Catalyst Process Development

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The purpose of process development is to transform the innovative proposals produced by the research conducted mainly in the laboratory into industrial innovation, including a new, reliable, and economically profitable process.

In order to commercialize promising catalyst materials, the process conditions for its application need to be optimized. alfa chemistry catalyst is committed to providing customers with an effective research and development plan, which should have a safe, operable and cost-effective process to produce materials that meet customer expectations.

Services

Alfa Chemistry Catalysts can provide customers with professional services at different stages of catalyst process development. Our capabilities include design and synthesis, characterization, testing and scale-up, and computational research.

The construction of process development can be divided into two steps, including:

(1) The pre-development of the catalyst process is usually based on the results of laboratory research (new reactions, new catalysts).

The reaction types supported by our pre-development services include but are not limited to hydrocracking (HDS, HDN, HCK), hydroprocessing (hydroconversion, HDS, hydrogenated aromatics, HDN, HDM), isomerization (PT/AL2O3 chlorated, Zeolite, aromatics), alkylation (aromatics), catalytic reforming (dehydrogenation, cyclization, isomerization), oxidation (selectivity), etc.

(2) Catalyst process development, including the definition of process guidelines and the basis of industrialization, including all elements (design rules) specific to the developed technology.

Our catalyst process development services include but are not limited to the following types:

• Catalyst development: preparation of catalyst oxide carrier and catalyst formulation optimization and performance evaluation
• Choice of reactor technology: choice of reactor technology and reactor and process configuration
• Chemical and fluid power reactor engineering: reaction kinetics and reactor modeling, determining operating conditions for reliable reactor operation
• Process plan optimization: preparation of heat integrated catalyst oxide carrier, catalyst formulation optimization and performance evaluation, etc.

The Main Steps of Catalyst Development

Figure 1. Main steps in catalyst development, from preparation to final process data acquisition in pilot plant units.[1]

Research Case

The purpose of catalyst development is to design and optimize new catalytic systems for industrial use. The theoretical method usually based on density functional theory (DFT) calculations is applied to the atomic scale description of the active phase, so that the reaction mechanism and reasonable catalyst optimization can be studied. For example, molecular model studies have provided relevant insights for determining the atomic structure and the reactivity of acid sites in the crystal network, and clarified the surface structure of chlorinated γ-alumina.[2]

Figure 2. Local structures of chlorinated γ-alumina surfaces.[2]

References

1. Jean-François Joly. (2013). "Innovation in process development: From catalyst to industrial process", Catalysis Today 218-219: 153-161.
2. Mathieu Digne. (2008). "Atomic Scale Insights on Chlorinated γ-Alumina Surfaces", Journal of the American Chemical Society 130(33): 11030-11039.