Influence of CO 2 ‐Rich Syngas on the Selectivity to C 10 –C 14 in a Coupled Fischer‐Tropsch/Hydrocracking Process

Synthesis gas (syngas) used for the production of synthetic fuels may contain significant amounts of CO 2 , depending on its source. For Fischer‐Tropsch synthesis on cobalt, CO 2 can be considered as inert diluent. However, in the specific case of a coupled Fischer‐Tropsch‐hydrocracking (FT‐HC) process, CO 2 could interact with the catalyst in the HC step. In this experimental study, HC product distributions obtained for FT‐syngas compositions with and without CO 2 and N 2 are presented. The selected feed gas compositions result from an advanced syngas production route via plasma splitting of CO 2 . Main target product was kerosene, here being defined as C 10 –C 14 . It was found that the CO 2 presence is negligible with regard to adsorption or reaction on the HC catalyst. Further insights into possible impacts of CO 2 could be obtained from the analysis of alcohols in the aqueous phase.