Hydrotreatment of Heavy Oil from Direct Coal Liquefaction on a Sulfided Ni-W/AC Catalyst

Ni-W catalysts supported on activated carbon and Al₂O₃ were prepared by an incipient wetness impregnation method and characterized by x-ray diffraction and temperature programmed reduction. Heavy oil (distillation temperature: 320–340°C) derived from the direct coal liquefaction process using Shengli coal were hydrotreated using sulfided Ni-W catalysts at 400°C and 5.0 MPa initial H₂ pressure. The results showed that the support had a significant influence on the reducibility of metal oxides, hydrodenitrogenation, and hydrodearomatization activities of coal-derived heavy oil. Ni-W/activated carbon exhibited higher decolor performance and hydrodearomatization activities for upgrading the coal-derived heavy oil than the Ni-W/Al₂O₃ catalyst.