C₄ Isomerization, Alkylation & Olefins Hydrogenation

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Axens and ExxonMobil Alliance for Sulfuric Acid Alkylation Technology

In March 2019, ExxonMobil Catalysts and Licensing LLC (ExxonMobil) and Axens signed an alliance agreement for the sublicense of ExxonMobil’s Sulfuric Acid Alkylation technology. Thanks to the ALKEMAX™ alliance, Axens and ExxonMobil will market and deliver all technologies associated within a refinery alkylation block, which includes Axens feed preparation, or Alkyfining, n-Butane Isomerization, and ExxonMobil’s Sulfuric Acid Alkylation.

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Butadiene makes unwanted high boiling oligomers often called sludge or ASO (Acid Soluble Oils). When ASO is removed, significant amounts of alkylation catalyst (HF or H₂SO₄) leave with it. ASO is hazardous and difficult to dispose of properly; a high ASO amount means yield and catalyst loss. Alkyfining® solves these problems producing some very attractive results.

Alkyfining® is the market leader for upgrading alkylation plant feeds. By converting butadiene to butenes (for higher alkylate octane) Alkyfining® greatly enhances alkylation plant performance.

With respective Alkyfining® market shares of 70% and 95% of the HF and H₂SO₄ alkylation feed pretreatment plants, Axens is the world’s leading player in alkylation plant feed pretreatment.

Process Technologies

Alkyfining® (part of ALKEMAX™ SAA Block)

Axens Alkyfining® technology converts the diolefins and acetylenes present in the C₄ cuts, from any sources, into valuable olefins with high selectivity.

The reaction performs in liquid-phase, through a fixed-bed catalyst under mild temperature and pressure conditions.

High return on investment

Increase in alkylate “octane-barrels”

Minimize the Alkylation operating costs

Download Commercial Bulletin

Related Offer

Modular Unit

Catalysts & Grading Materials

Catalysts

Selective Hydrogenation Catalysts

High-performance selective hydrogenation catalysts dedicated to the petrochemical and refining industries, to purify highly valuable olefinic and aromatic streams produced by steam crackers and FCC units.

Adsorbents

Drying Series Adsorbents

Water removal applications are widely encountered in the industry sector. Activated alumina and molecular sieves stand at the forefront of the several different materials available on the market.

Adsorbents

Purification Series Adsorbents

Material specially developed to achieve your feedstock’s specification requirements.

Adsorbents

Sulfur Removal Adsorbents for Oil, Gas & Petrochemicals

Hydrogen sulfide (H₂S), COS, mercaptans or sulfides are common contaminants that must be removed from various gases and liquids such as natural gas, NGLs, LPGs, cracked gases, olefins or biogas.

Consulting, Studies & Audits

Axens offers a customized approach, including tailored studies, audits and consulting services, covering technical and operational challenges.

Modular Units

A modularization strategy offers superior benefits versus on-site manufacturing. During the last 40 years, Axens has supplied over 500 modular units, both onshore and offshore, providing tailor-made designs according to client project specifications.

Technical Support & Performance Management

Axens is fully committed to be your partner and provide assistance and support during your project lifecycle, from conception to start-up & running operations.

Reactor Internals

In today’s complex environment, refineries and petrochemical plants around the world need advanced solutions to reach operational excellence. In units featuring fixed-bed reactors, the use of high-efficiency reactor internals are essential to help achieve this goal.

Alkylate is a superior component that increases the octane of premium motor fuels. ExxonMobil’s proven Sulfuric Acid Alkylation (SAA) technology reacts light olefins with isobutane to form high value alkylate for gasoline blending.

ALKEMAX™ SAA technology is based on ExxonMobil’s 60+ years of design and operational experience, and is used in some of the world’s largest refineries. ExxonMobil and Axens have signed an alliance agreement for the sublicense of ExxonMobil’s Sulfuric Acid Alkylation technology. This alliance leverages collective expertise by providing a streamlined solution and proven technologies to optimize high-octane fuels production.

Process Technologies

Alkylation Unit - ALKEMAX™ SAA

ALKEMAX™ SAA technology is used in some of the world’s largest refineries. The units are designed with the operator in mind, offering high reliability, flexibility, and energy efficiency. ALKEMAX™ SAA technology provides proven solutions for high-octane alkylate production.

An optimal solution with:

A tailor-made solution by tuning design capacities avoiding useless overdesign,
An integrated management of effluents and impurities,
An optimization of the overall process scheme,
A fully integrated package to the customer: Alkyfining® (alkylation feed treatment if required) / Alkylation / C4 Isomerization processes

High reliability On-stream service factor of 99.5%

10-20% reduction in electricity consumption with the concept of reactor design & autorefrigerated process

Lower plant investment cost (typically at least 10%)

Download Commercial Bulletin

Related Offer

Modular Unit

Consulting, Supply & Support

Consulting, Studies & Audits

Axens offers a customized approach, including tailored studies, audits and consulting services, covering technical and operational challenges.

Modular Units

Technical Support & Performance Management

Axens is fully committed to be your partner and provide assistance and support during your project lifecycle, from conception to start-up & running operations.

C₄ isomerization is a process allowing to restore the thermodynamic equilibrium (iC₄/nC₄) in a C₄ paraffinic cut. Integrated with an alkylation unit, this process allows to provide the missing isobutane to the alkylation reaction.

Process Technologies

C₄ Isomerization (part of ALKEMAX™ SAA Block)

Axens offers C4 Isomerization technology based on the use of ATIS-1L catalyst, a very high activity chlorinated alumina catalyst.

ATIS-1L allows effective operation at low temperatures and delivers a very high equilibrium conversion rate of normal butane to isobutane.

Simple and cost-effective technology

Effective operation at low temperatures

Download Commercial Bulletin

Related Offer

Modular Unit

Catalysts & Grading Materials

Catalysts

Isomerization Catalysts

Chlorinated alumina ATIS 1L is the catalyst of choice thanks to its high activity permitting operation at lower reactor temperatures that enable higher iC4/nC4 equilibrium and favor superior yields.

Chlorinated alumina ATIS-2L is the catalyst of choice thanks to its high activity permitting operation at lower reactor temperatures that enable higher product RON and favor superior yields

Adsorbents

Arsine Removal Adsorbents

The poisonous effects of arsine and other metal hydrides on hydrogenation and polymerization catalysts is well documented. By far the most common, arsine can seriously deactivate the high-activity Ziegler Natta, metallocene and noble metal catalysts used for processing cracked light ends.

Adsorbents

Chloride Removal Adsorbents

Chloride is important in both catalytic reforming and isomerization as it helps to maintain catalytic activity over time. However, as chloride is continuously fed into these units, it also has to exit.

Adsorbents

Drying Series Adsorbents

Water removal applications are widely encountered in the industry sector. Activated alumina and molecular sieves stand at the forefront of the several different materials available on the market.

Adsorbents

Mercury Removal Adsorbents

Mercury removal from hydrocarbons is crucial due to HSE-related issues, corrosion problems and downstream catalyst poisoning.

Adsorbents

Sulfur Removal Adsorbents for Oil, Gas & Petrochemicals

Hydrogen sulfide (H₂S), COS, mercaptans or sulfides are common contaminants that must be removed from various gases and liquids such as natural gas, NGLs, LPGs, cracked gases, olefins or biogas.

Consulting, Studies & Audits

Axens offers a customized approach, including tailored studies, audits and consulting services, covering technical and operational challenges.

Unit Revamps & Retrofits

You face many challenges, which include operating in a safe, reliable and environmentally sound manner while responding to changing markets dynamics.

Modular Units

Customer Training

Designed for all Axens technologies, dedicated to operators & engineers, Axens offers customized training solutions to all our licensees, covering the whole range of Axens technologies.

Technical Support & Performance Management

Axens is fully committed to be your partner and provide assistance and support during your project lifecycle, from conception to start-up & running operations.

In an HF Alkylation unit, purified light olefins (C3 and C4) from an FCC unit are combined with isobutane to generate alkylate, a high octane product that can be blended into the gasoline pool.

Adsorbents

Drying Series Adsorbents

Water removal applications are widely encountered in the industry sector. Activated alumina and molecular sieves stand at the forefront of the several different materials available on the market.

Adsorbents

Fluoride Removal on LPG & Alkylate Adsorbents

In an Hydrogen Fluoride Alkylation unit, purified light olefins are combined with isobutane to generate alkylate.
As this process uses Hydrogen Fluoride acid as a catalyst, the effluent streams will contain HF and some organic fluorides.
These fluoride compounds must be removed to prevent corrosion.

Adsorbents

Mercury Removal Adsorbents

Mercury removal from hydrocarbons is crucial due to HSE-related issues, corrosion problems and downstream catalyst poisoning.

Adsorbents

Purification Series Adsorbents

Material specially developed to achieve your feedstock’s specification requirements.

Consulting, Studies & Audits

Axens offers a customized approach, including tailored studies, audits and consulting services, covering technical and operational challenges.

Technical Support & Performance Management

Axens is fully committed to be your partner and provide assistance and support during your project lifecycle, from conception to start-up & running operations.

The hydrogenation technology is aimed at producing high purity solvent and is operated at extremely high severity to meet tight aromatics specifications as low as 10 ppm in the hydrogenated product while achieving complete diolefin and olefin saturation.

Consulting, Supply & Support

Modular Units

Explore some

Resources

Case Study 3 January 2023

Case Study - Refining to olefins production

Press release 16 September 2011

Axens’ Technologies for Petron Corporation in the Philippines

Press release 14 April 2021

Axens Selene™ Selective Hydrogenation Catalysts new family

Press release 20 May 2021

New reference in Asia for LD 153 Axens’ selective hydrogenation catalyst for C2 front-end application

More resources

Petrochemicals

Case Study

Case Study - Refining to olefins production

See all Case studies

Press release 20 May 2021

New reference in Asia for LD 153 Axens’ selective hydrogenation catalyst for C2 front-end application

Press release 14 April 2021

Axens Selene™ Selective Hydrogenation Catalysts new family

Press release 16 September 2011

Axens’ Technologies for Petron Corporation in the Philippines

See all Press releases

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