Dearomatization of normal paraffin by adsorption process using synthesized NaX zeolite

Abstract

Linear alkyl benzenes (LABs) are the main materials for detergent production. The presence of aromatic compounds in this material can decrease the quality of the final product and enhance the deactivation rate of catalysts. In this research we used zeolite NaX for de-aromatization of the recycled paraffin from the alkylation unit of an LAB production complex. The effect of different parameters on the removal efficiency of adsorbent was studied and optimized. To study the re-usability of the adsorbent, the breakthrough curves were obtained by using a fixed bed column filled with the adsorbent. The results indicated that the adsorbent capacity remained unchanged after three regeneration cycles. The Langmuir and Freundlich adsorption models were applied to describe the equilibrium isotherms. It was concluded that the Langmuir model agreed well with the experimental data. The calculated thermodynamic parameters of the adsorption showed that the adsorption process was spontaneous and exothermic. The reaction rate was estimated by the pseudo-second order kinetic model. © 2013 China University of Petroleum (Beijing) and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.