Influence of pore structure of USY zeolite on its performance in catalytic cracking of vegetable oil

USY zeolites with similar framework SiO2/Al2O3 ratio and increased mesopore volume were prepared, with which globular catalysts were prepared by spray drying. Catalytic cracking of Jatropha curcas L. seed oil (JCO) and soybean oil were performed in a constrained fluidized bed reactor. The results of JCO evaluation showed that the gasoline/diesel yields increased as the increased catalyst's mesopore volume. The higher the yield of olefins and lower yield of aromatics in gasoline gave rise to lower octane number and the anti-explosion index. As for the product distribution of USY catalyst with mesopore volume of 0.142cm3/g, which was prepared by ammonium exchange and hydrothermal modification, the maximum yield of gasoline/diesel was 62.21% (mass fraction), the yield of coke was lowest, and the research octane number (RON) of gasoline was up to 90.5. The catalytic cracking of soybean oil gave the same reaction trend as that of JCO, and the RON of gasoline was up to 92.2 using the catalyst with moderate mesopore volume. The results showed that the catalytic cracking process, with appropriate mesoporous USY zeolite catalyst, can high-efficiently produce light vehicle fuel and high-octane gasoline from vegetable oil. © 2022, Chemical Industry Press Co., Ltd. All right reserved.