US 11,718,799 B2
Process for upgrading renewable liquid hydrocarbons
Steen B. Iversen, Vedbæk (DK); Julie Katerine Rodriguez Guerrero, Calgary (CA); Pedro Rafael Pereira Almao, Calgary (CA); Monica Bartolini Tiberi, Cochrane (CA); Marianna Isabel Trujillo Vaccari, Calgary (CA); and Lante Antonio Carbognani, Calgary (CA)
Assigned to STEEPER ENERGY APS, Hørsholm (DK)
Appl. No. 17/429,170
Filed by STEEPER ENERGY APS, Hørsholm (DK)
PCT Filed Feb. 10, 2020, PCT No. PCT/EP2020/025057
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Aug. 6, 2021,
PCT Pub. No. WO2020/160850, PCT Pub. Date Aug. 13, 2020.
Claims priority of application No. PA 201970087 (DK), filed on Feb. 8, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0049168 A1, Feb. 17, 2022
Int. Cl. C10G 51/04 (2006.01); C10G 69/06 (2006.01); C10G 69/04 (2006.01); C10G 69/08 (2006.01); B01J 27/22 (2006.01)
CPC C10G 51/04 (2013.01) [B01J 27/22 (2013.01); C10G 69/06 (2013.01); C10G 2300/1011 (2013.01); C10G 2300/302 (2013.01); C10G 2300/4006 (2013.01); C10G 2300/4012 (2013.01); C10G 2300/4018 (2013.01); C10G 2300/42 (2013.01); C10G 2300/70 (2013.01); C10G 2400/04 (2013.01); C10G 2400/08 (2013.01)] 38 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A catalytic process for upgrading a renewable crude oil produced from biomass and/or waste comprising:
a. providing a renewable crude oil and pressurizing it to a pressure in the range in the range 60 to 150 bar;
b. contacting the pressurized renewable crude oil with hydrogen and at least one heterogeneous catalyst contained in a first reaction zone at a weight based hourly space velocity (WHSV) in the range 0.1 to 2.0 h−1 and at a temperature in the range of 150° C. to 360° C., thereby providing a partially upgraded renewable crude oil;
c. separating the partially upgraded renewable crude oil from the first reaction zone into a partially upgraded heavy renewable oil fraction, a partially upgraded light renewable oil fraction a water stream and a process gas stream;
d. introducing the separated and partially upgraded heavy renewable oil fraction and separated process gas to a second reaction zone comprising at least two reactors arranged in parallel and being adapted to operate in a first and a second mode of operation, the reactors comprising dual functioning heterogeneous catalyst(-s) capable of performing a catalytic steam cracking reaction in a first mode of operation or a steam reforming reaction in a second mode of operation, wherein the partially upgraded heavy renewable oil fraction from the first reaction zone is contacted with the dual functioning heterogeneous catalyst and steam at a pressure of 10 to 150 bar and a temperature of 350° C. to 430° C. whereby a catalytic steam cracking of the partially upgraded heavy renewable oil is performed in the reactors in the first mode of operation, thereby providing a further upgraded heavy renewable oil fraction, while separated process gas from the first and/or second reaction zone is contacted with the dual functioning catalyst and steam at a pressure of 0.1 to 10 bar and a temperature of 350 to 600° C. in the reactors in the second mode of operation and contacted with the dual functioning catalyst, thereby producing a hydrogen enriched gas;
e. separating the further upgraded heavy renewable oil fraction from the catalytically steam cracking reactor into at least one light renewable oil fraction, a heavy renewable oil fraction, a hydrogen rich process gas and a water phase;
f. separating hydrogen from the hydrogen enriched gas from the catalytic steam cracking zone and/or from the catalytic steam reforming and recycling it to the first reaction zone; and
g. alternating the reactors between the first mode of operation and the second mode of operation at predetermined time intervals thereby allowing for regeneration of the heterogeneous catalyst for the catalytic steam cracking in the first mode of operation while performing the steam reforming reaction of the hydrocarbons contained in the process gas in the second mode of operation.