Enhanced performances of Fischer-Tropsch catalysts modified with Re as a promoter and supported on various structured materials

Abstract

This paper presents enhanced performances of Fischer-Tropsch (F-T) catalysts modified with Re as a promoter and supported by various structured materials. The traditional Fe-Co based catalyst was prepared by the simultaneous impregnation and then application of the wash-coating slurry method to coat the catalyst on structured materials, including monolith and metallic foams. Their physicochemical properties of the catalysts were characterized by Brunauer–Emmett–Teller specific surface area, and hydrogen temperature programmed reduction. The reaction was carried out at the temperature of 250°C, the pressure of 20 bar, and GHSV of 3600 mL.g−1.h−1. It has been shown that the efficiency of the F-T synthesis is significantly improved by both Re modification and structured material application to its traditional catalyst. It is interesting that the catalyst modification resulted in both decreasing gas formation and improving C5+ yield. In the presence of Re as the catalytic promoter, CO conversion and C5+ yield increased by 49% and 50%, respectively. Furthermore, the application of structured materials brought further enhancement in the catalyst performance by an additional 23% increase in both CO conversion and C5+ yield. All catalysts have been observed to be stable during 24 hours on stream.