Saint-Gobain NorPro has just the solution to keep your reactor up and running with its MacroTrap® guard bed media. This relieves refiners from replacing costly catalyst which then improves overall operations and profitability of the reactor. Particulates in the reactor's catalyst bed will settle and the catalyst can become plugged in a short amount of time. The result is that pressure drop increases and reactor performance declines, requiring the refiner to shut down while the fouled catalyst is replaced.
MacroTrap® guard bed media are highly macroporous ceramic materials which work by trapping particulates and soluble iron in the very large pores before they reach the catalyst bed. MacroTrap guard bed media provides proven benefits:
Saint-Gobain NorPro's MacroTrap® XPore 80 guard bed media is the latest generation of catalyst protection for refiners. The "XPore 80" name indicates that macropores account for ~80% of total pore volume. This is significant as it permits filtering an extended range of particulate contaminant sizes. Extended benefits of MacroTrap® XPore 80 media include:
MacroTrap® 1.5 | MacroTrap® XPore 80 | ||
Property | Units | Target Properties | Target Properties |
Surface Area | m2/gm | > 1.50 | 0.25 max |
Water Absorption | % | > 40 | > 45 |
Packing Density | kg/m3 | 721 max | 513 max |
Pore Volume Pores > 10 µm | (Hg) cc/gm | > 0.15 | > 0.40 |
Crush Strength | kgs | ||
6 mm |
2.3 min | 2.0 min | |
8 mm |
4.5 min | 4.5 min | |
10 mm |
6.8 min | 6.0 min |
The video below depicts typical performance where particulates pass through and around MacroTrap XPore 80 guard bed media. Results after use show effectiveness of media trapping contaminants in the pores of MacroTrap® XPore 80 guard bed media.
The video below demonstrates the improved pressure drop with the use of MacroTrap® XPore 80 guard bed media in place of hold down media. The example shows the need for skimming is more frequent due to fouling, but MacroTrap® XPore 80 guards against fouling, improving the overall reactor cycle performance and extending catalyst life.
Problem | Pressure drop increase in a Mobil Oil Naphtha Hydrotreater required the refiner to shut down the reactor routinely to skim the catalyst bed. Pressure drop doubled after seven months in operation and tripled after 20 months. |
Solution | Mobil installed a 270 mm layer of MacroTrap® media on top of the first of the reactor's three catalyst beds. |
Results | After 18 months operation with the MacroTrap® media, the unit experienced no detectable pressure drop increase (Fig. 1). The refiner proceeded to apply MacroTrap guard bed media to other units in the refinery. |
Application Details |
Feed Composition:
Guard Bed:
Catalyst:
|