CATALYTIC PROCESS FOR CONVERTING RENEWABLE RESOURCES INTO PARAFFINS FOR USE AS DIESEL BLENDING STOCKS
A process for converting renewable resources such as vegetable oil and animal fat into paraffins in a single step which comprises contacting a feed which is a renewable resources with hydrogen and a catalyst which comprises molybdenum, a non-precious metal and an oxide to produce a hydrocarbon product having a ratio of even-numbered hydrocarbons to odd-numbered hydrocarbons of at least 2:1.
1 . A process for hydrodeoxygenation of a renewable resource which comprises (a) providing a feed which is a renewable resource; (b) contacting the feed with a catalyst in the presence of hydrogen at a temperature of 250 to 425° C. and a pressure of 500 to 2500 psig (3,450 to 17,250 kPa), wherein the catalyst comprises an oxide, molybdenum and one or more active metals selected from the group consisting of nickel, cobalt, and mixtures thereof and the catalyst is sulfided form, to produce a hydrocarbon product having a ratio of even-numbered hydrocarbons to odd-numbered hydrocarbons of at least 2:1.
2 . The process of claim 1 wherein the feed is an oil derived from plants and/or animals and comprises one or more triglyceride or one or more free fatty acid.
3 . The process of claim 2 wherein the triglyceride is derived from a plant selected from the group consisting of pine, rape seed, sunflower, palm, jathropa, seashore mallow and combinations of two or more thereof.
4 . The process of claim 1 wherein the feed is a vegetable oil selected from the group consisting of canola oil, palm oil, coconut oil, palm kernel oil, sunflower oil, soybean oil, crude tall oil, and combinations of two or more thereof.
5 . The process of claim 1 wherein the feed is poultry fat, yellow grease, or tallow.
6 . The process of claim 1 wherein the concentration of metal in the catalyst is 0.1 to 90 percent by weight, based on the total weight of the catalyst.
7 . The process of claim 6 wherein the concentration of metal in the catalyst is 0.5 to 60 weight percent.
8 . The process of claim 1 wherein the oxide is selected from the group consisting of alumina, silica, titania, zirconia, kieselguhr, silica-alumina and combinations.
9 . The process of claim 1 wherein the temperature is 300 to 400° C.
10 . The process of claim 9 wherein the temperature is 325 to 375° C.
11 . The process of claim 1 wherein the pressure is 1000 to 2000 psig (7000 to 13,900 kPa).
12 . The process of claim 1 wherein the ratio of even-numbered hydrocarbons to odd-numbered hydrocarbons of at least 3:1.
13 . The process of claim 1 wherein the ratio of even-numbered hydrocarbons to odd-numbered hydrocarbons of at least 5:1.
14 . The process of claim 1 wherein the ratio of even-numbered hydrocarbons to odd-numbered hydrocarbons of at least 10:1.
15 . The process of claim 1 wherein the process is a continuous process and the reactor is a fixed bed reactor or a continuously stirred tank reactor.
16 . The process of claim 15 wherein the reactor is a fixed bed reactor.
17 . The process of claim 15 wherein the feed is contacted with a solvent or diluent and hydrogen to provide a liquid feed/solvent/hydrogen or liquid feed/diluent/hydrogen mixture in advance of contacting the feed with the catalyst.
18 . The process of claim 17 wherein the liquid feed/solvent/hydrogen or liquid feed/diluent/hydrogen mixture is a substantially hydrogen-gas-free liquid feed stream.
19 . The process of claim 17 wherein a portion of the product is recycled back to the reactor as a recycle stream and blended with fresh feed and hydrogen for use as solvent or diluent.