Refining India December 2025 Issue

FCC catalyst feed and PPO properties

FCC catalyst feed and PPO properties

S. No Parameters

PPO 0.79

FCC catalyst feed

Parameters

Value

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Density, g/cc

0.938

MAT, wt%

69

Conradson carbon residue, wt%

0.1 58 2.8 11 50 70

1.7

Nickel, ppmw

3,746 2,283

Bromine number

2 0

Vanadium, ppmw

Diene

Total surface area, m²/g Apparent bulk density, g/cc

121 0.83 0.57 3.45

Sulphur, ppm Chloride, ppm

23,352

1.1

P 2 O 5 , wt% RE 2 O 3 , wt%

Total nitrogen, ppm

752

Table 1

Table 2

One major concern is the presence of oxygenates and olefinic components in PPO, which may lead to excessive coke formation during processing in the FCC unit. High coke yield can reduce catalyst efficiency and necessitate frequent regeneration cycles, “ Advances in catalyst technology, feedstock treatment, and process optimisation will play a crucial role in enabling the successful integration of plastic waste-derived feedstocks into existing refining infrastructure ” increasing operational costs. Additionally, contaminants such as chlorine, nitrogen, and sulphur can cause corrosion in the main fractionator and gas concentration section of the FCC unit, leading to maintenance issues and possible equipment degradation. High

chloride and nitrogen content of PPO causes ammonium chloride corrosion in the top trays of the main fractionator, whereas high sulphur content causes ammonium sulphide corrosion in the main fractionator overhead condenser. Ammonium chloride salt deposition can be avoided by operating the main fractionator column top temperature above the ammonium chloride sublimation temperature, whereas ammonium sulphide corrosion can be reduced in the overhead section by using wash water and corrosion inhibitors. The composition of PPO also tends to vary, depending on the source and type of plastic waste used in pyrolysis, making process optimisation challenging. Ultimately, while FCC is a highly efficient process for converting VGO into valuable products, adapting it for alternative feedstocks like PPO requires overcoming technical and operational challenges. Advances in catalyst technology, feedstock treatment, and process

optimisation will play a crucial role in enabling the successful integration of plastic waste-derived feedstocks into existing refining infrastructure. Co-processing of PPO in FCC unit Co-processing of plastic pyrolysis included the selection of oil suitable for HPCL FCC units, studying the impact of PPO on FCC product yields, tuning FCC

80

100% FCC feed 0.5% PPO + 99.5% FCC cat feed 5% PPO + 95% FCC cat feed

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

Dry gas

LPG

CRN

LCO

Resid

Coke

Conversion

Figure 2 Product yields obtained in laboratory catalytic cracking for 0.5% and 5% PPO processing

Refining India

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