiO(sub 2) Fischer-Tropsch catalyst and a Cu-ZnO/Al(sub 2)O(sub 3) water-gas-shift (WGS) catalyst for hydrocarbon synthesis in a slurry reactor has been established. Such a mixture can combine the superior product distribution from cobalt with the high activity for the WGS reaction characteristic of iron. Weight ratios of Co/MgO/SiO(sub 2) to Cu-ZnO/Al(sub 2)O(sub 3) of 0.27 and 0.51 for the two catalysts were studied at 240(degrees)C, 0.79 MPa, and in situ H(sub 2)/CO ratios between 0.8 and 3.0. Each catalyst mixture showed stable Fischer-Tropsch activity for about 400 hours-on-stream at a level comparable to the cobalt catalyst operating alone. The Cu-ZnO/Al(sub 2)O(sub 3) catalyst exhibited a very slow loss of activity under these conditions, but when operated alone it was stable in a slurry reactor at 200--220(degrees)C, 0.79--1.48 MPa, and H(sub 2)/CO in situ ratios between 1.0 and 2.0. The presence of the water-gas-shift catalyst did not affect the long-term stability of the primary Fischer-Tropsch selectivity, but did increase the extent of secondary reactions, such as l-alkene hydrogenation and isomerization.

REPORT  NUMBER: DOE/PC/79816-T3

CONTRACT  NUMBER: AC22-87PC79816