This dissertation describes preparation and characterization of Ni₂P catalysts and their application in hydrodesulfurization (HDS) and hydrodenitrogenation (HDN). The work carried out includes synthesis of Ni₂P on different siliceous supports, SiO2 and MCM-41. It also includes characterization of these catalytic materials using X-ray diffraction (XRD), temperature-programmed reduction (TPR), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and X-ray absorbance fine structure (XAFS) spectroscopy. In situ FTIR was employed to study the acidity of Ni₂P/SiO₂ and probe the catalytic sites involved in the HDN of pyridine. Transient and steady-state kinetics of a surface intermediate that is formed upon pyridine adsorption and reaction was studied to elucidate the mechanism of HDN over Ni₂P/SiO₂. Additionally, in situ FTIR and X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) spectroscopy was utilized to probe the bonding, mechanism and kinetics of thiophene HDS over a novel MCM-41-supported Ni₂P catalyst. The use of these techniques allowed for better understanding of the surface intermediates, mechanisms and the nature of the active sites involved in HDN and HDS. / Ph. D.

This dissertation describes preparation and characterization of Ni₂P catalysts and their application in deep hydrodesulfurization (HDS) of a model sulfur compound, 4,6-dimethyldibenzothiophene (4,6-DMDBT), one of the most refractory S-compounds. This topic is of great importance in addressing recently enacted environmental regulations limiting the sulfur content in fuels. The work carried out includes synthesis of Ni₂P on different siliceous supports, SiO₂, MCM-41, and ultra-stable Y zeolite (USY). It also includes determining the characteristics of the supported Ni₂P catalysts with a wide range of techniques: X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) spectroscopy. The use of these techniques allowed better understanding of the nature of the active sites as well as the effect of supports. Activity tests were conducted in the HDS of 4,6-DMDBT and the HDN of quinoline. The performance of the catalysts will be compared to that of a conventional sulfide hydrotreating catalyst, Ni-Mo-S/Al₂O₃. Investigation of the reaction mechanism in the hydrodenitrogenation (HDN) of 2-methylpiperidine together with in situ FT-IR measurements were conducted to understand how catalyst properties affect activity and selectivity. / Ph. D.

The pore diameter of a catalyst support controls the diffusion of reactant molecules to the catalytic active sites; thus, affecting the rates and conversions of the hydrotreating reactions. Desirable textural properties of SBA-15 makes it a potential alternative to the conventionally used γ-Al2O3 support due to the fact that its pore size can be manipulated via controlling the synthesis parameters, while maintaining relatively high surface area. Larger pore diameter SBA-15 supports may facilitate the diffusion of bulky molecules as that of the asphaltenes present in the heavy petroleum fractions, making it a potential catalyst support for hydrotreating operations. Considering the very sour nature of Canadas bitumen with high sulfur contents in the range of 2-6 wt %, the appreciably high sulfur contents particularly present in Athabasca derived heavy gas oils (about 4 wt % sulfur), the rising demand for cleaner fuels, and also the increasing stringency on environmental standards, the need for novel and improved hydrotreating catalysts cannot be overemphasized. By varying the molar ratio of hexane to ammonium fluoride, the pore channels of SBA-15 could be varied. Controlling the pore diameter of these supports via micelle swelling facilitated the production of larger pore diameter SBA-15-supported catalysts. In this project, four mesoporous silica SBA-15 catalyst supports with pore diameters in the range of 5-20 nm were synthesized in the preliminary phase using hexane as the micelle swelling agent and subsequently utilized for the loading of 2 wt.% Fe and 15 wt.% W catalyst metals, respectively. The hexagonal mesoscopic structure of these materials were characterized using powder small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), N2 adsorption-desorption isotherms, TEM and SEM images. Powder XRD analysis evidenced inhomogeneous metal dispersion on the largest pore diameter catalyst. An optimum pore diameter of 10 nm was found for Cat-B and subsequently used to obtain the optimum Fe and W loadings required to achieve the best hydrodesulfurization (HDS) and hydrodenitrogenation (HDN) activities. The optimum catalyst was found to be Cat-H with metal loadings of 3 wt.% Fe and 30 wt.% W. At these loadings and temperatures of 375°C, 388°C, and 400°C, HDS activities of 53.4%, 64.1%, and 73.3% with corresponding HDN activities of 21.9%, 26.2%, and 38.3%, respectively, were recorded. Catalytic performance evaluations conducted on equal mass loading using a reference commercial γ-Al2O3-supported FeW catalyst offered HDS activities of 69.3%, 80.4%, and 89.1%, with corresponding HDN activities of 16.4%, 32.4%, and 49.3% at the same temperatures studied. However, no significant changes in HDS and HDN activities were observed for similar evaluations on volume percent metals loading basis. Kinetic studies performed with the optimum FeW/SBA-15 catalyst suggested activation energies of 147.2 and 150.6 kJ/mol for HDS and HDN, respectively, by the Langmuir-Hinshelwoods model. Similar results were predicted by the Power Law and Multi-parameter models for HDS (129.6 and 126.7 kJ/mol, respectively), which does not conclusively make the latter model clearly stand out as the best. Data fitting by the Power Law suggested reaction orders of 2 and 1.5 for HDS and HDN, which seem to be consistent for the hydrotreatment of heavy gas oil. Finally, a long-term deactivation study spanning a period of 60 days time-on-stream showed the optimum catalyst to be stable under hydrotreating experiments conducted in a downward flow micro-trickle bed reactor at temperature, pressure, liquid hourly space velocity (LHSV), and gas/oil ratio of 375400˚C, 8.8 MPa, 1h-1, and 600 mL/mL (at STP), respectively.

The pore diameter of a catalyst support controls the diffusion of reactant molecules to the catalytic active sites; thus, affecting the rates and conversions of the hydrotreating reactions. Desirable textural properties of SBA-15 makes it a potential alternative to the conventionally used γ-Al2O3 support due to the fact that its pore size can be manipulated via controlling the synthesis parameters, while maintaining relatively high surface area. Larger pore diameter SBA-15 supports may facilitate the diffusion of bulky molecules as that of the asphaltenes present in the heavy petroleum fractions, making it a potential catalyst support for hydrotreating operations. Considering the very sour nature of Canadas bitumen with high sulfur contents in the range of 2-6 wt %, the appreciably high sulfur contents particularly present in Athabasca derived heavy gas oils (about 4 wt % sulfur), the rising demand for cleaner fuels, and also the increasing stringency on environmental standards, the need for novel and improved hydrotreating catalysts cannot be overemphasized. By varying the molar ratio of hexane to ammonium fluoride, the pore channels of SBA-15 could be varied. Controlling the pore diameter of these supports via micelle swelling facilitated the production of larger pore diameter SBA-15-supported catalysts. In this project, four mesoporous silica SBA-15 catalyst supports with pore diameters in the range of 5-20 nm were synthesized in the preliminary phase using hexane as the micelle swelling agent and subsequently utilized for the loading of 2 wt.% Fe and 15 wt.% W catalyst metals, respectively. The hexagonal mesoscopic structure of these materials were characterized using powder small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), N2 adsorption-desorption isotherms, TEM and SEM images. Powder XRD analysis evidenced inhomogeneous metal dispersion on the largest pore diameter catalyst. An optimum pore diameter of 10 nm was found for Cat-B and subsequently used to obtain the optimum Fe and W loadings required to achieve the best hydrodesulfurization (HDS) and hydrodenitrogenation (HDN) activities. The optimum catalyst was found to be Cat-H with metal loadings of 3 wt.% Fe and 30 wt.% W. At these loadings and temperatures of 375°C, 388°C, and 400°C, HDS activities of 53.4%, 64.1%, and 73.3% with corresponding HDN activities of 21.9%, 26.2%, and 38.3%, respectively, were recorded. Catalytic performance evaluations conducted on equal mass loading using a reference commercial γ-Al2O3-supported FeW catalyst offered HDS activities of 69.3%, 80.4%, and 89.1%, with corresponding HDN activities of 16.4%, 32.4%, and 49.3% at the same temperatures studied. However, no significant changes in HDS and HDN activities were observed for similar evaluations on volume percent metals loading basis. Kinetic studies performed with the optimum FeW/SBA-15 catalyst suggested activation energies of 147.2 and 150.6 kJ/mol for HDS and HDN, respectively, by the Langmuir-Hinshelwoods model. Similar results were predicted by the Power Law and Multi-parameter models for HDS (129.6 and 126.7 kJ/mol, respectively), which does not conclusively make the latter model clearly stand out as the best. Data fitting by the Power Law suggested reaction orders of 2 and 1.5 for HDS and HDN, which seem to be consistent for the hydrotreatment of heavy gas oil. Finally, a long-term deactivation study spanning a period of 60 days time-on-stream showed the optimum catalyst to be stable under hydrotreating experiments conducted in a downward flow micro-trickle bed reactor at temperature, pressure, liquid hourly space velocity (LHSV), and gas/oil ratio of 375400˚C, 8.8 MPa, 1h-1, and 600 mL/mL (at STP), respectively.

Hydrering är en viktig process för att producera produkter med önskade egenskaper samt att uppfylla de lagliga krav som existerar med avseende på miljö och hälsa. Reaktionerna som sker vid hydreringen är katalytiska vilket innebär att förstå sam utnyttja de mest lämpliga katalysatorerna är av yttersta vikt. Avsvavling (HDS) är en av de mest studerade reaktionerna medan avaromatisering (HDA) samt borttagandet av kväve (HDN) är diskuterade samt förstådda i lägre grad. Trots det är aromatiska samt kväverika föreningar naturligt förekommande i matningar till hydreringsreaktorerna där de organiska kväveföreningarna är inhibitorer. I detta arbete är målet att tillverka samt utvärdera några hydreringskatalysatorer med fokus på deras prestanda för HDA och HDN reaktionerna. Den bästa möjliga tekniken idag för tillverkningen av hydreringskatalysatorer utnyttjar kelateringsreagens vid beredningen. Detta har visat sig ha en positiv inverkan på egenskaperna och aktivteten vid hydrering för NiMo-katalysatorer. För att undersöka detta närmare har två typer av katalysatorer tillverkats, en med kelateringsreagens (typ II) och en utan (typ I). Dessa var sedan utvärderade i dess HDA och HDN aktiveter. Katalysatorerna var tillverkade samt karaktäriserade vid KTH och sedan aktiverade via sulfidering samt utvärderade vid Nynas AB. Aktiviteten för de sulfiderade katalysatorerna var utvärderade i ett surrogatsystem bestående av fenantren (PHE) som modell för aromatiska föreningar samt karbazol (CBZ) eller akridin (ACR) som modell för icke-basiskt samt basiskt organisk-kväve. Aktivitetsutvärderingen utfördes i en porlbäddreaktor där aktiviteten undersöktes vid närvarandet samt avsaknandet av de organiska kväveföreningarna. När matningen byttes, en så kallad modeswitch, ändras aktiviteten beroende på de betingelser som undersöktes. Reaktortemperaturen varierade mellan 300 °C och 320 °C vid ett konstant systemtryck på 120 barg. Katalysatornsaktivitet var positivt korrelerad med reaktortemperaturen där en lägre aktivtetuppmättes vid 300 °C jämfört med 320 °C. Det visade sig även att båda typerna av organiskt kväve påverkade aktivteten negativt vid båda undersökta temperaturerna. Utöver det så var de basiska kväveföreningarna mer inhiberande jämfört med de icke-basiska föreningarna för båda katalysatorerna. Inhiberingen orsakad av karbazol visade sig vara helt reversibel medan akridininhiberingen antydde på mer permanenta effekter för typ II katalsatorn. Dessa resultat antyder, trots de preliminära antagandena, att typ I katalysatorn var bättre än typ II katalysatorn. / Hydrotreating processes are of high importance in helping to obtain the desired characteristics of products as well as to comply with the legislation regarding health hazards and environmental pollution. Hydrotreating reactions are catalytic reactions which imply that the understanding and utilization of the most suitable catalysts is crucial. While hydrodesulfurization is a vastly studied branch of hydrotreating, hydrodearomatization (HDA), and hydrodenitrogenation (HDN) processes are less discussed and understood. However, aromatic compounds along with nitrogen-containing inhibitors are naturally present in the hydrotreater feeds. Therefore, the aim of this study was the preparation and evaluation of hydrotreating catalysts with the main focus on HDA and HDN reactions. According to the current state of the art, the utilization of chelating agents during preparation has a positive impact on the characteristics and activity of hydrotreating catalysts therefore NiMo catalysts with (Type II) and without (Type I) a chelating agent were prepared and evaluated towards HDA and HDN reactions. The catalysts were prepared and characterized at KTH and then activated (sulfided) and evaluated at Nynas AB. The activity of the sulfided catalysts was evaluated using surrogate mixture models containing phenanthrene (PHE) as an aromatic compound, and carbazole (CBZ) or acridine (ACR). The latter ones were representing two types of nitrogen-containing inhibitors, non-basic and basic. The activity testing was carried out in a trickle-bed microreactor during three-step experiments in the presence and absence of the organic nitrogen compounds (mode switches). During the mode switches the activity of the catalysts under varying conditions was investigated. The operating temperature of the reactor varied between 300 and 320°C under constant H2 pressure of 120 barg. The catalytic activity was positively correlated with temperature with the catalysts exhibiting lower activities at 300°C than at 320°C. It is noteworthy that the activity of all the catalysts was hindered by the presence of both nitrogen compounds at all temperatures with the basic nitrogen (ACR) being more inhibitory for both catalysts. CBZ inhibition to the HDA reactions showed reversibility, while ACR had a more permanent inhibiting effect in the case of the Type II catalyst. The results indicated that despite the preliminary assumptions, the Type I catalyst outperformed the Type II.

Made available in DSpace on 2015-04-11T13:38:35Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertacao Francimary.pdf: 640225 bytes, checksum: 1eebacf1e67b120750607e8d1a1c46d2 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2005-10-26 / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / The presence of G class irregular erythrocyte alloantibodies in the blood circulation during pregnancy may cause a series of consequences to the newborn. The alloimmunization can occur under different situations, such as: blood incompatibility during delivery, miscarriage, amniocentese, blood transfusion, among others, all considered being risky. This study investigated the occurrence of regular and irregular circulating alloantibodies in women under the care of the Program of RhD-negative Expecting Mothers (PGRhN) of the Amazonas Hematology and Hemotherapy Foundation (HEMOAM). A retrospective study was carried out compiling the data of all expecting mothers under care during 2003, as well as the information regarding their newborns. A second study, prospective, was done by analyzing the blood samples of expecting mothers under the care of the PGRhN between April and November 2004, as well as the information on their respective babies. All tests were carried out following the methodology presented in the American Association of Blood Bank Technical Manual (2005). The comparison of the alloimmunization frequency between the first (5.6%) and the second (3.5%) studies showed no significant difference. The frequency of antibodies attached to the erythrocytes in the newborns of alloimmunized mothers were high, 67% in the retrospective study and 72.7% in the prospective study. The frequency of G class regular alloantibodies was 87% in the prospective study and the ABO maternal-fetal incompatibility was 17% in O type mothers with A or B type progeny. The occurrence of irregular alloimmunization in the PGRhN is still high, comparing with the numbers of other authors, indicating that the Program may be failing in preventing the problem to occur or errors may have been made during the sorotherapy of patients under risk. Also, it was observed a high frequency of G class regular alloantibodies which can cause the Hemolytic Disease of the Newborn (HDN) due to ABO incompatibility. / A presença de aloanticorpos irregulares eritrocitários da classe G, na circulação materna, pode causar serias conseqüências ao neonato. A aloimunizacao pode ocorrer em diversas situações, consideradas de risco, como partos com incompatibilidade sanguínea, aborto, amniocentese, transfusões sanguínea, dentre outras. Neste estudo foi verificada a presença de aloanticorpos circulantes regulares e irregulares, em mulheres atendidas no Programa de Gestantes Rh Negativo (PGRhN) da Fundação de Hematologia e Hemoterapia do Amazonas (HEMOAM). Foi realizado um estudo retrospectivo e para o qual, foram levantados os registros de gestantes atendidas durante o ano de 2003, como também, os dados de seus recém-nascidos. Outro estudo, prospectivo, foi realizado e foram analisadas amostras de sangue de gestantes, atendidas no PGRhN entre os meses de abril a novembro de 2004, como também de seus recém-nascidos. Todos os testes utilizados foram preconizados pelo Manual Técnico da American Association of Blood Bank (2005). A freqüência de aloimunizacao no estudo Retrospectivo (5,6%) não apresentou diferença significante com a do estudo Prospectivo (3,5%). A freqüência de anticorpos fixados as hemácias, nos recém-nascidos de mães aloimunizadas, foi bastante alta, de 67% no estudo prospectivo e de 72,7% no estudo retrospectivo. A freqüência de aloanticorpos regulares da classe G foi de 87% nas gestantes do estudo prospectivo e a incompatibilidade ABO materno-fetal foi de 17% para as mães O, com filhos A ou B. O índice de aloimunização irregular no PGRhN ainda e muito alto, quando comparado aos trabalhos de outros autores, mostrando que devem estar ocorrendo falhas na prevenção e possíveis erros na administração da soroterapia, em situações de risco. Ressalte-se ainda, a alta freqüência de aloanticorpos regulares da classe G, que podem induzir a Doença Hemolítica do recém-nascido (DHRN) por incompatibilidade ABO.

New catalyst development for the hydrotreating process, employing functionalized mesoporous carbon (mC) support is studied. mC support was prepared by the volume templating of alkali modified SBA-15 using sucrose as the carbon source and then functionalized using nitric acid of various concentrations (upto 8M HNO3). A series of NiMo catalysts (12% Mo and 2.4% Ni) were prepared using these functionalized mC supports. The supports and catalysts were characterized by N2 physisorption, SAXS, XRD, FTIR, TGA, SEM, TEM, H2-TPR and HRTEM. SAXS results indicated mild reduction in ordered structure of mesoporous carbons after functionalization. N2 physisorption analysis indicated progressive reduction in surface area and pore volume with the increase in nitric acid concentration. Enhancement of surface functional groups and acidity after functionalization were observed through FTIR spectroscopy and Boehm titration. SEM images showed the retention of needle like morphology in all functionalized carbon supports. TEM images showed that the increase in nitric acid concentration causes excessive etching, resulting in the reduction of ordered structure of functionalized mesoporous carbons. Hydrotreating study of these NiMo/mC catalysts were carried out under industrial operating conditions in a laboratory scale trickle bed reactor using coker light gas oil derived from Athabasca bitumen as feedstock. NiMo catalyst supported on 6M acid treated mC (i.e. NiMo/mC-6M) showed the highest activity due to higher surface functional groups, higher acidity and better textural properties. The HDS and HDN activities of NiMo/mC-6M catalyst were higher than that of NiMo/ã-Al2O3 catalyst owing to lower support metal interaction (SMI), higher surface area and effective functionalization. Using the mC-6M support, NiMo catalysts with different metal loading (12 27% Mo, 2.4 to 5.4% Ni) were prepared and characterized. Hydrotreating activity study of these catalysts indicated that the catalyst with 22% Mo and 2.9% Ni loading was the optimum catalyst on 6M functionalized mC support. Higher metal loading (>22%Mo) led to excessive pore blockage and improper metal dispersion resulting in decreased activity. Kinetic study of the optimum catalyst was carried out by varying temperature (330°C to 370°C), gas-to-oil ratio (400 1000 Nm3/m3), LHSV (1.0 to 2.5 hr-1) and pressure (7.8 to 9.8 MPa) and the data was fitted by non-linear regression method using power law model. The calculated reaction orders and activation energies were 2.8, 1.5 and 189 KJ/mol, 98.9 KJ/mol for HDS and HDN, respectively. The results of HRTEM and H2-TPR indicated lower SMI in mC supported catalyst resulting in the generation of qualitatively Type-II like NiMoS phase on functionalized mC supports, which is considered to be very active for hydrotreating. The hydrotreating activity of the optimum catalyst was higher than that of commercial catalyst (supported on ã-Al2O3). Long term deactivation experiment carried out over a total period of 10 weeks confirmed the durability of NiMo/mC catalyst for the duration of operation. This study reveals the immense capability of functionalized mC supports to become the potential alternative catalyst support to conventional ã-Al2O3 for the hydrotreating of gas oil feedstocks.

New catalyst development for the hydrotreating process, employing functionalized mesoporous carbon (mC) support is studied. mC support was prepared by the volume templating of alkali modified SBA-15 using sucrose as the carbon source and then functionalized using nitric acid of various concentrations (upto 8M HNO3). A series of NiMo catalysts (12% Mo and 2.4% Ni) were prepared using these functionalized mC supports. The supports and catalysts were characterized by N2 physisorption, SAXS, XRD, FTIR, TGA, SEM, TEM, H2-TPR and HRTEM. SAXS results indicated mild reduction in ordered structure of mesoporous carbons after functionalization. N2 physisorption analysis indicated progressive reduction in surface area and pore volume with the increase in nitric acid concentration. Enhancement of surface functional groups and acidity after functionalization were observed through FTIR spectroscopy and Boehm titration. SEM images showed the retention of needle like morphology in all functionalized carbon supports. TEM images showed that the increase in nitric acid concentration causes excessive etching, resulting in the reduction of ordered structure of functionalized mesoporous carbons. Hydrotreating study of these NiMo/mC catalysts were carried out under industrial operating conditions in a laboratory scale trickle bed reactor using coker light gas oil derived from Athabasca bitumen as feedstock. NiMo catalyst supported on 6M acid treated mC (i.e. NiMo/mC-6M) showed the highest activity due to higher surface functional groups, higher acidity and better textural properties. The HDS and HDN activities of NiMo/mC-6M catalyst were higher than that of NiMo/ã-Al2O3 catalyst owing to lower support metal interaction (SMI), higher surface area and effective functionalization. Using the mC-6M support, NiMo catalysts with different metal loading (12 27% Mo, 2.4 to 5.4% Ni) were prepared and characterized. Hydrotreating activity study of these catalysts indicated that the catalyst with 22% Mo and 2.9% Ni loading was the optimum catalyst on 6M functionalized mC support. Higher metal loading (>22%Mo) led to excessive pore blockage and improper metal dispersion resulting in decreased activity. Kinetic study of the optimum catalyst was carried out by varying temperature (330°C to 370°C), gas-to-oil ratio (400 1000 Nm3/m3), LHSV (1.0 to 2.5 hr-1) and pressure (7.8 to 9.8 MPa) and the data was fitted by non-linear regression method using power law model. The calculated reaction orders and activation energies were 2.8, 1.5 and 189 KJ/mol, 98.9 KJ/mol for HDS and HDN, respectively. The results of HRTEM and H2-TPR indicated lower SMI in mC supported catalyst resulting in the generation of qualitatively Type-II like NiMoS phase on functionalized mC supports, which is considered to be very active for hydrotreating. The hydrotreating activity of the optimum catalyst was higher than that of commercial catalyst (supported on ã-Al2O3). Long term deactivation experiment carried out over a total period of 10 weeks confirmed the durability of NiMo/mC catalyst for the duration of operation. This study reveals the immense capability of functionalized mC supports to become the potential alternative catalyst support to conventional ã-Al2O3 for the hydrotreating of gas oil feedstocks.

This thesis summarizes the methods and major findings of Ni-W(P)/ã-Al2O3 nitride cata-lyst synthesis, characterization, hydrotreating activity, kinetic analysis and correlation of the catalysts activities to their synthesis parameters and properties.<p> The range of parameters for catalyst synthesis were W (15-40 wt%), Ni (0-8 wt%), P (0-5 wt%) and nitriding temperature (TN) (500-900 °C). Characterization techniques used included: N2 sorption studies, chemisorption, elemental analysis, temperature programmed studies, x-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive x-ray, infrared spectroscopy, trans-mission electron microscopy and x-ray absorption near edge structure. Hydrodesulfurization (HDS), hydrodenitrogenation (HDN) and hydrodearomatization (HDA) were performed at: tem-perature (340-380 °C), pressure (6.2-9.0 MPa), liquid hourly space velocity (1-3 h-1) and hydro-gen to oil ratio (600 ml/ml, STP).<p> The predominant species on the catalyst surface were Ni3N, W2N and bimetallic Ni2W3N. The bimetallic Ni-W nitride species was more active than the individual activities of the Ni3N and W2N. P increased weak acid sites while nitriding temperature decreased amount of strong acid sites. Low nitriding temperature enhanced dispersion of metal particles. P interacted with Al2O3 which increased the dispersion of metal nitrides on the catalyst surface. HDN activity in-creased with Ni and P loading but decreased with increase in nitriding temperature (optimum conversion; 60 wt%). HDS and HDA activities went through a maximum with increase in the synthesis parameters (optimum conversions; 88. wt% for HDS and 47 wt% for HDA). Increase in W loading led to increase in catalyst activity. The catalysts were stable to deactivation and had the nitride structure conserved during hydrotreating in the presence of hydrogen sulfide.<p> The results showed good correlation between hydrotreating activities (HDS and HDN) and the catalyst nitrogen content, number of exposed active sites, catalyst particle size and BET surface area.<p> HDS and HDN kinetic analyses, using Langmuir-Hinshelwood models, gave activation energies of 66 and 32 kJ/mol, respectively. There were no diffusion limitations in the reaction process. Two active sites were involved in HDS reaction while one site was used for HDN. HDS and HDN activities of the Ni-W(P)/ã-Al2O3 nitride catalysts were comparable to the corre-sponding sulfides.

This thesis summarizes the methods and major findings of Ni-W(P)/ã-Al2O3 nitride cata-lyst synthesis, characterization, hydrotreating activity, kinetic analysis and correlation of the catalysts activities to their synthesis parameters and properties.<p> The range of parameters for catalyst synthesis were W (15-40 wt%), Ni (0-8 wt%), P (0-5 wt%) and nitriding temperature (TN) (500-900 °C). Characterization techniques used included: N2 sorption studies, chemisorption, elemental analysis, temperature programmed studies, x-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive x-ray, infrared spectroscopy, trans-mission electron microscopy and x-ray absorption near edge structure. Hydrodesulfurization (HDS), hydrodenitrogenation (HDN) and hydrodearomatization (HDA) were performed at: tem-perature (340-380 °C), pressure (6.2-9.0 MPa), liquid hourly space velocity (1-3 h-1) and hydro-gen to oil ratio (600 ml/ml, STP).<p> The predominant species on the catalyst surface were Ni3N, W2N and bimetallic Ni2W3N. The bimetallic Ni-W nitride species was more active than the individual activities of the Ni3N and W2N. P increased weak acid sites while nitriding temperature decreased amount of strong acid sites. Low nitriding temperature enhanced dispersion of metal particles. P interacted with Al2O3 which increased the dispersion of metal nitrides on the catalyst surface. HDN activity in-creased with Ni and P loading but decreased with increase in nitriding temperature (optimum conversion; 60 wt%). HDS and HDA activities went through a maximum with increase in the synthesis parameters (optimum conversions; 88. wt% for HDS and 47 wt% for HDA). Increase in W loading led to increase in catalyst activity. The catalysts were stable to deactivation and had the nitride structure conserved during hydrotreating in the presence of hydrogen sulfide.<p> The results showed good correlation between hydrotreating activities (HDS and HDN) and the catalyst nitrogen content, number of exposed active sites, catalyst particle size and BET surface area.<p> HDS and HDN kinetic analyses, using Langmuir-Hinshelwood models, gave activation energies of 66 and 32 kJ/mol, respectively. There were no diffusion limitations in the reaction process. Two active sites were involved in HDS reaction while one site was used for HDN. HDS and HDN activities of the Ni-W(P)/ã-Al2O3 nitride catalysts were comparable to the corre-sponding sulfides.