Characterization of Spent Catalysts during Hydrodemetallization of Atmosphere Residue

Abstract

The deactivation behavior of industrial hydrodemetallization catalysts was investigated in the presented work. The main objective of the study is to contribute to a better understanding of the nature of the coke and metal deposition on the used catalysts by applying chemical analysis and various advanced analytical techniques, such as X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and solid-state carbon-13 nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (13C NMR). The results are discussed scientifically based on the physico–chemical properties of origin and used catalysts.