2025 Spring Meeting and 21st Global Congress on Process Safety
(87f) Enabling Higher Conversion & Increased Ethylene Yield Along with Increased Run-Length By Using Novel Anti-Coking Catalyst-Based Tube Coating for Steam Crackers (YieldUp*)
Mitigating the negative impact of coke deposition on plant operability, reliability, profitability, and sustainability in ethylene production furnace units has long been a subject of paramount importance to this industry which provides a critical building block for a host of downstream materials that enable our modern world. Veolia Water Technologies & Solutions (Veolia) has discussed in previous AIChE publications the development, commercialization, and results from the first successful full-scale furnace field trial for its novel YieldUp* anti-coking catalyst-based tube coating technology, which resulted in a two- to three-fold increase in run-length. The key goal of the first field trial was sustained, increased run-length for different feedstocks - Naphtha, LPG, and co-cracking of the two. In this paper, we discuss promising results from another commercial scale field trial where the key objective is increased conversion and thus increased ethylene yield, along with the benefit of increased run-length, under higher severity of coil outlet temperature and feed (Ethane) rate. Veolia believes these results were achievable due to the coke gasification capability of YieldUp catalyst, which increases significantly with temperature. Preliminary data of this new application indicates about 2.8 wt% increase in the absolute yield of ethylene, and about two-fold increase in the furnace run-length.
*Trademark of Veolia; may be registered in one or more countries.