Large quantities of methane, the main component of natural gas, are available in many areas of the world. Methane can be used as a starting material for the production of hydrocarbons. The conversion of methane to hydrocarbons is typically carried out in two steps. In the first step methane is reformed with water or partially oxidized with oxygen to produce carbon monoxide and hydrogen (i.e., synthesis gas or syngas). In a second step, the syngas is converted to hydrocarbons.
The preparation of hydrocarbons from synthesis gas is well known in the art and is usually referred to as Fischer-Tropsch synthesis, the Fischer-Tropsch process, or Fischer-Tropsch reaction(s). Catalysts for use in such synthesis usually contain a catalytically active Group VIII (CAS) metal. In particular, iron, cobalt, nickel, and ruthenium have been abundantly used as the catalytically active metals. Cobalt and ruthenium have been found to be most suitable for catalyzing a process in which synthesis gas is converted to primarily hydrocarbons having five or more carbon atoms (i.e., where the C.sub.5.sup.+ selectivity of the catalyst is high). Additionally, the catalysts often contain one or more promoters and a support or carrier material. Rhenium is a widely used promoter.
The Fischer-Tropsch reaction involves the catalytic hydrogenation of carbon monoxide to produce a variety of products ranging from methane to higher aliphatic alcohols. The methanation reaction was first described in the early 1900's, and the later work by Fischer and Tropsch dealing with higher hydrocarbon synthesis was described in the 1920's.
The Fischer-Tropsch synthesis reactions are highly exothermic and reaction vessels must be designed for adequate heat exchange capacity. Because the feed streams to Fischer-Tropsch reaction vessels are gases while the product streams include liquids, the reaction vessels must have the ability to continuously produce and remove the desired range of liquid hydrocarbon products. The process has been considered for the conversion of carbonaceous feedstock, e.g., coal or natural gas, to higher value liquid fuel or petrochemicals. The first major commercial use of the Fischer-Tropsch process was in Germany during the 1930's. More than 10,000 B/D (barrels per day) of products were manufactured with a cobalt based catalyst in a fixed-bed reactor. This work has been described by Fischer and Pichler in Ger. Pat. No. 731,295 issued Aug. 2, 1936.
Motivated by production of high-grade gasoline from natural gas, research on the possible use of the fluidized bed for Fischer-Tropsch synthesis was conducted in the United States in the mid-1940s. Based on laboratory results, Hydrocarbon Research, Inc. constructed a dense-phase fluidized bed reactor, the Hydrocol unit, at Carthage, Tex., using powdered iron as the catalyst. Due to disappointing levels of conversion, scale-up problems, and rising natural gas prices, operations at this plant were suspended in 1957. Research has continued, however, on developing Fischer-Tropsch reactors such as slurry-bubble columns, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,348,982 issued Sep. 20, 1994.
Commercial practice of the Fischer-Tropsch process has continued from 1954 to the present day in South Africa in the SASOL plants. These plants use iron-based catalysts, and produce gasoline in relatively high-temperature fluid-bed reactors and wax in relatively low-temperature fixed-bed reactors.
Research is likewise continuing on the development of more efficient Fischer-Tropsch catalyst systems and reaction systems that increase the selectivity for high-value hydrocarbons in the Fischer-Tropsch product stream. In particular, a number of studies describe the behavior of iron, cobalt or ruthenium based catalysts in various reactor types, together with the development of catalyst compositions and preparations.
There are significant differences in the molecular weight distributions of the hydrocarbon products from Fischer-Tropsch reaction systems. Product distribution or product selectivity depends heavily on the type and structure of the catalysts and on the reactor type and operating conditions. Accordingly, it is highly desirable to maximize the selectivity of the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis to the production of high-value liquid hydrocarbons, such as hydrocarbons with five or more carbon atoms per hydrocarbon chain.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,659,681 issued on Apr. 21, 1987, describes the laser synthesis of iron based catalyst particles in the 1-100 micron particle size range for use in a slurry reactor for Fischer-Tropsch synthesis.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,619,910 issued on Oct. 28, 1986, U.S. Pat. No. 4,670,472 issued on Jun. 2, 1987, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,681,867 issued on Jul. 21, 1987, describe a series of catalysts for use in a slurry Fischer-Tropsch process in which synthesis gas is selectively converted to higher hydrocarbons of relatively narrow carbon number range. Reactions of the catalyst with air and water and calcination are specifically avoided in the catalyst preparation procedure. The catalysts are activated in a fixed-bed reactor by reaction with CO+H.sub.2 prior to slurrying in the oil phase in the absence of air.
Catalyst supports for catalysts used in Fischer-Tropsch synthesis of hydrocarbons have typically been oxides (e.g., silica, alumina, titania, zirconia or mixtures thereof, such as silica-alumina). It has been claimed that the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis reaction is only weakly dependent on the chemical identity of the metal oxide support (see E. Iglesia et al. 1993, In: "Computer-Aided Design of Catalysts," ed. E. R. Becker et al., p. 215, New York, Marcel Dekker, Inc.). The products prepared by using these catalysts usually have a very wide range of molecular weights.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,477,595 discloses ruthenium on titania as a hydrocarbon synthesis catalyst for the production of C.sub.5 to C.sub.40 hydrocarbons, with a majority of paraffins in the C.sub.5 to C.sub.20 range. U.S. Pat. No. 4,542,122 discloses a cobalt or cobalt-thoria on titania having a preferred ratio of rutile to anatase, as a hydrocarbon synthesis catalyst. U.S. Pat. No. 4,088,671 discloses a cobalt-ruthenium catalyst where the support can be titania but preferably is alumina for economic reasons. U.S. Pat. No. 4,413,064 discloses an alumina supported catalyst having cobalt, ruthenium and a Group IIIA or Group IVB metal oxide, e.g., thoria European Patent No. 142,887 discloses a silica supported cobalt catalyst together with zirconium, titanium, ruthenium and/or chromium.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,801,573 discloses a promoted cobalt and rhenium catalyst, preferably supported on alumina that is characterized by low acidity, high surface area, and high purity, which properties are said to be necessary for high activity, low deactivation, and high molecular weight products. The amount of cobalt is most preferably about 10 to 40 wt % of the catalyst. The content of rhenium is most preferably about 2 to 20 wt % of the cobalt content. Related U.S. Pat. No. 4,857,559 discloses a catalyst most preferably having 10 to 45 wt % cobalt and a rhenium content of about 2 to 20 wt % of the cobalt content. In both of the above patents the method of depositing the active metals and promoter on the alumina support is described as not critical.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,545,674 discloses a cobalt-based catalyst wherein the active metal is dispersed as a very thin film on the surface of a particulate support, preferably silica or titania or a titania-containing support. The catalyst may be prepared by spray techniques.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,028,634 discloses supported cobalt-based catalysts, preferably supported on high surface area aluminas. High surface area supports are said to be preferred because greater cobalt dispersion can be achieved as cobalt is added, with less tendency for one crystal of cobalt to fall on another crystal of cobalt. The cobalt loading on a titania support is preferably 10 to 25 wt %, while the preferred cobalt loading on an alumina support is 5 to 45 wt %.
International Publication Nos. WO 98/47618 and WO 98/47620 disclose the use of rhenium promoters and describe several functions served by the rhenium.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,248,701 discloses a copper promoted cobalt-manganese spinel that is said to be useful as a Fischer-Tropsch catalyst with selectivity for olefins and higher paraffins.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,302,622 discloses a supported cobalt and ruthenium based catalyst including other components and preferably prepared by a gelling procedure to incorporate the catalyst components in an alcogel formed from a hydrolyzable compound of silicon, and/or aluminum, and optional compounds. The cobalt content after calcination is preferably between 14 and 40 wt % of the catalyst.
UK Patent Application GB 2,258,414A, published Feb. 10, 1993, discloses a supported catalyst containing cobalt, molybdenum and/or tungsten, and an additional element. The support is preferably one or more oxides of the elements Si, Al, Ti, Zr, Sn, Zn, Mg, and elements with atomic numbers from 57 to 71. After calcination, the preferred cobalt content is from 5 to 40 wt % of the catalyst. A preferred method of preparation of the catalyst includes the preparation of a gel containing the cobalt and other elements.
A gel may be described as a coherent, rigid three-dimensional polymeric network. The present gels are formed in a liquid medium, usually water, alcohol, or a mixture thereof. The term "alcogel" describes gels in which the pores are filled with predominantly alcohol. Gels whose pores are filled primarily with water may be referred to as aquagels or hydrogels.
A "xerogel" is a gel from which the liquid medium has been removed and replaced by a gas. In general, the structure is compressed and the porosity reduced significantly by the surface tension forces that occur as the liquid is removed. As soon as liquid begins to evaporate from a gel at temperatures below the critical temperature, surface tension creates concave menisci in the gel's pores. As evaporation continues, the menisci retreat into the gel body, compressive forces build up around its perimeter, and the perimeter contracts, drawing the gel body inward. Eventually surface tension causes significant collapse of the gel body and a reduction of volume, often as much as two-thirds or more of the original volume. This shrinkage causes a significant reduction in the porosity, often as much as 90 to 95 percent depending on the system and pore sizes.
In contrast, an "aerogel" is a gel from which the liquid has been removed in such a way as to prevent significant collapse or change in the structure as liquid is removed. This is typically accomplished by heating the liquid-filled gel in an autoclave while maintaining the prevailing pressure above the vapor pressure of the liquid until the critical temperature of the liquid has been exceeded, and then gradually releasing the vapor, usually by gradually reducing the pressure either incrementally or continuously, while maintaining the temperature above the critical temperature. The critical temperature is the temperature above which it is impossible to liquefy a gas, regardless of how much pressure is applied. At temperatures above the critical temperature, the distinction between liquid and gas phases disappears and so do the physical manifestations of the gas/liquid interface. In the absence of an interface between liquid and gas phases, there is no surface tension and hence no surface tension forces to collapse the gel. Such a process may be termed "supercritical drying." Aerogels produced by supercritical drying typically have high porosities, on the order of from 50 to 99 percent by volume.
International Publication No. WO 96/19289 discloses active metal coated catalysts supported on an inorganic oxide, and notes that dispersion of the active metal on Fischer-Tropsch catalysts has essential effects on the activity of the catalyst and on the composition of the hydrocarbons obtained.
Despite the vast amount of research effort in this field, there is still a great need for new catalysts for Fischer-Tropsch synthesis, particularly catalysts that provide high C.sub.5.sup.+ hydrocarbon selectivities to maximize the value of the hydrocarbons produced and thus enhance the process economics.