Modern Approaches to Testing Granulated Catalysts in the Hydrotreatment of Oil Distillates under Laboratory Conditions

Problems related to granular catalysts testing in hydrotreatment of petroleum distillates in laboratory are discussed. Requirements for laboratory facilities that ensure high reliability in determining the performance of diesel fraction hydrotreatment in industrial reactors are formulated. It is shown that diluting catalyst pellets with small particles of inert nonporous material (silicon carbide) allows us to obtain reproducible results in small three-phase reactors, minimizing such factors as the incomplete wetting of the catalyst, the wall effect, and the back-mixing of liquids. Laboratory facilities and analysis techniques are described, and results obtained at different laboratories in studying catalysts for the deep hydrotreatment of diesel fractions are compared.