AM-00-52 MEET GASOLINE POOL SULFUR AND OCTANE TARGETS WITH THE ISAL® PROCESS

Description:

In response to the need for more-effective gasoline desulfurization technologies, UOP and Intevep, the research and development arm of the Venezuelan government’s PDVSA organization, have developed the ISAL R process. This unique process utilizes proprietary, low-pressure, fixed-bed hydroprocessing technology to selectively reconfigure the lower-octane components of its gasoline-range feedstock, enabling refiners to hydrotreat the sulfur-containing components of a gasoline pool while also controlling the octane of the hydrotreated product. The ability of the ISAL process to independently control octane and product sulfur enables refiners to eliminate the octane penalty typically associated with the hydroprocessing of highly-olefinic materials such as FCC and coker naphtha. In addition, because the processing conditions and flow scheme of an ISAL unit are virtually identical to a conventional naphtha hydrotreater, implementation is simple and straightforward, allowing it to be added as either a grassroots unit or as a revamp of an existing hydroprocessing unit.