A novel method for enhancing on-stream stability of fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) gasoline hydro-upgrading catalyst: Post-treatment of HZSM-5 zeolite by combined steaming and citric acid leaching

This article describes a novel modification method consisting of steaming and subsequent citric acid leaching to finely tune acidity and pore structure of HZSM-5 zeolite and thereby to enhance the on-stream stability of the zeolite derived fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) gasoline hydro-upgrading catalyst. A series of dealuminated HZSM-5 zeolites and their derived catalysts were prepared and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF), ²⁷Al MAS NMR, nitrogen adsorption, temperature programmed desorption of ammonium (NH₃-TPD) and infrared (IR) spectroscopy of chemisorbed pyridine. The results showed that the citric acid leaching could preferentially remove the extra-framework Al (EFAl) species formed by steaming treatment and thus reopen the EFAl-blocked pore channels of the steamed zeolite. The steaming treatment at a suitable temperature and subsequent citric acid leaching not only decreased the strength of acid sites to a desirable degree but also increased the ratio of medium and strong Lewis acidity to medium and strong Brönsted acidity, both of which conferred the resulting catalyst with superior selectivity to aromatics, good hydroisomerization activity and gasoline research octane number (RON) preservability, as well as enhanced on-stream stability. The results fully demonstrated that the treatments by steaming and followed citric acid leaching can serve as an important method for adjusting the physicochemical properties of HZSM-5 zeolite.