Fischer Tropsch Synthesis: The Promoter Effects, Operating Conditions, and Reactor Synthesis

Abstract

The effects of K, Ce, Zn, Cs, and Rb promoters on the structure and catalytic behavior of precipitated 50%Fe/50%Mn catalyst in Fischer–Tropsch synthesis (FTS) were investigated in a fixed-bed reactor. The effects of promoter on Fischer-Tropsch iron catalysts caused an increased growth probability of hydrocarbon chains from 0.67 to 0.75 for K to Rb promoter, and the olefin/paraffin ratios increased from 0.99 to 1.36 for Rb to K-promoted catalyst. The effect on the olefin selectivity was certainly due to increased adsorption strength of CO causing an enhanced displacement of olefin. The catalysts were assessed in terms of their FTS activity and product selectivity using Anderson–Schulz–Flory (ASF) models. The effects of various reaction conditions such as flow rates, temperatures, and H2/CO feed ratios were studied and process synthesis concepts were used to investigate interactions between the optimum regions for reactor operation and the experimental results.