A process for the manufacture of one or more useful products comprises: gasifying a carbonaceous feedstock comprising waste materials and/or biomass in a gasification zone to generate a raw synthesis gas; supplying at least a portion of the raw synthesis gas to a clean-up zone to remove contaminants and provide a clean synthesis gas; supplying the clean synthesis gas to a first further reaction train to generate at least one first useful product and a tailgas; and diverting selectively on demand a portion of at least one of the carbonaceous feedstock, the clean synthesis gas, the tailgas and the light gas fraction to heat or power generation within the process, in response to external factors to control the carbon intensity of the overall process and enable GHG emission savings.

A catalyst is regenerated by an inventive process using a heat exchange fluid such as superheated steam to remove heat during the process relying on efficient heat transfer (e.g., enabled by the microchannel reactor construction) in comparison with prior art heat exchange relying on a phase change, e.g. between water and (partial or complete vaporization) steam, allows simplification of the protocols to enable transition at higher temperatures between steps which translates in reduced duration of the regeneration process and avoids potential water hammering risks.

The present invention provides a Fischer-Tropsch catalyst comprising greater than about 40% by weight of cobalt, and having a packed apparent bulk density greater than about 1.30 g/mL.

The present invention relates to a process for preparing liquid hydrocarbons by the Fischer-Tropsch process integrated into refineries, in particular comprising recycling streams from the steam reforming hydrogen production process as the feedstock for the Fischer-Tropsch process.

The present invention relates to a catalyst containing an active cobalt phase, deposited on a support comprising alumina, silica or silica-alumina, said support containing a mixed oxide phase containing cobalt and/or nickel, said catalyst has been prepared by introducing at least one organic compound of the family of carboxyanhydrides. The invention also relates to the process for the preparation thereof, and to the use thereof in the field of Fischer-Tropsch synthesis processes.

The present invention relates to a hydrocarbon synthesis catalyst comprising in its unreduced form a) Fe as catalytically active metal, b) an alkali metal and/or alkaline-earth metal in an alkali metal- and/or alkaline-earth metal-containing promoter, the alkali metal, c) and a further promoter comprising, or consisting of, one or more element(s) selected from the group of boron, germanium, nitrogen, phosphorus, arsenic, antimony, sulphur, selenium and tellurium, to a process for the synthesis of a hydrocarbon synthesis catalyst, to a hydrocarbon synthesis process which is operated in the present of such a catalyst and to the use of such a catalyst in a hydrocarbon synthesis process.

A method is described for shutting down a Fischer-Tropsch reactor fed with a reactant gas mixture comprising a synthesis gas and a recycle gas recovered from the Fischer-Tropsch reactor in a synthesis loop, said Fischer-Tropsch reactor containing a Fischer-Tropsch catalyst cooled indirectly by a coolant under pressure, comprising the steps of: (a) depressurising the coolant to cool the reactant gas mixture to quench Fischer-Tropsch reactions taking place in the Fischer-Tropsch reactor, (b) stopping the synthesis gas feed to the Fischer-Tropsch reactor, and (c) maintaining circulation of the recycle gas through the Fischer-Tropsch reactor during steps (a) and (b) to remove heat from the Fischer-Tropsch reactor. The method safely facilitates a more rapid return to operating conditions than a full shut-down.

The present invention is directed to unique processes, catalysts and systems for the direct production of liquid fuels (e.g., premium diesel fuel) from synthesis gas produced from natural feedstocks such as natural gas, natural gas liquids, carbon dioxide or other similar compounds or materials. In one aspect, the present invention provides a process for the production of a hydrocarbon mixture comprising the steps of: a) reducing a catalyst in-situ in a fixed bed reactor; b) reacting a feed gas that contains hydrogen and carbon monoxide with the catalyst to produce a hydrocarbon product stream, wherein the hydrocarbon product stream comprises light gases, a diesel fuel and a wax, and wherein the diesel fuel fraction is produced without requiring the hydroprocessing of wax, and wherein the catalyst comprises one or more metals deposited on a gamma alumina support at greater than about 5 weight percent, and wherein platinum or rhenium is included on the support in an amount ranging from about 0.01 weight percent and about 2 weight percent as a promoter, and wherein the catalyst has surface pore diameters between about 100 and 150 Angstroms, sub-surface pore diameters between 10 and 30 Angstroms a crush strength greater than about 3 lbs./mm, a mean effective pellet radius less than about 600 microns, and a BET surface area greater than about 100 m.sup.2/g, and wherein the diesel fuel comprises more than about 70 percent C.sub.8-C.sub.24 hydrocarbons.

A method to produce a fuel product such as jet fuel, diesel, or single battlefield fuel from a Fischer Tropsch syncrude comprising the steps of: 1) generation of synthesis gas; 2) conversion of synthesis gas to hydrocarbon products by the Fischer Tropsch reaction; 3) upgrading raw Fischer Tropsch products by hydrocracking and hydroisomerization; 4) converting a portion of the Fischer Tropsch naphtha into aromatic hydrocarbons by dehydrocyclization; 5) hydrogenating CO2 from steps 1 and 2 to make olefinic hydrocarbon products; 6) alkylating aromatics from step 4 with olefins from step 5; and 7) combining the paraffin and iso-paraffin products from step 3 with alkylated aromatics from step 6 and distilling to make a low carbon distillate fuel. The method can be modified to make a single fuel product, preferably a jet fuel product.

A process can treat a gaseous material mixture obtained by catalytic conversion of synthesis gas that contains at least alkenes, possibly alcohols and possibly alkanes, and also possibly nitrogen as inert gas and unconverted components of the synthesis gas, comprising hydrogen, carbon monoxide and/or carbon dioxide. After catalytic conversion of synthesis gas, separation of the product mixture obtained in this reaction into a gas phase and a liquid phase is performed by at least partial absorption of the alkenes, possibly of the alcohols and possibly of the alkanes, in a high boiling point hydrocarbon or hydrocarbon mixture as an absorption medium, separation as the gas phase of the gases not absorbed into the absorption medium, separating an aqueous phase from the organic phase of the absorption medium, preferably by decanting, and desorption of the alkenes, possibly of the alcohols and possibly of the alkanes, from the absorption medium.