Synthesis of sulfur-free Co-Mo nitride catalysts for the hydrotreating of atmospheric gasoil and co-processing of rapeseed oil

Sulfur-free transition metal carbide and nitride catalysts have been shown to be reasonable substitutes for sulfidic catalysts for the hydrotreating middle distillates and vegetable oils. However, their catalyst activity is still lower than commercial catalysts. In this paper, we build on our previous research by studying the synthesis and testing of nine sulfur-free Al2O3-supported Co-Mo nitride catalysts for the hydrotreating of atmospheric gasoil and its blends with rapeseed oil (25 wt.%) under industrial conditions (330-350 degrees C, 5.5 MPa, WHSV 1-2 h-1). Nitration temperatures play the most significant role in the synthesis and activity of the catalyst, obtaining a CoMoNx catalyst whose catalytic behaviour competes with the current commercial sulfidic Ni-Mo or Co-Mo catalysts (reduction of sulfur and nitrogen content up to 99.0 and 84.0%, respectively). Thus, our results allow us to evaluate and define the most suitable synthesis conditions for preparing high activity sulfur-free Al2O3-supported Co-Mo nitride catalysts.