The present invention provides a paraffin wax having a congealing point according to ASTM D938 of at least 100 C. and a Saybolt colour according to ASTM D156 of at least 25 cm.

The invention provides a process for preparing a hydrowax comprising the steps of: (a) providing a hydrocarbonaceous feedstock which contains more than 4% by weight of hydrocarbons boiling in the range of from 550 to 800 C.; (b) hydrotreating the hydrocarbonaceous feedstock with a hydrotreating catalyst in the presence of a hydrogen-containing gas under hydrotreating conditions to obtain a hydrotreated product; (c) hydrocracking at least part of the hydrotreated product as obtained in step (b) with a hydrocracking catalyst in the presence of a hydrogen-containing gas under hydrocracking conditions to obtain a hydrocracked product, which hydrocracking catalyst contains a zeolitic component which is present in an amount of at least 14 wt %, based on the total weight of the hydrocracking catalyst, and wherein the volume ratio of the hydrotreating catalyst as used in step (b) and the hydrocracking catalyst is more than 1; and (d) recovering from the hydrocracked product as obtained in step (c) the hydrowax.

The invention provides a process for preparing a hydrowax comprising the steps of: (a) providing a hydrocarbonaceous feedstock which contains more than 4% by weight of hydrocarbons boiling in the range of from 550 to 800 C.; (b) hydrotreating the hydrocarbonaceous feedstock with a hydrotreating catalyst in the presence of a hydrogen-containing gas under hydrotreating conditions to obtain a hydrotreated product; (c) hydrocracking at least part of the hydrotreated product as obtained in step (b) with a hydrocracking catalyst in the presence of a hydrogen-containing gas under hydrocracking conditions to obtain a hydrocracked product, which hydrocracking catalyst contains a zeolitic component which is present in an amount of at least 14 wt %, based on the total weight of the hydrocracking catalyst, and wherein the volume ratio of the hydrotreating catalyst as used in step (b) and the hydrocracking catalyst is more than 1; and (d) recovering from the hydrocracked product as obtained in step (c) the hydrowax.

The present invention provides a microcrystalline wax having a needle penetration according to ASTM D-1321 at 25 C. of more than 1, a crystallinity according to XRD between 5 and 70%, an initial boiling point of less than 500 C., a congealing point in the range of from 60 to 120 C., an oil content according to ASTM D-721 of more than 2 wt. %, wherein the microcrystalline wax has a fraction up to C40 having at least 5 wt % of multiple methyl-branched paraffins as determined with GCGC.

The present invention provides a microcrystalline wax having a needle penetration according to ASTM D-1321 at 25 C. of more than 1, a crystallinity according to XRD between 5 and 70%, an initial boiling point of less than 500 C., a congealing point in the range of from 60 to 120 C., an oil content according to ASTM D-721 of more than 2 wt. %, wherein the microcrystalline wax has a fraction up to C40 having at least 5 wt % of multiple methyl-branched paraffins as determined with GCGC.

A process for preparing normal paraffin involves separating a Fischer-Tropsch product stream to obtain first gaseous and liquid hydrocarbon streams. The first gaseous hydrocarbon stream is cooled and separated to obtain a second liquid hydrocarbon stream and a third liquid hydrocarbon stream, which are separated by atmospheric distillation, to obtain a normal paraffin fraction comprising 5 to 9 carbon atoms and a normal paraffin fraction comprising 10 to 35 carbon atoms. The normal paraffin fraction comprising 10 to 35 carbon atoms is separated by atmospheric distillation to obtain a normal paraffin fraction comprising 10 to 18 carbon atoms and a normal paraffin fraction comprising 19 to 35 carbon atoms. The fraction comprising 10 to 18 carbon atoms hydrogenated (a) and separated to obtain a normal paraffin comprising 10 to 13 carbon atoms and a normal paraffin comprising 14 to 18 carbon atoms.

A process for preparing normal paraffin involves separating a Fischer-Tropsch product stream to obtain first gaseous and liquid hydrocarbon streams. The first gaseous hydrocarbon stream is cooled and separated to obtain a second liquid hydrocarbon stream and a third liquid hydrocarbon stream, which are separated by atmospheric distillation, to obtain a normal paraffin fraction comprising 5 to 9 carbon atoms and a normal paraffin fraction comprising 10 to 35 carbon atoms. The normal paraffin fraction comprising 10 to 35 carbon atoms is separated by atmospheric distillation to obtain a normal paraffin fraction comprising 10 to 18 carbon atoms and a normal paraffin fraction comprising 19 to 35 carbon atoms. The fraction comprising 10 to 18 carbon atoms hydrogenated (a) and separated to obtain a normal paraffin comprising 10 to 13 carbon atoms and a normal paraffin comprising 14 to 18 carbon atoms.

The present invention relates to a normal paraffin composition comprising from 45 to 60 wt. % of a fraction of normal paraffin having from 10 to 13 carbon atoms and from 40 to 55 wt. % of a fraction of normal paraffin having from 14 to 18 carbon atoms.

A process for preparing normal paraffins involves separating a Fischer-Tropsch product stream to obtain first gaseous and liquid hydrocarbon streams. The first gaseous hydrocarbon stream is cooled and separated to obtain a second liquid hydrocarbon stream and a third liquid hydrocarbon stream, which are hydrogenated. The hydrogenated liquid hydrocarbon stream is separated by distillation to obtain a hydrogenated normal paraffin fraction comprising 5 to 9 carbon atoms, a hydrogenated normal paraffin fraction comprising 10 to 13 carbon atoms, a hydrogenated normal paraffin fraction comprising 14 to 18 carbon atoms, and a hydrogenated normal paraffin fraction comprising 19 to 35 carbon atoms.

Paraffins and waxes are produced from a gaseous feed stream comprising hydrogen and carbon monoxide in a Fischer-Tropsch reactor using a fixed bed of reduced Fischer-Tropsch catalyst having cobalt as catalytically active metal. A nitrogen-containing compound is added to the gaseous feed stream in a concentration of up to 10 ppmV and the mixture if fed to the reactor to obtain paraffins having from 5 to 300 carbon atoms. The product is subjected to a hydrogenation step, to obtain a hydrogenated fraction comprising 5 to 300 carbon atoms. The hydrogenated product is separated into C5-C9, C10-C17, and C18-300 fractions. The C18-C300 fraction is separated to obtain one or more first light waxes having a congealing point in the range of 30 to 75 C. and a second heavy wax having a congealing point in the range of 75 to 120 C.