Catalyst Regenerability

There are many criteria to judge whether a catalyst has the required properties to perform during another cycle. Series of tests are carried out on the catalyst samples regenerated in optimized conditions :

  Surface area recovery

For many catalyst types the surface area is one of the key parameters to check the regenerability. It is usually compared to the fresh reference catalyst surface area.

  Mechanical Strength

The crushing strength measurement gives an idea whether a catalyst can undergo standard unit loading and operating constraints without excessive breakage.

  Contaminants

EURECAT analyses the possible contaminants deposited on the catalyst surface during its life cycle. Our data base includes correlations between the contamination degree and activity recovery.

  Length measurements

Fines content, particle size distribution and void fraction measurement can help finding information on unit pressure drop. Eventually, these measurements may lead to a special sieving and/or length grading in order to selectively remove small extrudates and improve particle size distribution.

  Chemisorption tests

For specific catalysts such as Pt, Pd bearing catalysts, the surface area measurement is not sufficient to assess the regenerability of a catalyst as it only reflects the quality of the catalyst support. The metal dispersion state is an important parameter that should also be checked. Chemisorption analyses are particularly usefull for measuring this key parameter.

  Activity testing

In some cases, our customers need to know the actual activity recovery for a particular application (e.g. deep HDS). EURECAT operates two pilot plants and can measure catalytic activity. The results are given as a relative activity compared to a fresh reference catalyst tested in the same conditions.