Fluid Catalytic Cracking (FCC)

Catalyst Optimization to Cope

with High Rare Earth Oxide
Price Environment
Introduction
The use of rare earths in FCC catalysts formulation to meet their profitability
was driven by the need for more active targets. Rare earth gradually increased
Technical and hydrothermally stable products with over the years and at the end of 2010,
the average was 3%, with several
better yield performance. Rare earth
Note oxides (REO) achieved these goals by refineries running in excess of the
enhancing catalytic activity and average.
preventing loss of acid sites during
normal unit operation. To address the
specific needs of each FCC unit, catalyst
manufacturers formulate catalysts with
various rare earth levels that allow for
optimal unit performance. The level of
REO in a specific catalyst formulation is
determined by operational severity and
product objectives. As the need for
increased amounts of gasoline grew
over time, refiners tended to increase the
level of rare earths in their catalyst
Figure 1 shows 2010 historical data for E-cat samples
analyzed by BASF for rare earth oxide. These reflect all the
samples that were received by BASF in the fourth quarter of
2010 before the REO price spike occurred. Sample count
refers to the number of E-cat samples analyzed by the BASF
laboratory. The blue trend line shows the cumulative
percentage of samples at or below a specific REO content.
Although operational demands have not changed in the
industry; current rare earth market conditions have put
pressure on catalyst manufacturers as well as refiners to
reassess the role of RE in the FCC industry. When looking at
the catalytic options, it is critical to look at the overall value and
not just the cost of RE. BASF has actively helped its
customers analyze their operations and determine when a
drop in RE levels is beneficial. Nineteen out of sixty BASF
customers that have looked at a low REO option have
switched. BASFs products deliver the highest activity in the
market and therefore are well suited for low REO operation. As
will be discussed in this article, the cost benefits and possible
performance deficits of this option need to be clearly
understood before making a change.
45
40
35
Number of Sample
30
Counts
25
20
15
10
5 10%
0 0%
0.5 1 1.5
Figure 1: Distribution of REO in FCC catalyst samples
2
REO Supply-Demand Balance
The supply-demand balance of the global rare earth market
became disconnected when China, which produces 95% of
the worlds supply of rare earths, severely cut its export quotas
in July 2010. China is not expected to change its position,
despite the World Trade Organizations warning that reluctance
to share its rare earth supplies constitutes a violation of the
global trade rules. Export quotas for the second half of 2011,
recently released, indicate a significant increase over the 2010
numbers. On close examination, the new quotas reveal that
nothing has changed as the new figures merely include ferrous
alloys. These were not part of the quota in 2010. Market
expectations are that price volatility will continue until new
suppliers enter the market and re-establish the supply-
demand balance. In a recent research note issued by
Goldman Sachs1, prices are likely to rise in the short term,
over the next 18 months, and then soften in the 2013 to 2015
period. This softening of rare earth prices will most likely be
due to additional capacity coming online from non-Chinese
sources that are expected to significantly shift the supply
picture in the coming years.
100%
90%
Cumulative Percent of
Samples at REO wt%
80%
70%
60%
Level
50%
40%
30%
20%
2 2.5 3 3.5 4 5
REO wt%
During the interim period, until rare earth prices once again
normalize, the refining industry is looking for ways to address
the increase in catalyst costs within its current budgetary
constraints. Instinctively, the drive is to opt for lower rare earth
catalyst formulations to offset the costs of the raw material.
While this action can have an immediate and successful
impact on the operating budget, it may not be the best
decision for the refinery. Understanding the constraints of a
specific FCC unit is critical to making the optimal economic
decision. BASF has proactively worked with its customers to
examine low rare earth catalytic options that fit the needs of
the specific users.
Technological Differences
While all catalyst companies can offer catalyst products with
lower levels of REO, BASF is the only company that can offer
its customers an option of increasing activity, and thereby
maintaining conversion at constant catalyst addition, due to an
increase in zeolite content as represented by active and
selective total surface area. BASF employs in-situ technology,
which is particularly well suited for this application. The in-situ
process begins with a catalyst-sized microsphere. The ensuing
step consists of growing the zeolite crystal within the
microsphere. The zeolite in-situ process serves two functions;
it provides the active and selective area, as well as providing
the strength imparted to the microsphere.
This technology is distinct from the incorporated technology
practiced by all other catalyst suppliers. With incorporated
technology, a single particle is formed consisting of an
admixture of clay, zeolite, and binder. As this technology is
already optimized, addition of substantial amounts of zeolite
will require reducing either the clay or binder. The incorporated
catalyst technique is inherently limited to an upper level of
zeolite content and cannot increase surface area without
seriously compromising the strength to withstand breakage in
the FCC unit.
The decision to change catalyst or reformulate catalyst is not a
trivial one. Simply reducing rare earth levels of the catalyst
without a comprehensive study can result in severe yield
penalties and possibly force the refinery to cut feed rates to
the unit. All such consequences are economically prohibitive.
Helping customers evaluate the effect of rare earth level on key
catalytic variables reduces the uncertainty of the change and
facilitates the decision to move to a reformulation of their FCC
catalyst, when appropriate. The specifics of this change in
formulation and the impact of REO level on conversion, as well
as the effect of fresh catalyst surface area and addition rate,
will be examined in this paper.
How Rare Earth Affects
FCC Catalyst Performance
When considering a move to reduce REO component in the
catalyst, it is critical to grasp the performance shifts and
economic impact of such a change. The economic impact
comprises two aspects. It is a function of total catalyst cost
and the value created from a given catalyst formulation.
Reducing the rare earth level will have an immediate cost
saving, but this calculation alone will not give the true profit
generation picture if the margin benefits from the yield slate are
not included. To illustrate the impact of such change on key
catalytic performance indicators, a proprietary FCC simulation
model was used to study the effects of REO level, catalyst
addition rate, and fresh surface area for FCC units operating
with the following feedstocks.
n  ydrotreated Vacuum Gas Oil (VGO) - Refinery A
H
n Standard VGO - Refinery B
n Moderate Resid - Refinery C
n Heavy Resid - Refinery D
3
Our choice in selecting the above feed Refinery A B C D
types is to provide an analysis that
covers the whole range of feed diets API 26.3 22 22.1 20.1
(types) used in FCC operations. The Concarbon wt% 0.3 0.3 0.9 4.5
base case for all cases was 3% REO in Sulfur wt% 0.5 0.7 0.5 0.4
the catalyst. As seen from Figure 1, this
Basic N2 wt% 0.03 0.05 0.04 0.04
was the average level of rare earths used
in 155 FCC units. For each operation, Distillation
the REO level was changed to model the % 650 F - 15 20 7 4
following scenarios: % 1000 F + <10 <10 10 20
n Impact of REO level on conversion, at E-cat Properties
constant catalyst addition rates and TSA m2/g 180 152 116 130
unit conditions
Activity 75 73 72 72
n Impact of fresh catalyst addition rate, REO wt% 3 3 3 3
to restore base case conversion at
constant unit conditions Table 1: Feed and Equilibrium Catalyst Properties for Base Cases

n  ffect of increasing fresh catalyst

E
surface area, at constant catalyst
addition rates and unit conditions Refinery A B C D
This approach was adopted due to the Mode of Full Burn Full Burn Partial Burn Partial Burn
fact that the first negative impact of the operation
REO reduction effect is a decrease in Rx Outlet F 996 997 995 977
activity of the catalyst. The second and Temperature
third bullet points were methods to
recover the loss in activity through either Regen Bed F 1326 1291 1287 1319
increased catalyst additions or through Temp
choosing catalyst with a higher intrinsic C/O 5.3 7.1 7.7 8.7
activity that is achieved through
Conversion vol % 81.9 75.4 70.3 74.1
increased surface area.
Liquefied vol % 28.8 27.4 29.1 24.4
The base case for the feed types and Petroleum
E-cat properties are given in Table 1. Gas (LPG)
Operating conditions of the four Gasoline vol % 65.3 58.9 53.6 60.7
scenarios are provided in Table 2.
Light Cycle Oil vol % 11.5 17.1 20.9 15.7
(LCO)
Bottoms vol % 6.7 7.5 8.7 10.2

Table 2: Operating Conditions and Yields

4
 Impact on Units Performance (Conversion)
as REO is Reduced
In the first instance, the FCC simulation model was run by
holding all variables constant with the exception of the rare
earth levels of the catalyst. The result is a fairly smooth
logarithmic curve with increasing conversion and lower
bottoms yields with increasing REO levels in the catalysts
(Figure 2). Therefore, as the rare earth levels decrease,
conversion of feed to higher valued products will also drop.
76
75
In the case of (a), it is quite possible and often economically
viable to increase catalyst additions to restore the conversion
to the base case level. Figure 3 shows graphs of the amount
of catalyst required to restore the unit to the base case
conversion. As can be seen from the trend, when the desired
decrease in REO is low to moderate (for example from 3 to 2.5
or 2 wt% REO), the objective can be achieved fairly easily. For
Refineries B, C, and D this will require ~ 10% more catalyst at
a rare earth level of 2% compared to the base case of 3%
REO, while refinery A will require a higher level of fresh catalyst
as it is operating at higher severity. However, the product slate
for the same conversion may be different, and the refiners will
10.0 need to check whether there may be constraints which
prevent the refinery from taking a particular action.
9.5

9.0 180%

FCC Bottoms
74
Conversion

73 8.5 170%

Percent Of Additional Required

For Constant Conversion
8.0 160%
72
150%
71 7.5
140%
70 7.0
0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 130%
REO wt%
120%
Figure 2: Conversion and bottoms changes with changing REO levels
in catalyst at constant catalyst additions and constant total surface 110%
area at constant operating conditions
100%
0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5
REO wt%
Restoring Conversions using either a
A B C D
combination of increasing catalyst additions
and/or increasing activity by increasing Total Figure 3: Increasing catalyst addition rate can restore conversion to
Surface Area (TSA) base case
There are two catalytic approaches to reduce rare earth levels
in the fresh catalyst and at the same time restore the unit to In case (b) catalysts with higher surface area (providing higher
conversion levels of the base case (old REO level), activity) furnish the flexibility to lower rare earth content of the
catalyst and maintain performance and conversion at equal
a. E
 ither the refiner can increase catalyst additions at lower catalyst addition rates. BASF is uniquely placed to provide
REO levels or, this technology solution through a unique manufacturing
b. Increase the activity via higher zeolite content as technique. BASFs in-situ technology allows the increase of
represented by total surface area of the catalyst. TSA to a much greater extent than any other FCC catalyst

5
supplier as discussed above. The application of this
TSA m2/g
technology depends largely on the starting point of the total
surface area currently being used by the refinery. If one looks Case 3% 2.5% 2% 1.5% 1%
at Table 3, it can be seen if the refiner operating lower surface REO REO REO REO REO
area, such as Refinery D, has a larger range of opportunity to A 350 370 410
reduce rare earth content than that of refiner operating with B 325 344 380 406
blend like Refinery A.
C 312 330 365 390
To further understand the two above mentioned options, let us D 265 291 318 358 399
look at following example: A refiner using a catalyst with 3%
REO, 325 m2/g fresh total surface area, and a daily Table 3: Increasing catalyst fresh surface area to reduce REO for
consumption of 2 tons per day of catalyst. The refinery would equal unit conversion at constant addition rates
like to lower catalyst costs by reformulating the catalyst to a
1.5 wt% REO. Assuming that the refinery can handle higher
levels of LPG in its wet gas compressor and gas concentration Constraints
system, there are three possible routes a refinery can follow to As was discussed previously, this paper addresses generic
reduce REO in catalyst while maintain existing levels of options and it is important to talk to your supplier to achieve a
conversion: quality decision based on intimate knowledge of your
operation needs and timing.
a. Increase catalyst additions containing lower REO
(exchanged on the zeolite). If we look at Figure 3, then the When conversion is restored to the base case at lower REO
quantity of catalyst for this simulation is 20% higher. levels, the unit necessarily produces larger amounts of LPG
Therefore, the refinery can maintain conversion by and lower amounts of gasoline. This is fundamentally due to
increasing catalyst usage from 2 to 2.4 tpd but at REO level the chemistry of the process. Rare earth exchanged on the
which is 50% lower than the base case zeolite will increase hydrogen transfer reaction, which will push
the increased conversion towards paraffins and aromatics at
b.It is also possible to reformulate the catalyst by keeping the the cost of reducing cycle oil naphthenes and olefins. The
total cat addition rate the same but increasing fresh total source of the naphthenes, which supply the hydrogen for the
surface area. In this case if we look Table 3, it can be hydrogen transfer to take place, is usually in the light cycle oil
achieved by increasing the total surface area from 325 m2/g boiling range.
to 406 m2/g
LCO Naphthenes + LCO Aromatics +
c. T
 he third general approach is to use a combination of (a)
Gasoline Olefins Gasoline Paraffins
and (b) described above. The refinery could increase cat
additions by 10%, 2.2 tpd and increase total surface area of
the catalyst from 325 m2/g to 350 m2/g The aromaticity of the gasoline is not changed much but most
of the increase in aromaticity will occur in the LCO stream thus
This idealized example is to illustrate a means for addressing lowering its cetane number. By reducing rare earth in the
the problem. Of course, individual needs may be different and catalyst, the resulting gasoline will have a higher level of
have to be taken into account when making the decision. In olefins, some of which will over crack making more LPG. As
either case it is possible to combine the technology options of regards, LCO quality, lowering of REO result in quality of the
case (a) and (b) to meet a specific refiners FCC requirement. LCO improving and its cetane number will tend to increase
albeit marginally from a low base. Increasing the paraffinicity of
LCO will also marginally increase its API gravity.

6
 59.0 29.2 Economics
29 To assist readers in contextualizing the impact of the
58.8
28.8 (continuing) rise in the price of rare earth materials, an analysis
58.6 28.6 was done to show the effects of lowering rare earths in
Gasoline vol %

catalyst formulation while holding catalyst addition and surface

LPG vol %
28.4
58.4 area constant.
28.2
58.2 28
The analysis was done by considering two sets of economic
values as shown below in Table 4.
58.0 27.8
27.6
57.8
27.4 Stream Units Olefin Gasoline
57.6 27.2 Maximization Maximization
0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 Mode Mode
REO wt% C2+ltr $/BFOE $28.19 $28.19
Figure 4: Graph of gasoline in vol % (blue) and LPG C3= $/bbl $94.90 $62.09
in vol % (green) versus REO
C3 $/bbl $55.68 $55.68
59.0 95.5
C4= $/bbl $102.49 $82.78
Research Octane Number
58.8 95.4

58.6
95.3 iC4 $/bbl $73.42 $73.42
Gasoline vol %

95.2
58.4 95.1
nC4 $/bbl $62.09 $62.09
58.2 95.0 Gasoline $/bbl $92.64 $101.69
94.9
58.0 LCO $/bbl $107.32 $107.32
94.8
57.8 94.7 HCO $/bbl $82.00 $82.00
57.6 94.6
Feed Cost $/bbl $98.55 $98.55
0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5
REO wt%
Table 4: Economic Values2
Figure 5: Graph of gasoline in vol % (blue) and Research Octane
Number (green) versus REO
For the olefin maximization, the objective is to increase light
From Figure 4, it can be seen that when REO is reduced from olefins such as propylene and butylenes. These can be seen
3 wt% to 1 wt%, then gasoline decreases monotonically from by comparing the prices between the olefins and gasoline
58.85 vol % to 57.7 vol %. Concomitantly, the LPG make mode of operation. Using the prices in Table 4 above for each
increases from 27.4 vol % at 3 wt% REO and goes up to mode of operation, and using the equation shown below for
29.1 vol % at a REO level of 1 wt% in the catalyst. This may calculating the value created, the following conclusion was
not be an issue for some refinery that can handle higher LFG reached. As expected, maximum olefins mode occurs at the
loads in the wet gas compressor, but for others it may be lowest rare earth levels and maximum gasoline product occurs
an issue to consider. In addition, as can be seen in Figure 5, at the highest rare earth levels. These can be seen in Figures 6
the reduction in REO also drives an increase in Research and 7, respectively.
Octane Number.

7
The equation used for the net contribution after
total catalyst cost:
REO wt% Base(3) 2.5 2 1.5 1
{[ (Product Prices in $/bbl)i * (vol %)i } - (Feed costing $/ Catalyst 100 105 112 125 146
bbl)]*Feed rate bbl/day} - [Catalyst cost in $/ton]*tons per day consumption
in %/per day
$7.05
Additional % 5 12 25 46
Contribution margin in $/bbl

$7.00 (%) catalyst

after total catalyst cost

$6.95 used over

base to
$6.90
maintain
$6.85 conversion
$6.80 Savings in $0.08 $0.18 $0.30 $0.38
$6.75 $/bbl
$6.70
Table 5: Constant conversion achieved by lower REO with increased
0.00 0.50 1.00 1.50 2.00 2.50 3.00 3.50
catalyst addition
REO wt%

Figure 6: Continuous increase in value created by operating at lower In the example illustrated in Table 5, it can be seen that the
rare earth levels during olefins maximization mode savings realized by lowering the rare earth levels can be
substantial. Should a refinery using 5 tons per day be able to
$7.00 meet its objective by reducing rare earth levels from 3% to 2%,
$6.90
the savings would be about $1.5 million per year based on the
catalyst cost in $/bbl

catalyst cost of $5,000 per ton. The savings would be even

Margin after total

$6.80 greater if the catalyst cost is lower than the assumed price and
correspondingly, the savings would be lower if the catalyst
$6.70
cost is higher than $5,000 per ton.
$6.60
In a similar way, our analysis indicates that in addition to
$6.50 supplementing activity by increasing catalyst addition, an
increase in activity can be achieved by increasing the total
$6.40
0.00 0.50 1.00 1.50 2.00 2.50 3.00 3.50
surface area of the catalyst. When these two options are
applied, a greater range of flexibility is achieved. The benefits
REO wt%
of increased total surface area can be seen in Table 6 below.
Figure 7: Continuous increase in value created with increasing rare In this case, the break even cost ranges from $224 to $155
earth levels during maximum gasoline mode of operation
m2/g. The actual cost of catalyst is a small fraction of this
amount and therefore, the savings using this approach is even
As an alternate cost saving measure, break-even calculations higher than supplemental catalyst addition rates.
are shown below. Refiners have two levers that can be
actuated to achieve lower cost options for meeting their
catalyst needs. In the first case, a demonstration is shown
where refiners are able to trim or even substantially reduce the
level of rare earths in their catalyst depending on their needs
and objectives.

8
 NaphthaMax NaphthaMax
REO Base(3) 2.5 2 1.5 (2.8% REO, (1.8% REO,
Catalyst in Use
2
360 TSA) 360 TSA)
TSA m /g 325 344 380 406
Catalyst 100 100 100 100 Case Description Projected Actual
consumption in
%/per day Riser/ Reactor Operation
Delta Surface m2/g 19 55 81 Feed Rate Tonnes/ Base Base
Area hr
Savings in $/bbl 0.11 0.22 0.32 Feed Specific Base Base
$/bbl Gravity @ 60/60
Catalyst Tonnes/ 18.8 20.5
Table 6: Calculation based on constant conversion achieved by
Circulation Rate min
increased TSA Regenerator Operation
Regen 1 Bed C 711 697
Post Audit Temperature
As part of the comprehensive technical service provided to Fresh Cat Tonnes/ 2.15 2.20
customers, BASF provides a post audit service. The objective Make-up Rate day
of the post audit is to confirm the performance of the Conversion
reformulation and to assess whether there is scope for further Fresh Feed Con- wt% 73.8 73.4
fine tuning. Of course, should the refineries objective have version (as cut)
changed significantly, the post audit can also help develop Product Yields Weight Percent Basis
new strategies for the refinery to target its new priorities.
Hydrogen wt% 0.09 0.08
An example of a post audit is given below for a European Hydrogen Sulfide wt% 0.17 0.15
refinery that changed its catalyst formulation from a rare earth
Methane wt% 1.56 1.54
of 2.8% to 1.8%, keeping its catalyst addition the same but
using a reformulated higher total surface area catalyst. After Ethane wt% 1.14 1.11
the refinery assessed the performance and felt comfortable Ethylene wt% 1.32 1.32
with this new reformulation, it is looking at other options to Propane wt% 1.84 1.76
further cut its rare earth levels.
Propylene wt% 7.32 7.65
As can be seen from Table 7, the post audit was carried out N-Butane wt% 0.95 0.95
after a full inventory changeover. By comparing the projected Isobutane wt% 3.71 3.78
and actual yield patterns from the unit, it can be seen that the
accuracy of the BASF modeling tool kit is very good. This is Total Butenes wt% 7.57 7.82
testament to the understanding, expertise, and experience C5 to 221 C wt% 42.95 42.08
that resides in the global technical team of BASF. Gasoline
Light Cycle Oil, wt% 13.79 14.41
221 to 350 C
Slurry, 350+ C wt% 12.53 12.18
Coke wt% 5.19 5.17
Table 7: Post audit results

9
BASF Technical Service
As part of BASFs standard service, all catalyst offerings
undergo a review from their product selection team that
includes representatives from sales, service, manufacturing
and marketing. Each catalyst offer is customized to meet the
objectives of the refiner; taking into consideration the specific
user constraints, whether they are operational or economic.
This approach allows BASFs technical sales team to deliver
the best value to their customers.
As a technical support follow-up after sales, BASF has
instituted a regular Technical Support Services (TSS) report
that is made available to all of our customers. These reports
provide the refinery management with an ongoing systematic
evaluation of their FCC operating conditions together with the
impact of the catalyst to support the strategic direction of the
FCC management.
Information Flow for TSS
Operating Data Process Check Process Analysis
Refinery provides Accuracy of data E-cat data
BASF with operating
Mass balance closure Fines analysis
data
Heat balance Scrubber water analysis
H2 balance Feed analysis
Figure 8: Information flow to support refinery operations to create maximum value
The major objective of the after sales technical service is to
ensure that the catalyst formulation fits into the refinery
strategic decision of optimizing its profitability on an ongoing
basis. This is done to support the refinery with optimum
catalyst recipe to meet the changing needs of the refinery
within its operating unit, market, and logistical constraints.
A quick summary of information flow for the technical support
system can be seen in the Figure 8.
10
Conclusion
In the context of the high rare earth price environment, BASF
makes available critical competencies that refiners can apply
to reduce operating costs associated with fresh catalyst
purchase and minimize the risk of a catalyst reformulation. The
process of extracting maximum benefit comes into being by
the interplay of information between customer and BASF
through communication, understanding, tools, and products.
BASF has managed this process at the front end with heavy
investments in R&D, production process and equipment to
bring about best-in-class products. The process begins with
the account manager fully understanding the needs of
customer to reduce operating costs, as well as being fully
versed regarding the operating objectives and constraints of
the unit. This information is presented to the product selection
Operation Optimization Final Report
Create models using BASF publishes a
state-of-the-art quarterly report with
simulation programs findings to ensure
refinery operating and
Compare performance
profitability targets
against refineries using
are met
proprietary benchmarking
team, comprised of members with global experience, to select
one or more products for a given set of operation conditions.
Once the catalyst is selected, the product is evaluated in a
proprietary FCC simulations model against the customers
operating capabilities and constraints. The information
gathered from simulation programs are then compared against
a benchmark database to ensure practical potential reality of
the selection, which the account manager then fully discloses
to the customer.
Once a decision is made by the customer, the execution of the References
process moves into the next phase. A heightened level of
1. Rare Earth Supply Peaking to Surplus by 2013
technical support is initiated where real operational data from
Goldman, published by Dow Jones (Sydney), 05-04-2011.
the refinery is analyzed for consistency and accuracy. Regular
and timely meetings are held with the customer accompanied 2. The table was based on CMAI estimates and then modified
by detailed reports to keep the refiner fully apprised of the unit with internal documents for estimating the FCC economics.
operation, economic impacts, and constraint positions. This is CMAI reports are supplied by Chemical Market Associates.
to minimize surprises for the FCC management.
Author
After the total inventory has been turned over, a post audit is
Solly Ismail, FCC Modeling Specialist
carried out to assess and confirm the projections. The post BASF Corporation
audit also gives the refinery the opportunity to decide if there is 25 Middlesex/Essex Turnpike
still further scope for improvement. Through state-of-the-art Iselin, NJ 08830
technology and a partnering approach, BASF is able to
combine the benefits of selecting the optimal product,
expertise, and global experience to ensure continued value
creation for its customers. For the customers, this approach
helps them make highly informed, high quality decisions to
support the refinerys plan by minimizing risk and surprises and
increasing profitability.

BASF has successfully partnered with a large percentage of its

customers to evaluate the rare earth content in their catalyst
formulations, which has resulted in several successful
reductions in rare earth. This is done through a comprehensive
technical evaluation that ensures the reformulation is optimized
for the specific FCC unit being evaluated. BASFs highly
specialized experts work closely with the refiner throughout
the process to understand unit restraints and yield objectives
in order to carefully engineer the right strategy that results in
the cost savings the refiner desires without unacceptably
compromising the performance. Following implementation of
the lower rare earth catalyst, BASF provides a post audit
service to confirm catalyst performance and to identify
opportunities for further refinement.

11
About Us
BASFs Catalysts division is the
worlds leading supplier of
environmental and process catalysts.
The group offers exceptional
expertise in the development of
technologies that protect the air we
breathe, produce the fuels that power
our world and ensure efficient
production of a wide variety of
chemicals, plastics and other
products. By leveraging our industry-
leading R&D platforms, passion for
innovation and deep knowledge of
precious and base metals, BASFs
Catalysts division develops unique,
proprietary catalyst and adsorbent
solutions that drive customer
success.
BASF - The Chemical Company
www.catalysts.basf.com/refining
Americas Sales Office
BASF Corporation
25 Middlesex/Essex Turnpike
P.O. Box 770
Iselin, NJ 08830-0770
Tel: +1-732-205-7188
Fax: +1-732-205-7725
Email: refining-catalysts@basf.com
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Cheadle, CHESHIRE, SK8 6QG, UK
Tel: +44-(0)-161-488-5156
Fax: +44-(0)-161-485-5487
Email: refining-catalysts@basf.com
NaphthaMax is a trademark of BASF.
Although all statements and information in this
publication are believed to be accurate and reliable,
they are presented gratis and for guidance only, and
risks and liability for results obtained by use of the
products or application of the suggestions
described are assumed by the user. NO
WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS
OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF
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PARTICULAR PURPOSE, ARE MADE REGARDING
PRODUCTS DESCRIBED OR DESIGNS, DATA OR
INFORMATION SET FORTH. Statements or
suggestions concerning possible use of the
products are made without representation or
warranty that any such use is free of patent
infringement and are not recommendations to
infringe any patent. The user should not assume
that toxicity data and safety measures are indicated
or that other measures may not be required.
2011 BASF
BF-9626 USL 08/11