Hydroisomerization of n-Hexadecane over Pt/Beta and Pt/USY Zeolite Catalysts

Bifunctional platinum (0.8 wt%) catalysts containing beta and USY zeolites were tested for the hydroisomerization of n-hexadecane. The Pt/Beta(SiO2/Al2O3=40) catalyst with moderate acid strength showed better isomerization selectivity than the Pt/USY(SiO2/Al2O3=11) catalyst which showed higher n-hexadecane conversion but higher hydrocracking activity due to their strong acid sites. The Pt/Beta(SiO2/Al2O3=40) catalyst showed high isomerization selectivity and improvement in cold flow property even under more than 90% conversion of n-hexadecane.