Production of Low Sulfur Gasoline using HDS
Team Members Heading link
- Fatimah Al Ibrahim
- Javier Eduardo Mendieta Castillo
- Christian Sanchez
- Omar Zahdan
Advisor: Betul Bilgin, PhD, Belma Demirel, BP
Project Description Heading link
The consumption of gasoline in the United States is relevant to the petrochemical industry since a considerable number of vehicles depend on this fuel. However, with the rising regulations to prevent environmental pollution from fossil fuel-derived products, the sulfur composition of gasoline should be tracked and further treated to lowered. As a result, the objective of this project is to design a hydrodesulfurization (HDS) unit in order to lower the sulfur content of gasoline produced via the fluid catalytic cracking unit (FCCU). The process includes adding pure hydrogen gas to the feed stream, which is FCC gasoline. In addition, the chosen catalyst CoMo/Al2O3 will be used along with hydrogen in the reactor to absorb the sulfur content and meet the new environmental regulations which require a sulfur content less than 10 ppm. The addition of the amine scrubber unit is then required in order to separate the recycled hydrogen stream from the hydrogen sulfide gas. When it comes to the control of the system, the main objective is to maintain and ensure the process is operating at the desired and optimal conditions for it to be safe and efficient. When designing the process, it is also important to consider environmental concerns and the product specifications. The variables that we will be optimizing for our product specifications include, the low sulfur to meet EPA regulations and high-octane gasoline to meet customer demands after being post-treated using the HDS process. With the global population on the rise, the need for low sulfur high-quality gasoline is required while ensuring lower air pollution. Oil demand is projected to climb by 8.7% with current production by the year 2030. With more gasoline required to be treated our process will ensure that the 40,000 BBL/day produced gasoline will be desulfurized in this plant.
See supporting documentation in the team’s Box drive.