Ruthenium Promoted Cobalt-Alumina Catalysts for the Synthesis of High-Molecular-Weight Solid Hydrocarbons from CO and Hydrogen

The effect of the ruthenium promotion of Fischer-Tropsch (FT) cobalt-alumina catalysts on the temperature of catalyst activation reduction and catalytic properties in the FT process is studied. The addition of 0.2-1 wt % of ruthenium reduces the temperature of reduction activation from 500 to 330-350 degrees C while preserving the catalytic activity and selectivity toward C5+ products in FT synthesis. FT ruthenium-promoted Co-Al catalysts are more selective toward higher hydrocarbons; the experimental value of parameter alpha(ASF) of the distribution of paraffinic products for ruthenium-promoted catalysts is 0.93-0.94, allowing us to estimate the selectivity toward C20+ synthetic waxes to be 48 wt %, and the selectivity toward C35+ waxes to be 23 wt %. Ruthenium-promoted catalysts also exhibit high selectivity toward olefins.