The Invention of Zeolite Cracking Catalysts—A Personal Viewpoint
1983; American Chemical Society; Linguagem: Inglês
10.1021/bk-1983-0222.ch022
ISSN1947-5918
Autores Tópico(s)Advanced Data Processing Techniques
ResumoThe story of zeolite cracking catalysts is told from the viewpoint of Mobil inventors, C. J. Plank and E. J. Rosinski, whose patents laid the foundation for modern catalytic cracking. Their basic patent, U.S. 3,140,249, led to the induction of the inventors as the 30th and 31st members of the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 1979. It describes "Catalytic Cracking of Hydrocarbons with a Crystalline Zeolite Catalyst Composite". The catalyst consists of a finely divided crystalline alumino-silicate, having uniform pore openings between 6 and 15 Angstrom units, dispersed in an inorganic oxide matrix and has a low sodium content. Background work leading to the invention and the economic significance of zeolite catalysts are discussed. The synergistic properties of these composites are pointed out. The extraordinary activity and selectivity of the new catalysts led to a very rapid commercialization. Specifically, much higher gasoline yields were obtained at the expense of gas and coke. In addition, greatly increased gas oil conversions could be obtained without increasing coke yields. Use of the zeolite catalysts has been estimated to save the U.S. petroleum industry 200,000,000 barrels of imported crude oil a year. Thus, at the present price of crude oil the value of these catalysts to our economy is quite substantial.
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