Effect of Dephenolization on Low-Temperature Coal Tar Hydrogenation To Produce Fuel Oil

The experiment of fuel oil production through hydrogenation has been conducted on a hydrorefining–hydrocracking two-stage serial fixed-bed reactor with coal tar distillate [CTD; initial boiling point (IBP)–360 °C] and phenol extraction coal tar distillate (PE-CTD) as the feedstocks. By comparison of the changes in chemical composition and carbon number distribution as well as product distribution and properties before and after hydrogenation in the two feedstocks, the influences of phenol extraction treatment on fuel oil production with coal tar hydrogenation were studied. The experimental conditions of this study include the reaction pressure of 13 MPa, liquid hourly space velocity of 0.5 h–1, hydrorefining reaction temperature at 360 °C, hydrocracking reaction temperature at 380 °C, and filling proportion of hydrorefining catalyst/hydrocracking catalyst of 1:1. The experimental result shows that phenol extraction reduces the naphtha yield by 8.69 wt % but produces 13.58% of mixed phenols. Furthermore, the phenol extraction treatment is favorable for converting a heavy distillate of coal tar to a light fraction.