(444d) Organic Sulfur Removal from Logistic Fuels Using Microfibrous Entrapped Adsorbents at Room Temperature

Several different bed configurations of Cu-Y type zeolite based adsorbents have been tested at room temperature for organic sulfur compounds removal from a model fuel of 2000 ppmw benzothiophene in n-octane. A composite bed, a packed bed followed by a thin polishing layer made of glass fibrous entrapped adsorbent significantly improved the breakthrough sulfur capacity of Cu-Y adsorbents. At 1 ppmw breakthrough, the capacity of composite bed is 22.3 mg Sulfur/ g adsorbent, which is twice that of a packed bed made of 100-150 ?Ým Cu-Y zeolite particles. Pressure drop test showed that small particle sizes introduce unbearably high pressure drop (i.e. 3.6 psi per cm of bed thickness) even at a low face velocity of 0.12 cm/min for 100-150 ?Ým zeoite particles, while the pressure drops of larger particles (0.8-1.4 mm) and 1/16" extraduates are negligible (less than 0.1 psi per cm of bed thickness) even at a higher face velocity of 1 cm/ min. The breakthrough test shown that the saturation capacity of a packed bed made of 0.8-1.4 mm particles is about 80 % of the capacity of a packed bed made of 100-150 ?Ým particles. The optimized composite bed made of large particles and microfibrous entrapped adsorbents synergistically combines the high volume loading of packed beds and the overall heterogeneous contacting efficiency of small particulates.