Sinopec’s refining catalysts are set to embrace new opportunities for development
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HC360 Chemical News: Rising prices of refining catalysts along with increasing demand have created favorable opportunities and conditions for the rapid development of refining catalysts in Sinopec. At the same time, for catalyst suppliers, those who expand their production capacity as quickly as possible will gain an advantage in the market. These are the views expressed by industry experts at the recent Sinopec Refining Catalyst Technology Exchange Conference. In 2005, the global refining catalyst market grew by 3% to 3.5%, and demand for refining catalysts is expected to increase at a rate of 7.4% per year over the next five years, with particularly rapid growth in demand for hydrocracking and hydrofining catalysts. The demand for catalytic cracking catalysts is also on the rise, and due to additional costs of $75 to $100 per ton for the raw materials used in catalyst production in the United States, global prices for catalytic cracking catalysts have increased by $400 per ton since November 29, 2005. Since 2006, the major global suppliers of catalytic cracking catalysts have not carried out any significant capacity expansions, and catalyst production has not increased substantially; as a result, a supply-demand imbalance has gradually emerged. Academician He Mingyuan from the Chinese Academy of Sciences believes that this is a good opportunity for Sinopec to achieve sustainable development in catalytic technologies for oil refining and chemical manufacturing; it is necessary to carry out capacity expansion and upgrades as soon as possible to increase production capacity and gain an advantage in the market. He Mingyuan analyzed that the development direction of catalytic cracking technology is to suppress radical reactions that compete with normal carbon ion cracking in order to achieve good selectivity in the conversion of heavy oils; to increase the selectivity of bimolecular reactions in order to boost gasoline yield and quality; and to enhance the selectivity of normal carbon ion cracking in order to increase propylene production. Da Zhijian, vice president of the Institute of Petrology, believes that with the advent of an era of high oil prices, in order to cope with the changes in the diversity of crude oils processed, the flexibility and complexity of refineries will inevitably increase significantly. As a result, rapid crude oil evaluation and product analysis technologies, along with corresponding refinery optimization techniques, online adjustment technologies for crude oils and products, and advanced control and automation technologies for production processes, will be widely utilized. The models of refineries in the 21st century can be simply divided into three types: clean fuel-type, oil and chemical integration-type, and chemical-type. Clean fuel refineries can be further divided into cracking-type and synthetic-type refineries, or combinations of both. Among these, processing technologies for heavy and low-quality crude oils such as unconventional crude oils (including advanced hydrogenation and decarbonization techniques), hydrogenation refining technologies for ultra-high-quality fuels, IGCC technology, and F-T synthesis technology will serve as the key technologies. For oil-refining and chemical-refining types of plants, the technology for producing low-carbon olefins from heavy feedstocks will become a key technology. Considering future developments in refining technology and refinery operations, zeolite molecular sieves will remain the most important catalytic materials in refining; the focus will be on developing new molecular sieve materials suitable for the conversion of heavy oils, hydroprocessing, and methanol conversion ； Hydrogenation catalysts are the focus of future development in refining catalysts, and their efficiency will be improved by combining new carriers with hydrogenation activity. This Sinopec refining catalyst technology exchange meeting was organized by the Catalyst Branch in order to further enhance communication among those involved in catalyst research and development, production, and application; to promote the use of new types of refining catalysts and additives; and to drive the development of new catalyst products. It was held with the strong support and assistance of the Corporation’s Science and Technology Development Department, the Refining Business Unit, and other relevant parties. This is the most comprehensive and largest oil refining catalyst technology exchange event held since the establishment of the Catalyst Branch.
Are there any materials from the Sinopec refining catalyst technology exchange meeting?
Are there more detailed materials available for the Sinopec refining catalyst technology exchange meeting?
Due to the implementation of new fuel standards, increased refining capacity, and the greater use of heavy and lower-quality feedstocks by refiners, 2007 will be a year of strong growth for refining catalysts. The market for catalytic cracking (FCC) catalysts will shift from a supply surplus to a more balanced situation, while the supply and demand of hydrogenation catalysts will be slightly tighter than in 2006. According to a report by the Freedonia Group, the annual growth rate of sales revenue for global petroleum refining catalysts is 2.8%, and this figure is expected to reach $3.5 billion by 2010 (see Table 1). Its consumption is growing at an annual rate of 2.1%, and will reach 4.1 million tons by 2010. Driven by stringent low-sulfur regulations in developed countries, the implementation of sulfur limits in countries such as China, India, and Mexico, as well as an increase in oil with high sulfur content, the annual growth rate of sales revenue for hydrogenation catalysts was 4.4%, reaching $1.8 billion by 2010. Driven by rising gasoline consumption in developed countries, the annual growth rate of sales revenue for FCC catalysts was 2.7%, reaching $1.2 billion by 2010. Growth in refining catalysts will be concentrated in the Asia-Pacific region, particularly in China and other rapidly developing markets such as the Middle East, where refining capacity is increasing. Most of the growing demand for hydrogenation catalysts is in North America, Western Europe, and Japan, where new low-sulfur regulations for vehicle fuels have been in effect since 2005. Haldor Topsoe expects that, driven by the production of cleaner fuels, the need to build new refineries, and the commissioning of large heavy oil projects in Canada and Latin America, sales of refining catalysts will grow at an average annual rate of 4% to 5% over the next 5 to 10 years. There is a shortage of FCC catalysts. Some refineries have switched to using heavier feedstocks, including heavy crude oil and heavy oils from tar sands, which has resulted in a shift from an oversupply to a shortage of FCC catalysts in the market. Processing heavy feedstocks requires more FCC catalysts and hydrogenation catalysts. Although processing is more difficult and costly, heavy crude oils are being used more frequently, becoming a more attractive alternative to expensive light crude oils. Some **regulations have been introduced to reduce the sulfur content in gasoline and diesel, which is driving an increase in demand for FCC catalysts, hydrogenation catalysts, as well as new catalyst technologies. In the coming years, new refining capacity will come online, which will also drive the development of the catalyst industry. Demand for FCC catalysts is expected to experience significant growth in 2007, primarily due to the accelerated construction of new FCC units, especially in the Middle East, China, and India. According to Yakuho Corporation’s projections, if all newly built FCC units come online over the next 3 to 5 years, demand for FCC catalysts is expected to increase by 20%. Yabao, BASF, and Grace Davison are the three largest producers of FCC catalysts, and to meet demand, their FCC catalyst production facilities operate at nearly 90% capacity. The tight market has prompted some projects to overcome bottlenecks and expand capacity, but the additional capacity remains limited. After acquiring Angst in 2006, BASF became a leading producer of FCC catalysts. Driven primarily by the growth in per capita fuel consumption in China, India, and the Middle East, the annual growth rate of FCC catalysts is expected to be 3%–4%. The performance of Grace Davidson Company, the catalyst division of Grace Company, continues to improve; this company produces FCC catalysts and FCC additives, as well as hydrogenation catalysts. Its operating income in 2006 increased by 9.4% compared to the previous year, reaching 171.9 million dollars ； Sales revenue increased by 9.5% year-on-year, reaching $1.5 billion. Another factor driving the demand for FCC catalysts is the trend toward producing more light olefins in FCC units, in order to meet the growing demand for downstream derivatives, primarily polypropylene. To increase propylene yield, refiners must ensure that the FCC units can operate under more stringent conditions, thereby using more FCC catalysts and FCC additives. Strong demand for hydrogenation catalysts. The EU’s low-sulfur standards were introduced in 2000; these standards require that the sulfur content in diesel fuel used in vehicles not exceed 350 ppm. This limit was further reduced to 50 ppm in 2005, and it is set to drop to 10 ppm by 2009. The United States also shows a similar trend; most regulations require the production of ultra-low sulfur diesel (ULSD), with highway diesel having a sulfur content of 15 ppm or less, and this requirement came into effect on June 1, 2006. With the trend toward processing heavier feedstocks and strict fuel regulations, hydrogenation catalyst manufacturers also face development opportunities as well as new challenges. Shell’s Standard Catalysts and Technologies company is the largest producer of hydrogenation catalysts. The company expects strong growth in demand for hydrogenation catalysts in 2007, with an annual growth rate of 3% to 5% in the foreseeable future. The growing demand for hydrogenation catalysts is driven by three factors: first, the increased use of sulfur-containing feedstocks (heavy crude oil and tar sands bitumen); second, the rising consumption of refined products as fuels; and third, the increasingly stringent fuel specifications. According to Standard Catalysts and Technology Corporation, to upgrade tar sand heavy oil in an expanded-bed hydroprocessing unit, 20 to 30 times more catalyst is required to produce ULSD compared to conventional hydroprocessing. To meet the demand, Standard Catalysts and Technology Company is building a world-class hydrogen catalyst factory in Port Allen, Louisiana, USA, with plans to begin operations by the end of 2008. The company has also expanded its capacity at several catalyst plants in Pittsburg and Azusa, California. Driven by strong demand, Yakuhin expanded its hydrogenation catalyst production capacity at its three manufacturing sites around the world starting in 2005, including a 10,000-ton/year hydrogenation catalyst plant at its Bayport facility in Pasadena, Texas. The hydrogenation catalyst business of Haldor Topsoe also saw improved performance in 2006. Sales revenue increased by 30% compared to 2005, and the outlook remains positive for 2007. Cross-border catalyst companies are seeing rapid growth. Axens saw an increase in both its sales revenue and profits from refinery catalysts in 2006. Apart from FCC catalysts, Axens is among the top 5 producers of refining catalysts in terms of sales revenue. The catalysts provided by this company are applicable to several hydrogenation areas, including FCC gasoline hydrotreating, fixed-bed and continuously regenerated catalytic reforming, hydrocracking, isomerization, and sulfur recovery. Axens has introduced a number of new commercial products, particularly in the areas of atmospheric and reduced-pressure residue desulfurization, gas oil desulfurization, and hydrocracking. The catalysts produced by Southern Chemical Company are used in the chemical, petrochemical, and refining industries. In 2006, both the company’s sales revenue and profits increased by more than 20% compared to the previous year. Five of the company’s 17 production sites will see an expansion of over 20%. The company is also building a catalyst plant in Qatar to supply units for producing synthetic oil from natural gas. The catalysts produced by Degussa at its commercial plant in Niederkassel-Lülsdorf, Germany, are used in the production of biodiesel from rapeseed, and this catalyst business is growing rapidly. UOP is also developing biofuel technologies; its catalyst systems and process technologies are used to produce high-cetane-number \"green diesel\" fuel from vegetable oils. Eni and UOP have jointly developed a \"green diesel\" technology, which will be used in the hydrogenation units for biofuels at Eni’s refineries; these units are set to come online at the beginning of 2009. UOP’s diesel production technology differs from that used to produce conventional biodiesel through the reaction of methanol and vegetable oils; this “green diesel” technology involves the hydrogenation of vegetable oils under mild conditions, followed by hydrodeoxygenation, decarboxylation, and hydroisomerization reactions to produce high-quality diesel. The resulting fuel is ultra-high-quality diesel similar to the hydrocarbons produced by the Fischer-Tropsch process. The catalyst system used in this process consists of several heterogeneous catalysts. At the beginning of 2007, Yabao Corporation established its Alternative Fuel Technologies division, a department dedicated to developing catalysts for processing heavy oil from Canadian tar sands, coal-to-oil, natural gas-to-oil, and biomass-based fuels. This post was last edited by zaizuo on 2008-2-26 16:31]