Patent ID: 6103101
Filing Date: 2000-08-15
Classification: B01J,C10G,F02B

Abstract:
A process for producing lube base oils of high viscosity index, wherein said process comprises:contacting a feed enriched in iso-paraffins with a catalyst bed to produce a partially finished lube oil, wherein the catalyst bed comprises a first bed, optionally a second bed, a third bed and optionally a fourth bed, the beds being placed in the same reaction vessel or in different reaction vessels and, when the second bed is present, with or without a gas separation between the second and third beds, where the first bed comprises a hydrodemetallization catalyst, the optional second bed comprises a hydrotreating catalyst, the third bed comprises a catalyst for hydroisomerization/hydrocracking and the optional fourth bed comprises a hydrofinishing catalyst, where the weight percentage of the hydrodemetallization catalyst is between 5 and 25% based on the total catalyst weight, the weight percentage of the hydrotreating bed is between zero and 60% based on the total catalyst weight, the weight percentage of the hydroisomerization/hydrocracking bed is between 15 and 65% based on the total catalyst weight and the remainder of the bed is the hydrofinishing catalyst, where hydrogen is fed to the catalyst bed together with the feed enriched in iso-paraffins, where the hydrodemetallization catalyst comprises between zero and 14 weight % of Mo or between zero and 14 weight % of W, between zero and 4 weight % of Ni, between zero and 4 weight % of Co and between greater than zero and 3 weight % of P, the hydrotreating catalyst comprises between zero and 20 weight % of Mo or between zero and 26 weight % of W, between zero and 8.0 weight % of Ni, between zero and 8 weight % of Co and between greater than zero and 6 weight % of P, the catalyst for hydroisomerization/hydrocracking comprises between zero and 14 weight % of Mo, or between zero and 14 weight % of W, between zero and 6 weight % Ni, between zero and 2 weight % of Pt, between zero and 2 weight % of Pd, between zero and 2 weight % of Ru, between zero and 2 weight % of Rh, between zero and 2 weight % of Os, between zero and 2 weight % of Ir, and between greater than zero and 4 weight % of P, wherein each catalyst has an active phase which is supported on alumina, halogenated alumina, or amorphous or crystalline silica-alumina and the hydrofinishing catalyst can have the same chemical composition as the hydrotreating catalyst of the second bed, wherein each catalyst contains at least some catalytic metal in a catalytically effective amount,distilling the partially finished lube oil to produce a product oil, andsolvent dewaxing the product oil to produce a lube oil with a viscosity index of higher than 105 and a pour point of -6.degree. C. or less,wherein the contacting of the feed enriched in iso-paraffins in the successive catalyst beds is effected at temperatures between 280 and 450.degree. C., under hydrogen pressure between 40 and 230 kgf/cm.sup.2 g, where the hydrogen to paraffin feed ratio is between 100 and 1600 Nm.sup.3 /m.sup.3 and where the weight hourly space velocity during the contact is between 0.1 and 2.0 kg/kg.h,wherein the feed enriched in iso-paraffins submitted to the hydroisomerization/hydrocracking process contains between 20 to 80% of iso-paraffins based on the total paraffin content.