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This post was last edited by Jiang Chengzi on 2011-12-21 08:49. The development of catalysts plays a crucial role in promoting key industries such as petrochemicals and in protecting the environment necessary for human survival. From the perspective of the overall development of these industries, the catalyst manufacturing sector abroad has the following characteristics. ① Catalyst manufacturers are merging and forming partnerships to strengthen their competitive position: According to a survey of the types of catalysts available in the global refining catalyst market conducted by the U.S. magazine Oil & Gas Journal in 1999, there were 825 different types of catalysts worldwide, produced by 27 manufacturers; in 1997, these figures were 790 types and 31 manufacturers respectively. Many manufacturers have expanded their product range, resulting in the number of new products exceeding the number of products that are phased out. Since the 1990s, Akzo acquired Filtrol’s catalytic cracking catalysts, while Engelhard acquired Harshaw’s hydrogenation catalysts. ICI Katalco and Dycat International in the UK, as well as Acreon Catalysts and LaRoche Industries in the US, no longer exist. In September 1998, the ICI Group merged its five companies involved in catalyst business (ICI Katalco, Unichema, HTC, Vertec, and Tracerco) to form Synetix. In 1999, Synetix acquired Dycat as well. In 2001, CRI International acquired Kataleune Company and optimized its products. CRI holds 50% each in Criterion and Zeolyst International. Meanwhile, Kataleuna withdrew from the fields of naphtha catalytic reforming and hydrocracking catalysts, and entered the areas of hydrocarbon steam reforming and xylene isomerization. In 2000, Chevron Research and Technology Company (a division of Chevron Products Company) and Rhums Catalyst Company (a division of Rhums Company) formed Chevron-Rhums Company (CLG). CLG now produces hydrocracking, mild hydrocracking, lubricant dewaxing, and hydrofinishing catalysts. Additionally, CLG’s STARS catalyst is a CLG product manufactured by AkzoNobel, and it incorporates AkzoNobel’s STARS technology. In August 2002, Advanced Refining Technologies (ART), a joint venture between Chevron Oil Products and Grace-Davison, acquired the hydroprocessing catalyst technology business of Japan Energy Corporation (JEC) and its subsidiary Oriental Catalyst Company (OCC). ART’s Japanese subsidiary, ART KK, produces catalysts at Hitachi Eastern Catalyst Company’s factory in Japan, and it also has a catalyst research center operated by JEC in Tota. Johnson Matthey (JM) acquired the Synetix catalyst division of former ICI in 2002. In the field of fuel catalysts, the top 5 manufacturers are: Grace Company, AkzoNobel, Engelhard, Standard Catalysts (which also owns Zeolyst), and UOP Company. Synetix and Southern Chemical Company are among the top 10. Between 2002 and 2003, the refinery catalyst industry also saw the following developments: Engelhard and Sasol formed a partnership to produce FTO synthesis catalysts in De Meen, the Netherlands ； Advanced Refining Technologies Company acquires Orient Catalyst Company’s hydrogenation catalyst business. In May 2004, Albemarle acquired AkzoNobel’s refining catalyst business for $625 million; this move raised the position of this American specialty chemicals company in the U.S. specialty chemicals market from 10th to 6th. Following the acquisition of AkzoNobel’s refining catalyst business, Albemarle will become the world’s largest producer of HPC catalysts and the second-largest producer of FCC catalysts. ② Business operations were adjusted proactively in response to market changes: In the early 1990s, there were 6 companies with a catalytic cracking catalyst production capacity of over 40,000 tons per year. UOP’s Kalisks Company and Crsfield Catalyst Company each had two such production facilities; Katalistoks Company had a production capacity of 215 tons per day. Due to high research and development costs as well as manufacturing expenses, coupled with low catalyst prices and a mediocre market outlook, these two companies withdrew from the catalytic cracking catalyst business in the mid-1990s. UOP expanded its operations in the area of reforming and hydrogenation catalysts, and also ventured into areas such as polymerization, isomerization, sulfur recovery, deodorization, and treatment of off-gases from Claus units in oil refining. Grace Davison is the world’s largest manufacturer of catalytic cracking catalysts, followed by Akzo-Nobel, Engelhard, Catalysts and Chemical Industries Company, and the Mexican Petroleum Institute. Akzo-Nobel has a wide range of business activities, while Engelhard has seen rapid growth in its business related to catalysts for automobile exhaust purification; it claims to hold one-third of the world’s market share in this area. The Davidson Catalysts division of Grace Company has achieved a series of significant technical breakthroughs in the development of residue cracking catalysts. These technologies include Midas—alumina sol catalysts for the maximum cracking and upgrading of residue oil; the company’s Challis Lake facility has undergone millions of dollars in investment to expand its capacity for producing alumina sol catalysts ； Impact – it offers the highest coke selectivity in catalytic cracking of residue; Impact can be regarded as one of the greatest breakthroughs in the past 10 years. Environmental regulations have driven the growth of the market for catalysts used in the production of clean fuels (including desulfurization), and there is great potential in the coming years. Davidson Company has introduced the SuperSaturn catalyst for catalytic cracking, and pilot tests have shown that it can reduce sulfur content in catalytic cracking gasoline by 50% to 70%. In 2003, Davidson Company’s sales of catalysts for low-sulfur gasoline increased by 30% to 40%, and the implementation of clean air regulations in Europe and the United States ensures continued favorable prospects for this industry. Davidson introduced the Impact catalyst to the FCC sulfur reduction catalyst market for treating heavy residue, and it has now been used in 6 FCC units. In addition, sales of the company’s FCC sulfur-reduction catalyst under the Surca brand also increased. The Sbrane sulfur reduction technology using a membrane system has also been developed; its verification tests have been completed and it is now being moved toward commercialization. The hydrotreating operations of Advanced Refining Technologies (ART), a joint venture between Grace-Davison Company and Chevron Corporation, have seen development. ART’s key catalyst business involves using its ApART catalyst system for the hydrotreatment of catalytic cracking feedstocks, and low-sulfur FCC feedstocks will play an important role in producing cleaner fuels. C & C T (Catalysts and Chemical Industries) is the world’s largest supplier of hydrogenation catalysts, producing catalysts for applications such as hydroprocessing, hydrocracking, hydrotreating, isomerization, and naphtha catalytic reforming. Engelhard’s catalyst business covers areas such as refining, gas-to-liquid (GTL), petrochemicals, and polyolefins. Especially in the refining industry, the Dispersed Matrix Structure (DMS) platform technology was introduced in 2001; DMS technology can be regarded as a major breakthrough in catalytic cracking catalysts over the past 25 years. By using the DMS-based NaphthaMax catalyst, the gasoline yield can be increased by 2%. Experience shows that increasing the gasoline yield by 2% is equivalent to an increase in gasoline production of 151 cubic meters per day. In addition, the conversion rate and yields of other products were also improved, resulting in total benefits of over 10 million dollars per year. Engelhard has recently introduced a new type of zeolite molecular sieve catalyst: the Flex-Tech catalytic cracking catalyst. This catalyst is also based on DMS technology, and it can **increase the yield of gasoline produced from heavy residue or feedstocks with high impurity levels. Additionally, this catalyst system is capable of neutralizing metals such as nickel and vanadium, which may contaminate the catalyst in heavy feedstocks. Catalyst products derived from DMS have been used in over 70 refineries around the world, and now account for more than 40% of Engelhard FCC catalysts. Engelhard has introduced molecular sieve-based additives that allow refineries to process a wide range of crude oils without having to change the FCC catalysts. This additive is named Converter. Nine industrial trials were conducted in 2002 (in Australia, Europe, Mexico, and the United States), and it has been shown that it can reduce FCC slurry by more than 50% without increasing the reaction temperature, while also improving product yield. The use of Converters can improve the flexibility of refinery processing, and this additive can be blended into all FCC catalysts. Converter is the third product of Engelhard’s proprietary Dispersed Matrix Structure (DMS) molecular sieve technology. Engelhard has also introduced new technologies—CleanOx and OxyClean—to control FCC NOx emissions, enabling refineries to meet or exceed EPA regulations at low cost. CleanOx and OxyClean are environmentally friendly additives that can **reduce NOx emissions from FCC units without affecting their operational performance**. Axen, a manufacturer of refining catalysts, saw its sales in 2002 (including those from joint ventures) increase by 32% to $590 million. The company holds a global market share of over 30% for FCC catalysts, and 30% as well for hydroprocessing catalysts. The company has introduced the Resolve additive for reducing sulfur in FCC gasoline. AkzoNobel has introduced the Stars hydrogenation catalyst, and in collaboration with ExxonMobil it has developed the Nebula catalyst system – both of which are used for producing low-sulfur fuels. Nebula catalyst from AkzoNobel represents the most significant advancement in desulfurization technology in the past 20 years; it enables a desulfurization efficiency for diesel that is twice that of conventional technologies, facilitating its industrial use in the production of ultra-low sulfur diesel. Many refineries can use this technology to produce diesel with a sulfur content of less than 10 μg/g, with little or no additional investment required. It has now been applied in three industrial units that originally produced diesel with 350 μg/g of sulfur; after replacing the catalysts, they are able to produce diesel with 2–3 μg/g of sulfur at a lower temperature of 325°C. In terms of FCC environmental catalysts, AkzoNobel’s NOx removal additives can reduce NOx by 40% to 80%. The global technology division of ABB Lummus generates sales of $2 billion per year; of this amount, $200 million is related to catalysts and the transfer of process technologies, which pertains to petrochemical and chemical catalysts such as styrene catalysts. Sud Chemical Company’s catalyst sales amounted to 375.1 million euros per year (324.5 million dollars per year), of which one-third came from its refinery catalyst business. Southern Chemical Company has made some recent advances in the production of catalysts. In terms of desulfurization technology, the highly sulfur-resistant ASAT desulfurization catalyst developed can be used to modify gas oil to produce ultra-clean fuels. The ASAT catalyst technology can utilize existing hydroprocessing units without any modifications as the first unit; subsequently, a second desulfurization reactor can be used to process feedstocks with a sulfur content of 500 PPm. In terms of hydrogenation, the next generation of NiSAT catalysts can be used for the hydrogenation of refinery solvents or white oils, as well as for benzene removal from gasoline streams. In terms of hydrodesulfurization, when the sulfur content in diesel fuel is 15 PPm, the low-temperature fluidity of the diesel becomes a concern. The company’s zeolite-based HYDEX catalyst can be used alone or in combination with hydrodesulfurization catalysts in existing hydrotreatment units. In naphtha isomerization, zeolite-based HYSOPAR catalysts can improve the ability to produce isomerized oil for gasoline blending. The use of catalysts can also reduce pollution emissions from refineries, including VOC conversion, CO oxidation, and NOX removal. Some zeolite catalysts containing specific metals can facilitate the selective catalytic reduction of NOX and help to **reduce** VOC emissions. Southern Chemical has put the new catalyst PRO?VOC2A into commercial use; by oxidizing VOCs (volatile organic compounds), it is possible to reduce VOC emissions to minimal levels. Axens, a joint venture between IFP and the catalyst manufacturing division of Procatalyse, has developed the Axens Prime-G+ process and catalysts for the desulfurization of FCC gasoline. Total has decided to apply the Prime-G process catalyst system for producing clean gasoline at three refineries, including the Antwerp refinery. The Prime-G process can reduce the sulfur content in FCC gasoline to less than 10PPm. The Prime-G technology has seen 70 units transferred, producing 81.7 million tons of \"green\" gasoline per year. Furthermore, Fortum Oil & Gas has successfully commissioned the Prime G+ unit at the Nortti refinery in Finland. This plant with a capacity of 245,000 tons per year utilizes technology and catalysts from Axens, and industrial operations have shown that it is capable of desulfurizing FCC gasoline to 16 PPm. Axens has seen rapid growth in its business in the areas of FCC gasoline hydrotreatment, catalytic reforming, alkane isomerization, and hydrotreatment/hydrocracking catalysts. In 2003, it signed 19 projects for the transfer of the Prime-G+ catalyst technology for FCC gasoline desulfurization, most of these projects being located in North America; it is expected that this business will expand in the Middle East and Asia between 2005 and 2007. Engelhard’s specially designed adsorbent technology, S Zorb, was used in 2003 in a large-scale 860,000 tons per year gasoline desulfurization unit at the Phillips refinery on the Chinese mainland, enabling the removal of up to 99% of the sulfur contained in gasoline. Engelhard Company has developed an economical and effective method using FCC additives to reduce NOx and SOx emissions. Davidson Catalysts, a subsidiary of Grace Company, invested millions of dollars to expand the FCC catalyst production facilities at the Charlevoix facility in the United States, producing high-quality Davidson FCC catalysts, including Aurova-XLC and the residue FCC catalyst Impact. Davidson also collaborated with ExxonMobil Research & Engineering to produce the ExxonMobil AdVante FCC catalyst. Catalysts for gas-to-liquid (GTL) production will experience double-digit growth in the coming years. The existing GTL capacity exceeds 13.5 million tons per year, with companies such as Sasol, Chevron Texaco, Shell, and Continental Phillips involved in this sector. It is estimated that by 2015, the GTL market will reach 45 million tons per year. GTL catalysts have development opportunities. ③ Carry out extensive international cooperation: Major catalyst companies around the world no longer operate with any sense of geography; they use mergers, partnerships, or joint ventures to build new factories and expand their operations across the globe in order to gain a foothold in various markets. Akzo was formed in 1969 from the AKU Group and the Akzo Group; in 1994, Akzo merged with EKA Nobel to create Akzo-Nobel, which **strengthened the company’s strategic position**. That year, its sales reached $14 billion, and it had 7,000 employees, of whom over 6,000 were engaged in research and development. Akzo-Nobel has a very extensive catalyst manufacturing business, producing catalysts that fall into several main categories, including catalytic cracking catalysts, hydroprocessing catalysts, hydrocracking catalysts, isomerization catalysts, and catalysts for chemical processes. In addition to its manufacturing plant in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, where it is headquartered, Akzo-Nobel has also set up production facilities in Houston and Los Angeles in the United States, in Santarém in Brazil, and in Singapore. Its production capacity for catalytic cracking catalysts amounts to 180,000 tons per year, with the production capacity in Amsterdam being 50,000 tons per year. Akzo-Nobel actively engages in collaborative projects with its international peers; for example, in the production of hydrogenation catalysts, it manufactures products jointly with Nippon Ketjen. It has also formed an alliance with ExxonMobil, Kellogg, and Finetech Research to develop a complete set of medium-pressure hydrocracking technologies. ④ Leveraging the strong technical support of its parent company, it provides integrated services: Among the refinery catalyst manufacturers listed in the 2001 World Refining Catalysts compilation by the American \"Oil & Gas Journal\", there are 5 manufacturers of catalytic cracking catalysts, 11 manufacturers of hydrocracking catalysts, 10 manufacturers of medium-pressure hydrocracking catalysts, 12 manufacturers of hydrotreating catalysts, 14 manufacturers of hydrofining catalysts, and 5 manufacturers of catalytic reforming catalysts. Some of these catalyst manufacturers are involved in the production of several types of catalysts at the same time, but 19 companies are actually included in the OGJ statistics. Among the 19 catalyst manufacturing companies, a significant number are subsidiaries of Fortune 500 multinational corporations; typical examples include Exxon Research and Engineering Company, UOP Company, and BASF Company. Their parent companies are giants in the global petrochemical industry, and they are also engaged in activities such as the development of new refining processes, process design, and the provision of complete sets of equipment. A considerable portion of refining catalysts were introduced alongside newly developed refining processes. In areas such as the desulfurization and dearomatization of diesel, many companies that produce hydrogenation catalysts have developed their own processes. For example, the Synshift/Synsat process was developed jointly by ABB Lummus Crest Inc. and Criterion Catalyst Co.LP; UOP’s Hydrofuning process; while Akzo-Nobel and Topsee have also developed processes of their own. ⑤ The geographical distribution of catalyst manufacturers is relatively concentrated: the major oil refining catalyst companies are located in Europe and the United States, with catalyst factories also established in Brazil and Argentina in South America. There are no reports of catalyst production facilities operating in Oceania, Africa, or the Middle East. In Asia, countries such as South Korea, India, and Singapore have jointly established catalyst factories; India’s domestic catalyst manufacturing industry has also developed to some extent, but its overall technical level remains relatively low. Japan is active in research related to oil refining and environmental protection catalysts, and catalyst production in this field is mainly carried out by the company Catalyst Kasei Co., Ltd. Japan engages in significant cooperation with companies in Europe and the United States in the development and production of oil refining and environmental protection catalysts. Last edited by Look up on 2007-2-9 09:15]