Experimental approvement of the filterless hydroprocess technology using slurry reactor system with inertial separation

• Published in: Separation and purification technology 2017-10, Vol.186, p.342-351
• Main Authors: Savchenko, V.I., Dorokhov, V.G., Makaryan, I.A., Sedov, I.V., Arutyunov, V.S.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Fischer–Tropsch process; Hydrogenation; Inertial separation; Multipurpose filterless technology; Slurry reactor system
• ISSN: 1383-5866; 1873-3794
• DOI: 10.1016/j.seppur.2017.06.040

•Developed reaction system and proved filterless technology for the continuous slurry processes.•New technology is based on inertial solid and liquid phases separation principle.•Hydrogenation, oxidation, Fischer-Tropsch and other slurry three-phase processes may be operated in a continuous mode.•Reaction system may be operated with negligible catalyst withdrawal during its full lifetime.•Possibility to exclude the cumbersome and lowly efficient stage of filtration from conventional slurry processes was shown. This paper presents a multipurpose filterless technology based on an original principle for the separation of solid and liquid phases to perform various processes involving suspended solid particles (including hydrogenation, Fischer–Tropsch, and some other processes) in slurry reactors. The main problems related to the operation of slurry reactors are the necessity to separate the solid and liquid phases, problems associated with attrition and deposition of the catalyst, and difficulties to scale-up such reactors. The developed technology has a number of advantages compared to its traditional analogs and makes it possible to accomplish processes in a continuous technological mode without removing solid catalyst particles with the reaction products. It is shown that the proposed new method for the separation of finely grained catalyst during its continuous operation allows one to improve some traditional catalytic processes that reached the peak of their perfection.