Slurry-Phase Hydrocracking of Heavy Oil with Bifunctional Catalysts In Situ Generated from Oil-Soluble Ionic Liquid and Mixed Metal Oxide

In this work, an oil-soluble ionic liquid (IL) was combined with mixed metal oxide for in situ generation of bifunctional catalysts for slurry-phase heavy oil hydrocracking. The oil-soluble IL selected was trihexylmethylammonium molybdate ([N6661]2MoO4), and the mixed metal oxide selected was SiO2–ZrO2. The performance of using [N6661]2MoO4 and SiO2–ZrO2 for slurry-phase hydrocracking was examined systematically. It is found that the addition of SiO2–ZrO2 can significantly improve the conversion of residue to distillate and the gas and coke yields are also improved. The MoS2/SiO2–ZrO2 bifunctional catalysts in situ generated in the reaction system were collected for detailed characterizations. The MoS2 slabs are in a highly dispersed and sulfurized status in the matrix of SiO2–ZrO2, and there are also abundant acidic sites in resultant bifunctional catalysts. The kinetics of slurry-phase hydrocracking was further investigated to disclose the reaction routes for the conversion of residue and the role of adding SiO2–ZrO2 in promoting the hydrocracking reactions.