Publication: Supporting catalyst management in a refinery

Authors: Kai Dannenbauer, Ioan-Teodor Trotus, Robert Henkel and Florian Huber (hte)

Hydrocarbon Engineering, March 2021

Competition in the refining sector demands utilisation of bottom of the barrel (BoB) upgrading technology for a higher yield of high-value products, continuous process optimisation, and efficient troubleshooting. Furthermore, a certain flexibility is required in terms of crude and production in order to meet changing market demands. This challenging environment makes refinery operation a highly complex daily task that needs an expert level of technical proficiency to obtain and maintain a technical utilisation rate above 90% for sustainable economic performance. In an article by hte GmbH, published in the November 2020 issue of Hydrocarbon Engineering, it was explained how catalyst testing and customised test protocols can support refineries in maintaining operational efficiency in the area of process optimisation and troubleshooting. This article will stress the importance of sustainable catalyst management for catalytic BoB upgrading technologies