Gasoline sulfur removal

Various streams contribute to the sulfur content of the refinery gasoline pool. Whilst FCC gasoline is approximately one third of the total pool it accounts for the vast majority of the pool sulfur. Processing of low-sulfur feedstock to lower total sulfur is an option for only a few refiners. Refiners would then have to choose between hydrotreating the FCCU feed or the FCC gasoline.

Albemarle’s industry leading RESOLVE additives bring a new dimension of flexibility to the refining process by virtue of their ability to influence the behavior of the host FCC catalyst as well as chemical reactions occurring in the riser and regenerator, helping to make cleaner fuels and cleaner air.

Albemarle’s design philosophy for RESOLVE additives was devised with a detailed understanding of the chemistry of the sulfur-containing molecules in the FCC gasoline boiling range. Analysis of commercial FCC gasolines has confirmed overall reductions in gasoline sulfur levels as high as 35%. While other competitive systems offer gasoline sulfur reduction in conjunction with increased feed hydrotreating and substantial undercutting, detailed inspection has revealed that the reductions achieved with RESOLVE are observed over the entire gasoline boiling range, with the largest reductions achieved in the middle and heavy fractions. Consequently, significantly higher sulfur reductions of 50 to 75% can be achieved depending on the extent to which the refiner is able to reduce gasoline end point.

Refiners needing to remove sulfur from a particular cut of FCC gasoline can choose from several different RESOLVE additives. In the event of special needs, a custom blend of additives can be designed for optimum results.

RESOLVE technology thus offers an attractive path to low sulfur gasoline without a huge capital investment. For those refiners who have invested (or will invest) in new hardware to meet future fuel specifications, RESOLVE offers other attractive opportunities, namely a proven capability to reduce not only the volume of gasoline to be post-treated but also lower post-treater severity. Refiners may even consider the opportunity to recoup some of their capital expenditure by running a less expensive, higher sulfur crude in conjunction with RESOLVE.

Product name		Characteristic(s)	Contact us
RESOLVE 700		Workhorse sulfur reducer
RESOLVE 750		Increased selective adsorption
RESOLVE 800		Tackles SOx as well
RESOLVE 850		Enhanced performance
RESOLVE 950		Latest advancement