Patent ID: 9644157
Date: 2017-05-09
CPC Classifications: B01J,C10B,C10G

Claim:
1. A method for hydroprocessing a heavy oil feedstock to increase production of upgraded liquid hydrocarbon products and reduce coke formation, the method comprising: preparing a heavy oil feedstock comprised of a substantial quantity of hydrocarbons having a boiling point greater than about 343° C. (650° F.), including asphaltenes or other coke forming precursors, and a colloidal or molecular catalyst formed in situ within and dispersed throughout the heavy oil feedstock; introducing the heavy oil feedstock and hydrogen into a pre-coking hydrocracking reactor; hydrocracking the heavy oil feedstock at hydrocracking conditions to cause fragmentation of larger hydrocarbon molecules into smaller molecular fragments having a fewer number of carbon atoms and form hydrocarbon free radicals from the heavy oil feedstock, the colloidal or molecular catalyst catalyzing upgrading reactions between hydrogen and the hydrocarbon free radicals to yield an upgraded material, the upgrading reactions reducing the quantity of asphaltenes or other coke forming precursors by at least 20%, increasing the hydrogen to carbon ratio in the upgraded material, and decreasing the boiling points of hydrocarbons in the upgraded material compared to the heavy oil feedstock; transferring the upgraded material, together with residual colloidal or molecular catalyst and hydrogen, to a separator to separate gaseous and volatile fractions from a liquid hydrocarbon fraction, the liquid hydrocarbon fraction comprising residual catalyst metal; introducing at least a portion of the liquid hydrocarbon fraction and residual catalyst metal into one or more coking reactors and causing thermal-cracking of the liquid hydrocarbon fraction to form upgraded hydrocarbon products and coke; separating the coke from the upgraded hydrocarbon products; and further processing the upgraded hydrocarbon products to form further processed hydrocarbons and without recycling any further processed hydrocarbons to the hydrocracking reactor.