ABSTRACT
Catalytic olefin oligomerization is a process for performing olefin addition to produce heavier olefinic products. Some olefin oligomerization processes can also be employed for refinery benzene reduction by producing alkyl benzenes. Heterogeneous acid catalysts used for olefin oligomerization include solid phosphoric acid, zeolites, acid resins, and amorphous silica-alumina. The term “olefin oligomerization” refers to the conversion of olefins by one or more olefin addition reactions occurring in succession. Catalytic olefin oligomerization technology was developed in the 1930s to make better use of the olefin-rich cracked gases that was produced by thermal conversion processes. The most common classes of acid oligomerization catalysts found in petroleum refining are solid phosphoric acid, amorphous silica alumina, various types of zeolites, and acidic resins. The main feed material for oligomerization is olefin-containing cracked gases from high-temperature processes such as coking and fluid catalytic cracking. Acid-catalyzed oligomerization processes using heterogeneous catalysts were all developed based on fixed bed reactor designs.
