Isobutane alkylation with C4 olefins: regeneration of metal-containing catalysts

Abstract

The activity, selectivity, stability, and regeneration of metal-containing zeolites, used in the isobutane alkylation with C4 olefins is studied. Platinum and palladium were impregnated on Y-zeolite catalysts that were previously ion-exchanged with lanthanum. The activity and stability of these catalysts are similar to the same catalysts without metal. The coke content after 40 minutes of reaction is also similar, between 10 and 13 % approximately. The regeneration was carried out in air, and hydrogen. It was found that in order to remove all the coke from the catalysts, high temperatures are needed. Mild treatments either in hydrogen or in air do not allow a complete coke removal. Nevertheless, the regeneration with hydrogen at the reaction temperature, even though only eliminates a fraction of the coke, allows recovering also a fraction of the activity.