Method Of Producing Alkylbenzene And Catalyst Used Therefor

CATEGORY: ALKYLBENZENE
PATENT
Method Of Producing Alkylbenzene And Catalyst Used Therefor
United States Patent Application 20120000819
Inventors:
Matsushita, Koichi (Tokyo, JP)
Application Number:
13/259781
Publication Date:
01/05/2012
Assignee:
Jx Nippon Oil & Energy Corporation (Tokyo, Jp)
Japan Petroleum Energy Center (Tokyo, Jp)
Abstract:
A method that efficiently produces an alkylbenzene with a high added value from a 1.5-cyclic aromatic hydrocarbon while suppressing excessive hydrocracking and nuclear hydrogenation, and preventing a decrease in catalytic activity due to deposition of carbon during a hydrocracking reaction, and a catalyst used therefor, are disclosed. A method of producing an alkylbenzene includes causing a hydrocarbon oil feedstock containing an alkylbenzene content of less than 20 vol %, a bicyclic aromatic hydrocarbon content of less than 30 vol %, and a 1.5-cyclic aromatic hydrocarbon content of 25 vol % or more to come in contact with a hydrocracking catalyst that includes a solid acid having a maximum acid strength of Brönsted acid of 110 kJ/mol or more and less than 140 kJ/mol.
Description:

TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention relates to a method for efficiently producing an alkylbenzene with a high added value, and a catalyst used therefor, wherein the method allows a minimum naphthene ring-opening reaction to occur by causing an appropriate hydrocracking reaction without causing unnecessary nuclear hydrogenation.

BACKGROUND ART

In the petroleum refining field, an alkylbenzene such as benzene, toluene, and xylene (BTX) has been produced by a catalytic reforming process. A catalytic reforming reaction basically does not cause a change in the number of carbon atoms of the feedstock. Attempts have been made to convert heavy oil having a large number of carbon atoms into light oil (e.g., gasoline fraction). A solid acid has been known as a catalyst for a cracking reaction that reduces the number of carbon atoms of the feedstock.

For example, Patent Literatures 1 and 2 disclose a method of upgrading a light cycle oil (LCO) using a catalyst that contains molybdenum and β zeolite or a group VIII or VI metal in the periodic table and ultrastable Y zeolite as the solid acid. However, this method aims at producing gasoline, and does not selectively produce BTX and the like. When separating BTX and the like as a product, the amount of alkylbenzene produced by this method is insufficient.

Patent Literatures 3, 4, and 5 disclose a method of producing a lubricant base oil or a middle distillate using a solid acid having specific acidity containing ultrastable Y zeolite, an amorphous cracking component, and a group VIII or VI metal in the periodic table. However, a method that efficiently produces an alkylbenzene from a 1.5-cyclic aromatic hydrocarbon that has one benzene ring and one naphthene ring has not been disclosed.

Patent Literature 6 discloses a method of producing a high-octane gasoline blending component by hydrocracking a petroleum hydrocarbon having an aromatic hydrocarbon content of 40 mass % or more using a catalyst obtained by causing a group VIII metal and a group VI metal in the periodic table having hydrogenation activity to be supported on crystalline aluminosilicate zeolite containing particles having particle diameters of 0.5 μm or less in an amount of 80 vol % or more. However, this method aims at producing a gasoline blending component, and does not selectively produce an alkylbenzene. Moreover, since the crystalline aluminosilicate zeolite having an MFI structure represented by the so-called ZSM-5 has a maximum acid strength as high as 140 kJ/mol or more, the yield of gasoline is less than 70 vol %, and the reaction liquid yield is low due to a high cracking rate.

The inventor of the invention proposed a method that selectively produces a monocyclic aromatic hydrocarbon by hydrocracking a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon in the presence of a zeolite catalyst (Patent Literature 7), and a method that produces an alkylbenzene by hydrocracking a refilled oil obtained by refining a heavy hydrocarbon in the presence of a zeolite catalyst (Patent Literature 8). However, the method disclosed in Patent Literature 7 produces an alkylbenzene from an aromatic hydrocarbon having two or more rings (e.g., naphthalene rings). Since the hydrocracking catalyst used in Patent Literature 8 has a high maximum acid strength of Brönsted acid, only a small amount of alkylbenzene is produced. Therefore, an increase in the production amount of alkylbenzene has been desired.
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