Applying a bulk metal catalyst in the pretreat section of a once-through heavy feed hydrocracker processing vacuum gas oil (VGO) enabled a refiner to achieve gains including reduced nitrogen slip, increased distillate yields, unconverted bottoms reduced by 50% and savings from reduced furnace firing. The application involved an ExxonMobil refinery replacing alumina-supported catalyst with Nebula, a bulk metal catalyst developed jointly by ExxonMobil Research and Engineering Company and Albemarle Corporation. The principle was that the bulk metal catalyst contains a higher proportion of more active Type II sites.
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