A novel fluid catalytic cracking process for maximizing iso-paraffins: from fundamentals to commercialization

The maximizing iso-paraffins (MIP) developed by RIPP has improved gasoline quality to meet the demand of motor gasoline specification. A concept that two different reaction zones include cracking zone and conversion zone is proposed as the fundamental of MIP by research on fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) reaction chemistry. Based on the concept, the MIP process is featured by applying a novel sequential two-zone riser in conjunction with proprietary catalyst and engineering technique. The developed MIP process can not only improve gasoline yield or gasoline plus propylene yields but also produce gasoline with a higher content of iso-paraffins and a lower content of sulfur. A minimum octane number loss is achieved when MIP gasoline is treated by downstream desulfurization technology (RSDS/S Zorb). The combination of MIP and RSDS/S Zorb processes creates a very competitive route, which is different from the technical route used by other developed countries, to upgrade the quality of motor gasoline with the lowest economic costs in China. In just one decade, the processing capacity of MIP units has accounted for about 60% of the domestic total processing capacity of FCC units. The MIP process is gradually becoming a new generation of FCC technology.