Burning off the rejected carbon (coke) in the regenerator provides the energy necessary for cracking without much loss, thus increasing the thermal efficiency of the process. Heat released from burning the coke deposit increases the temperature of the catalyst particles that are returned to the riser to complete the cycle.
After removing the adsorbed hydrocarbons by steam stripping, the coked catalyst is sent to the regeneration unit to burn off the coke with air. Cracking reactions also deposit a significant amount of coke on the catalysts, leading to the deactivation of the catalyst. The temperature of the catalyst particles drops as the evaporation of gas oil and endothermic cracking reactions proceed during the upward movement. The hot catalyst particles coming from the regenerator unit evaporate the feed gas oil upon contact in the riser, and the cracking starts as the gas oil vapors and the catalyst particles move upward in the reactor. In FCC, a fluidized-bed (or fluid-bed) of catalyst particles is brought into contact with the gas oil feed along with injected steam at the entrance (called the riser) of the reactor. This article was most recently revised and updated by Robert Curley.Fluid Catalytic Process, also introduced in 1942, offered an excellent integration of the cracking reactor and the catalyst regenerator that provides the highest thermal efficiency, as shown in Figure 7.7. Modern low-temperature hydrocracking was put into commercial production in 1963 by the Standard Oil Company of California (later the Chevron Corporation).
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This process employs hydrogen gas to improve the hydrogen-carbon ratio in the cracked molecules and to arrive at a broader range of end products, such as gasoline, kerosene (used in jet fuel), and diesel fuel. During the 1950s, as demand for automobile and jet fuel increased, hydrocracking was applied to petroleum refining. Catalytic cracking was itself improved in the 1940s with the use of fluidized or moving beds of powdered catalyst. His process was introduced in 1936 by the Socony-Vacuum Oil Company (later Mobil Oil Corporation) and in 1937 by the Sun Oil Company (later Sunoco, Inc.). Also in the 1920s, French chemist Eugène Houdry improved the cracking process with catalysts to obtain a higher- octane product. Various improvements to thermal cracking were introduced into the 1920s. The first thermal cracking process for breaking up large nonvolatile hydrocarbons into gasoline came into use in 1913 it was invented by William Merriam Burton, a chemist who worked for the Standard Oil Company (Indiana), which later became the Amoco Corporation. Can you filter your way through our chemistry quiz? The gases can be used in the refinery’s fuel system, but they are also important raw materials for petrochemical plants, where they are made into a large number of end products, ranging from synthetic rubber and plastic to agricultural chemicals.įrom the elements of the periodic table to the processes that create everyday objects-these are just a few of the things that the science of chemistry can teach us. Depending on the end product, the oils can go directly into fuel blending, or they can be routed through further cracking reactions or other refining processes until they have produced oils of the desired weight. Cracking is the most important process for the commercial production of gasoline and diesel fuel.Ĭracking of petroleum yields light oils (corresponding to gasoline), middle-range oils used in diesel fuel, residual heavy oils, a solid carbonaceous product known as coke, and such gases as methane, ethane, ethylene, propane, propylene, and butylene. Britannica Explains In these videos, Britannica explains a variety of topics and answers frequently asked questions.Ĭracking, in petroleum refining, the process by which heavy hydrocarbon molecules are broken up into lighter molecules by means of heat and usually pressure and sometimes catalysts.This Time in History In these videos, find out what happened this month (or any month!) in history.#WTFact Videos In #WTFact Britannica shares some of the most bizarre facts we can find.