| Title of Invention | CATALYST FOR THE TREATMENT OF ORGANIC COMPOUNDS |
|---|---|
| Abstract | : Acatalyst for the hydroprocessing of organic compounds, composed of an intersititial metal hydride having a reaction surface in which monatomic hydrogen is available. The activity of the catalyst is maximized by avoiding surface oxide formation Transition metals and lanthanide metals campose the compound from when the Interstitial metal hydride is formed. The catalyst"s capabilities can be further enhanced using radio frequency (RF) or microwave energy. |
| Full Text | 5 This invention relates to a catalyst for the hydrocessing of organic compounds. Hydraprocesstng includes all types of petroleum hydrocracking and hydrotreating processes. This catalyst can be used for the low pressure hydrogenation of organic compounds and petroleum using conventional heat sources. This catalyst's capabilities can be further enhanced using radio frequency (BF) or microwave energy. 10 DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART Hydrocarbons are subjected to a variety of physical and chemical processes to produce higher value products. These processes include fractionation, isomerization, bond dissociation and reformation, purification, and increasing hydrogen content. The processes 15 tend to require high pressures and temperatures. Catalysts are employed in the processes for various reasons including, but not limited to, reducing the temperatures and pressures at Which the hydrocarbon conversion Teaction takes place. The term "hydroprocessing' is used to refer to the encornpassing superset of these processes in which hydrogen is used. Petroleum or crude oil is a naturally occurring mixture of hydrocarbons and smaller 20 amounts of organic compounds containing heteroatoms such as sulfur, oxygen, nitrogen, and metals (mostly nickel and vanadium). The petroleum products obtained from crude oil processing vary considerably, depending on market demand, crude oil quality, and refinery objectives. In current industrial practices, crude oils are submitted to distillation under atmospheric pressure and under vacuum. The distillation fractions (including the residual 25 fractions) undergo further catalytic refining processes so high-value products can be produced. The hydrogen content of petroleum products is an important index of their economic value. In conventional hydrocracking and hydrotreating processes, the hydrogenation reactions of aromatic compounds play a crucial role. Heavy residual compounds are 30 normally aromatic in nature. The complete or partial saturation of these compounds by hydrogen addition is an important step in their cracking into smaller, more valuable compounds. Conventional heavy oil hydrocracking processes require relatively high temperature (e.g. greater than 400°C) and very high pressure (e.g. greater than 1000 psi). In current hydrotreating and hydroreforming processes, supported Ni-Mo and Co-Mo sulfided 1 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 catalysts "become active only at the high temperature range. In order for reactions to take place at a favorable lower temperature range, expensive noble metal catalysts are usually used in order to achieve good hydrogenation efficiency. Attempts have been made to find new classes of catalysts that would signiflcantly lower the process parameters, while 5 increasing, the hydrogenation efficiency in terms of deep reduction of aromatic content, but the progress made thus far is mostly small improvements over existing catalyst systems. As the name implies, hydrocracking combines catalytic cracking and hydrogenation by means of a bifunctional catalyst lo accomplish a number of favorable transformations of partcular value for the selected feedstocks. In a typical bifunctional catalyst, the cracking 10 function is provided by an acidic support, whereas the hydrogenation function is provided, by noble rnetals, or non-noble metal sulfides from Periodic Table Groups 6, 9, and 10 (based on the 1990 IUPAC system in which the columns are assigned the numbers 1 to 18). Hydrocracking is a versatile process for converting a variety of feedstocks, ranging from raphthas through heavy gas oils, into useful products. Its most unqiue characteristic involves 15 the hydrogenation and breakup of polynuciear aiomatics. Significant portions of these feedstocks are converted through hydroeracking into smaller-sized and more useful product constituents. However, some of the large aromatic complexes within these feedstocks, once partially hydrogenated via hydrocracking, can proceed to dehydnogenate forming coke on the catalyses, Coke formation is ora of many deactivation mechanisma that reduce catalyst life. 20 In many refineries, the hydrocracker serves as the major supplier of jet and diesei fuel components (middle distillates). Because of the htgh pressure required and hydrogen consumption, conventional hydrocrackers are very costly to build and to operate. By developing a class of catalysts with high, selectivity for middle distillates and favorable operating conditions, it is possible to significantly reduce these high costs while maximizing 25 the production of the middle distillates. To remove undesirable heteroatoms, desutfruization, denitrogenation, and dernetallization processes are also accomplished using hydroprocessing methods. Because the values of petroleum products are directly related to their hydiogen contents, the affective hydrogenation of products is highly desirable in all stages of petroleum refining. 30 Metals, such as platinum, deposited on oxide supports, such as alumina or silica, are widely used in catalysts for hydrocarbon reforming reactions. The deposited metal provides reactive sites at which the desired reactions can occur. However, catalysts using these metals have the problem of being rendered inactive if heavy polyaromatic organic compounds build up and occupy or block the sites. The removal of sulfur and sulfur compounds are also a 2 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 problem for these catalysts. Sulfur reacts with the catalytic sites of Pt or Pd metals and can also deactivate these sites by chemically binding to the metals. Successful catalysis requires that a suitable high local concentration of hydrogen be maintained during the catalytic process. Pressure and temperature conditions are selected to favor formation of the desired 5 product, to provide a suitable rate of conversion, and to avoid rapid deactivation of the catalytic surface. Hydroprocessing catalysts and their respective components can take many forms and structures. Much is known about optimizing catalyst performance for specific processes (e.g., hydrogenation, hydrocraking, hydrodemetallization and hydrodesulfrrization). 10 Regarding the catalyst form, the catalyst can be used as a powder, extrudate, or preformed matrix based upon the type of chemical reactor design selected (e.g., fluidized bed; fixed bed, catalytic converter). An overall need remains, however, for improved catalysts and catalytic hydroprocesses that can be carried out under relatively mild conditions, 15 SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In one aspect, the invention provides a catalyst that includes an interstitial metal hydride having a reaction surface and monatomic hydrogen at the reaction surface. The reaction surface may be substantially free of an oxide layer 20 In another aspect, the invention provides a catalyst having a support, an RF or microwave energy absorber and a catalytically active phase, The catalyticlly active phase stores and produces hydrogen in monatomic form. The RF or mictowave energy absorber may be the catalyticaily active phase. In a farther aspect, the invention provides a catalyst including a metal hydride having 25 a Reaction surface and monatomic hydrogen at the reaction surface. The catalyst also includes at least one of a hydroprocessing component, a cracking component and combinations thereof. In another aspect, the invention provides a mixture comprising an interstitial metal hydride and a liquid organic compound. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS fig. 1 is a diagram of a process for the production of a first catalyst of the present invention; 3 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 Fig. 2 is a diagram of a process for the production of a second catalyst of the present invention; Fig. 3 is a diagram of a process for the production of a third catalyst of the present invention; 5 Fig, 4 is a diagram of a process for the production of a fourth catalyst of the present invention; Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of a reactor configuration for the process of the present invention; Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram of a reactor configuration for the process of the present 10 invention with the capability of preheating the gas and liquid and recirculating the reaction mixture or components of the reaction mixture internally and externally, Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram of a reactor configuration for the process of the present invention having the capability of recirculating the catalyst for regeneration or recharging; Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram for improved handling the output for any reactor design 15 for the process of the present invention having the capability of separating product into gas and liquid; Fig. 9 is a schematic representation for improved handling the output for any reactor design for the process of the present invention having the capability of gas product collection, gas product recycling, liquid product collection and liquid product recycling and a means for 20 injecting the gas and liquid to be recycled to be injected back into the Feed or input stream. Fig. 10 is a plot of hydrogen pressure versus hydrogen content at various temperatures for a catalyst of the present invention; Fig, 11 is a plot of total Hydrogen versus temperatures at ambient pressure for three catalysts of the present invention; 25 Fig. 12 is a plot of dielectric loss tangent against microwave frequency for pitch residium and microwave processed pitch; Fig. 13 is a graph of pressure, temperature, microwave power and hydrogen flow as a function of time for a reaction catalyzed by the iMeH Cat 300 with palladium coated USY support. 30 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention is directed to catalysts containing interstitial metal hydrides, having reaction surfaces at which monatomic hydrogen is available, and to any catalytic processes making use of these materials. The interstitial metal hydrides of the present 4 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 invention (now specifically being defined as iMeH) are composed of alloyed metals combined with atomic hydrogen that is stored interstitially within their metal alloy matrix- These interstitial metal hydrides (iMeH), when configured according to ihe present invention comprise a catalyst capable of absorbing molecular hydrogen, and reacting monatomic 5 hydrogen at the reaction surface. The catalysts of the present invention have reaction surfaces that may be kept substantially free of an oxide layer. Undesirable oxide species can inhibit the manatomic hydrogen, from participating in the catalytic process. Production of an oxide layer is avoided, and reaction surfaces are Kept substantially free of an oxide layer, by minimizing exposure of the catalyst to oxygen or water vapor at elevated temperatures, such 10 as temperatures above 30°C, Exposure to oxygen and water vapor is minimized by surrounding the catalyst with a blanketing atmosphere of an inert gas such as nitrogen or argon which has been exposed to a desiccant. It has been found that the monatoniic hydrogen concentration at the catalyst surface is maximized by exclusion of onygen and water vapor at elevated temperatires, Monatomic hidrogen as the iMeH catalyst suface is monatomic 15 hydrogen in close enough proximity to the surface to react, in the monatomic form. with a feedstock in contact with the surface. In use, the interstitial metal hydride can be directly combined with the feedstock, at reaction temperatures, or the iMeH may be first formed into a composite with other materials to further enhance catalytic activity. The catalytic process of the present invention includes 20 contacting the feedstock with a catalyst comprising an interstitial metal hydride, having a reaction surface, to produce a catalyst-feedstock mixture, applying energy to an least one of the catalyst and the catalyst-feedstock mixture, producing monatomic hydrogen at the reaction surface of the interstitial metal hydride, and reacting the feedstock with the monatomic hydrogen. In one embodiment of the invention, the feedstock is an organic 25 compound. Again, the interstitial metal hydrides are composed of alloyed metals combined with atomic hydrogen, which is stored interstitially within the metal alloy rnatrix. This matrix can have a crystalline or amorphous structure. The iMeH is especially suited to accommodating atomic hydrogen, abstracted from molecular hydrogen. The quantity of atomic hydrogen in 30 the interstitial metallic hydrides has a measurable value, which is a function of alloy composition, and operating temperature and pressure. The hydrogen stored within iMeH is not subject to ionic or covalent bondjrng. In an iMeH the ratio of hydrogen to metal atoms may vary over a range and may not be expressible as a ratio of small whole numbers. The iMeH compounds of the present invention are able to dissociate diatomic hydrogen molecufes 5 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 at the surface into monalomic hydrogen, absorb copious amounts of monatomic hydrogen thus produced, and desorb the monalornic hydrogen under the appropriate conditions. A heat of absorption is produced when the molecular hydrogen dissociates into atomic hydrogen and the hydrogen atoms position themselves interstilially in the structure of the material. 5 Additional energy at a suitable steady state process temperature and pressure is required for the release of monatomic hydrogen from within the catalyst. This energy can be derived from the process heat of reaction or from external application of energy or both. The atomic hydrogen thus provided is available to promote hydroprocsssing and hydrogenation reactions, Without intending to be limited by the theory, the catalyst's activity of the preseat invention 10 is believed to be due to the high concentration of available monatomic hydrogenl which the iMeH uniquely provide by the nature of their dissociation and absorption of molecular hydrogen (H:) and subsequent reaction exchange of highly reactive monatomic hydrogen (H2) at the surface. The catalytic activity of the catalyst of the present invention can be enhanced and 15 controlled by exposing the cataryst to RF or microwave energy (1000m- l0-4 m wavelength), either in the absence or presence of fuel fired heating or resistive heating. The RF or microwave energy can provide for a significant increase in hydroprocessing efficiency in comparison to conventional beating. Furthermore the microwave energy can be modulated and controlled in such a manner as to optimize the reaction exchange of the monatomie 20 hydrogen from the iMeH, In one embodiment of the invention, the iMeH catalyst component is placed in contact with a separate absorber of RF or microwave energy. The separate absorber of RF or microwave energy absorbs the energy and transfers it to the iMeK through thermol conduction and convection, and may be one or more compounds such as silicon. carbide, iron silicide, nickel oxide, and tungsten carbide. In another embodiment of the 25 invention, the iMeH component functions as the primary absorber of RF or microwave energy, When used with microwave enhancement, the iMeH component is sufficiently dispersed within the catalyst and feedstock combination to solve the problem of hot spots and arcing generally associated with the introduction of metals into a microwave or RF field. The selective use of RF or microwave energy to drive the catalytic component of the 30 catalyst results in the direct reaction of the iMeH monatomic hydrogen im& the feedstock. It is cost effective to maximize the use of fossil fuels to pre-heat the feedstocks to near reaction temperatures and use minimum RF or microwave energy to drive and control the hydroprocessing reactions. Ideally there will be a minimized or zero net temperature increase 6 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 from the RF or microwave energy into the catalyst support or into the feedstock because this energy is primarily targeted into the iMeH to enhance the reaction exchange of monatomic hydrogen. Selective coupling of the RF or microwave energy is accomplished through selection and control of the relative dielectric parameters of the catalyst's components and the 5 feedstock. This results id efficient, economically viable catalytic processes, which are enhanced using microwaves. The catalyst of the present invention may be used in all types of hydroprocesses or as a more specific example to hydrosrack organic compounds. In these processes, the feedstock, e.g, organic compounds, are contacted with an iMeH catalyst comprising a metal 10 hydride capable of releasing monatomic hydrogen at its surface. The c ombinanon of the iMeH and feedstocks may be exposed to any number of process conditions, (such as temperature, pressure, and space velocity) suitable for a desired hydroprocessing reaction. The catalyst enables hydroprocessing at milder conditions, and significantly lower pressures. High reactivity, lower process pressures, and new degrees of selectivity and 15 control using RF or microwaves provide for improved products and lower capital equipment and operating costs. In the present invention, iMeH catalyst compositions having the following characteristics have been specifically identified: · High hydrogen storage capacity (Range from 0,01 wt% - 7,5 wt% hydrogen in 20 catalyst) · High molecular hydrogen absorption and monatotnie hydrogen reaction rates (greater than 0,01 cc/min/gm,), for given, temperature or pressure changes. Typical operating pressures and temperatures can range from ambient to 1000 psig and ambient to 600°C. A typical value for hydrogen reaction rates is 1 25 cc/min/gm, and materials have been measured with values greater than 50 cc/min/gm, · Temperature-dependent desorption pressure · Ability to undergo repeated hydrogenation cycling · Tolerance for impurities 30. · Using the invention disclosed herein, iMeH catalysts with high reaction rates can be designed for operation up to 3000 psi and 600oC- 7 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 The monatomic hydrogen provided in the presence of an iMeH catatyst permits higher reaction rales and milder reaction conditions to be used for a given process. It is known that Pt and Pd dissociate molecular hydrogen into monatomic hydrogen when it is adsorted onto the surface of these metals, The iMeH material; of the present 5 invention have this property as well The iMeH materials also store or absorb the dissociated molecular hydrogen into the bulk of the iMeH matrix as monatomic hydrogen whereas metals such as platinum do not. Interstitial metal hydrides are produced by preparing samples of the constituent metals in the desired proportions, and combining them and heating them so that they melt together 10 homogeneously to produce a metal alloy. The resulting metal alloy is then exposed to hydrogen at a temperature and pressure characteristic of the alloy so that the metal alloy takes up the hydrogen in monatomic form. The iMeH materials of the present invention are typically prepared by a volumetric (gas to solid alloy) method at a known temperature and pressure using a skinless sted 15 reactor. The metallic hydride will abserb hydrogen with an exothermic reaction, This hydrogenation process is reversible according to the following chemical reaction schematic. During this process, hydrogen atoms will occupy interstitial siles in the alloy lattice. The meta! alloy fom which an iMeH is produced can be prepared by mechanical or 20 induction heated alloying processes. The metal alloy can be stoichiometrio or hyper- stoichiometric. Hyper-stoichiometric compounds are compounds that exhibit wide compositional variations from ideal stoichiometry. Hyper-stoichiometric systems contain excess elements, which can significantly influence the phase stability of the metallic hydrides. The iMeH is produced from a metal alloy by subjecting the alloy to hydrogen at a 25 pressure and temperatures that is a characteristic of the particular alloy. The iMeH catalysis of the present invention can be selected to have a desired lartice structure and thermodynamic properties, such as the applied pressure and temperature at which they can be charged and the operating pressure and temperature at which they can be discharged. These working thermodynamic parameters can be modified and fine tuned by an 30 appropriate alloying method and therefore, the composition of the catalysts can be designed for use in a particular catalytic process. The present invention is directed to catalysis containing interstitial metal hydrides, These hydrides are composed of alloyed metais combined with monatomic hydrogen that is 8 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 stored interstitially within their metal alloy matrix. Multi-component metal alloys from which the iMeH catalysts of the present invention are produced include combinations of Group 4 elements with Group 5, 6, 7, S, 9, 10 and 11 elements (based or the 1990 UPAC system in which the columns are assigned the numbers 1 to 18). Also iMeH catalysts of this 5 invention may be produced from alloys including all combinations of lanthanides (atomic numbers 58 to 71) with Group 7, 8,9, 10 and-11 elements. For example; the alloy maybe AxTy in which A is one or more Group 4 elements and T is one or more Group 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 10 and 11 elements, in another example, A is one or more lanthanides and T is one or more Group 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11 elements. X and y are the composition values for the different 10 elements in each series, Thess alloys may taks the form of crystalline or amorphous fine powders, and the resulting interstitial metal hydrides have properties making them useful for hydroprecessing reactions in which the operating temperature ranges from ambient (20°C) to 1000°C and operating hydrogen pressures in the range from ambient (15 psi) to 2000 psi. The iMeH serves as a high density source of interstitial monatomic reactive hydrogen 15 and can be combined with known hydroproecssing catalysts such as noble metals metal oxides, metal sulfides, zeolitic acid or base sites to further promote hydreprocessing of feedstocks suth as organic tompo^wi^. The iMeH materials can be combined with other hydroprocessing materials in a variety of ways to build an optimized catalyst for a particular reaction or function. In general, the finer the powders being mixed (e.g. support, iMeH), the 20 higher the surface area and the more intimate the mixing. Key to the processing steps is to minimize the exposure of iMeH to oxygen and/or water vapor at etevated temperatures (above 25"C) for extended periods of time. Exposure can be minimized by use of desiccants and by blanketing atmospheres of inert gases such as nitrogen and argon. The iMeH is not calcined or sunjected to an oxidiaitig environmem at elevated temperatures. 25 Hydreprocessing catalysts and their respective components can take many forms and} structures. Much is known about optimizing catalyst performance based upon process requirements (e.g., hydrogenation, hydrocracking, hydrodesulfurization (HDS), hydrodemetallization (HDM), and hydrodenitrogenation (HDN). For example, the catalyst can be used as a powder, extrudate, or preformed matrix based upon the type of reactor 30 design selected (e.g,, fltudized bed, fixed bed, catalytic converter, etc) The simplest iMeH catalyst is the iMeH powder itself. In this case the iMeH provides monatomic hydrogen and is the catalyst for hydroprocessing. The process and reactor hardware are more complex than in a fixed catalyst bed process. 9 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 The iMeH catalysts of the present invention, when used in powder form, may be mixed and dispersed within the feedstock and transported through a reactor (e.g. slurry reactor). After the desired reaction has been catalyzed in the reactor, the iMeH powder is then separated from the reaction products for reuse. 5 An iMeH can be combined with a support and optionally other catalytic elements to produce a composite catalyst. The support provides for the physical dispersion of iMeH, providing greater surface area and ease of handling. The support also serves to increase the surface area of the active catalytic elements and thereby increase the process reaction rates. The support also serves to disperse the metallic or metal oxide catalytic sites so as to prevent 10 arcing in the presence of a strong electric or magnetic fields that may be used to expedite catalytic action. The iMeH compounds of the present invention can be utilized in a crystalline or amorphous form. The support may be composed of an inorganic oxide, a metal, a carbon, or combinations of these materials. The iMeH phases and catalytic elements can be dispersed as 15. mechanically mixed powders, or can be chemieally dispersed, impregnated or deposited. When mixed powders are used in the present invention the powder particle size is controlled to provide a powder that has particles that are small enough to provide suitable surface area and reactivity, but not so fine as to produce significant surface oxidation, In one embodiment, particles used in the catalyst of the present invention have diameters ranging 20 from about 0.01 micrometers to about 1000 micrometers, from about 0.1 micrometers to about 100 micrometers, or from about 1 micrometer to about 10 micrometers. Nanosize powders and nanostructural elements containing an iMeH have also been found to be useful. The other catalytic elements may be known catalysts such as noble metals such as platinum or palladium, metal oxides, metal suifides, and zeolite acid or base sites; these additional 25 catalytic elements can further promote hydroprocessing. A hydropnocessmg component and a hydrocracking component used in combination with the iMeH may be one or more of these catalytic elements. Both the combination of an iMeH powder with a support, which can provide an additional catalyst function (i.e. at catalytically active or inert support), or an iMeH dispersed onto a hydroprocessing catalytic powder; can be especially effective for 30 hydracracking in an FCC type of Fluidized bed reactor. The [MeH catalysts of the present invention can also be coated onto an extrudate, typically formed from a mixed metal oxide such as alumina or silica. This method has practical manufacturing advantages, provides a uniform coating, and yielos a high iMeH surface area. The iMeH can be coated onto the spheres, pellets, rings, cylinders, and 10 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 extrudates of other shapes, including 3-lobed and 4-lobed extrudates, of which commercial catalysts are typically farmed. The iMeH catalysis can also be incorporated into the body of the extrudate. A powder of iMeH may be mixed with inert support powder, such as silica or alumina, or a commercial hydroprocessing catalyst, commercial hydrotreating catalyst; or 5 commercial hydrocracking catalyst ground to a fine powder- The mixed powder is combined with a binder and extruded. Fine powder large pore alumina coated with metal sulfides such as COMOSX, or zeolite powder coated with a noble metal such as palladium or platinum may also be combined with iMeH in this fashion. The order of catalyst fabrication is based on minimizing exposure of the iMeH to 10 oxygen or water vapor. It has been found that chemically coating a mixed metal oxide form, such as an extrudate, with iMeH has several manufacturing advantages, provides for a more uniform coating, and should yield the highest practical iMeH surface area, In a typical process for the production of a catalyst of the present invention incorporating an extrudate, the raw inorganic oxides materials are extruded and calcined, the 15 extrudate is chemically coated with hydroprocessing metals such as Ni/Mo or Pd and the resulting combination is calcined. Finally the extrudate is chemically coated with an iMeH and treated with hydrogen. The iMeH of the present invention can be combined by many means with existing hydroprocessing catalysts or components. 20 Fig, 1 depicts the process steps for the production of a catalyst of the present invention. detailing the iMeH powder processing steps prior to mixing with the hydropmcessing catalyst powder. A metal alloy, of selected composition, is first exposed to hydrogen to produce an Interstitial metal hydride structure. Based on available equipment, the iMeH is then reduced to powder form, under an inert or hydrogen atmosphere using any one 25 of several conventional powder processing techniques known to those skilled in the arts. alternatively, the metal alloy can first be made into a powder and then exposed to hydrogen to produce iMeH powder. The iMeH powder is then intimately mixed with a hydroprocessing catalyst powder and formed into a catalyst structure. The catalyst may take the form of an extrudate (including three-lobed and fout-lobed forms), sphere, pellet, ring, 30 cylinder, or odier shapes, including a powder of particle size differing from the powder sizes of the starting powders - After forming, the iMeH is activated by exposure to hydrogen at temperaiure and pressure appropriate to the iMeH composition. 11 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 Fig, 2 depicts the process steps, as an example, in the production of a catalyst of the present invention in which an iMeH powder is mixed with a hydroproeessing catalyst powder. The hydreprocessing catalyst powder can be manufactured, by those skilled in the art, based upon process requirements. Fig, 2 shows several possibilities consisting of a 5 support powder (such as a zeolite) coated with a noble metal catalyst and/or a raetat sulfide such as NiMoSx. Fig- 3 depicts the process steps in the production of a catalyst of the present invention in which an iMeH is coated on a hydroprocessing catalyst form. The hydroprocessing catalyst form can be manufactured, by those skilled in the art, based upon process 10 requirements. The iMeH coating can be produced by methods including but not limited to, chemical vapor deposition (CVD), chemical coating, ion implating, and sputtering Kydrotreating catalyst or hydrocracking catalyst may be substituled for the hydroprocessing catalyst. Fig. 4 depicts the process steps in the production of a catalyst detailing but not 15 limiting the present invention in which an iMeH is coated on a hydroprocessing catalyst form. The hydroprocessing catalyst form can be manufactured, by those skilled in the art, based upon process requirements. Fig. 4 elaborates sevetal possibilities consisting of a support form coated with a noble metal catalyst and/or a metal sulfide such as NiMoSx. Properties of the support such as porosity Pore size distnbution, surface area and 20 acidity are selected on the basis of the feedstock and the selected hydroprocess. For low molecular weight organic compounds, microporous supports are appropriate because they offer fine pore size and high surface area. For heavier organic compounds a larger pore meso and/or macroporous catalyst structure are requirtd to allow the larger molecular size organic compounds to enter, The acidity can be adjusted to a level suitable for the particuler process 25 being catalyzed. The iMeH can be combined with or placed in proximity to one or more additional catalytic elements or components, such as a cracking catalyst or a hydroprocessing catalyst. This combination reduces the severity of the conditions required for hydroprocessing. Pd, Ni/MO, W, and Co/Mo catalysts are examples of materials that can function as these 30 additional catalytic elements or components. The support function and additional catalytic properties can be combined in a single substance. The iMeH may, if it is placed in close enough contact with the additional catalytic elements, supply them with monatomic hydrogen, thereby increasing their catalytic activity. The additional catalytic elements need 12 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 not be capable of storing monatomic hydrogen in their matrix to exhibit increased catalytic activity through the donation of montomic hydrogen from the iMeH. Another means of increasing catalytic activity is by enhancement through the hydrogen spillover effct. Without intending to be limited by this description, the hydrogen 5 spillover effect generally refers to the phenomenon when adsorbed hydrogen on the catalyst (metal) surface migrates to a nearby catalynic site, or into the interstitial volume of the support. The iMeH produces monatomic hydrogen, which may not be immediately reacted with, but not limited to, the organic compound feed. Noble metal catalysts such as palladium and platinum can assist the migration of the reactive monatomic hydrogen. These noble 10 metals have been shown to be novel promoters in combination with iMeH thereby increasing the catalytic effect. This is thought to be due to the hydrogen spillover effect, which increases the effective catalyst surface area. A specific example of such a combined catalyst contains zeolite, palladium and iMeH which can enhance hydrogen reaction. iMeH in powder form has a lower surface area 15 compared to chemically coated palladium on the zeolite support. The iMeH in powder form can be an Order of magnitude larger in size than the palladium particles dispersed on the suppon. The catalytic reaction site is thought to be extended beyond the surface of the iMeH through the transport of the rnonatomic hydrogen by means of the palladium enhanced hydrogen spillover effect. 20 Monatomic hydrogen is a highly reactive species and will react with many species as well as with another hydrogen alom to form molecular hydrogen. Therefore, intimate contact between the iMeH and the feedstock being hydroprocessed has been found to oe significant for example, if an oxide layer exists on the iMeH surface, the rnonatomic hydrogen is likely to react within the oxide layer before it encounters and reacts with a feedstock molecule. The 25 iMeH used in the present invention is essentially free from surface oxides; an iMeH having a significant oxide coating cannot supply any significant amounts of monatomic hydrogen to a chemical process occurring on the oxide coating. The extent of the zone in which monatomic hydrogen can be found near the iMeH surface changes with process conditions that affect the mobility and reactivity of the monatomic hydrogen. The surface of the catalyst of the present 30 invention is kept essentially free of oxides by avoiding exposure of the catalytic surface to air any other oxidizing agent or water vapor at elevated temparatures. For certain highly reactive catalysts of the present invention, contact with air, any other oxidizing agent or water vapor is avoided at ambient temperatures as well as elevated temperatures Experimental results have confirmed that minimizing the amount of surface oxides present increases the 13 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 activity of the catalyst of the present invention. For iMeH powders or dispersions, the finer the particle size, the thinner the susface oxide layer requirements. The surface oxide thickness should not exceed half the diameter of the iMeH particle, preferably being one quarter the diameter or less, optimally being one-tenth the diameter or less, As an example, 5 with an iMeH particle. With a diameter of one micrometer, the oxide layer would optimally be 100 mm or less. It has also been found that surface condition of the iMeH is related to the state of matter of feedstocks that can be catalyzed. It has been found that the catalysts of the present invention are able to process liquid feedstocks as well as gaseous feedstocks, 10 The present invention has been found to be particularly useful in the hydroprocessing of organic compounds at lower pressures than conventional catalysts for a particular process. According to the present invention, iMeH catalysts have been found to be of particular utility in catalyzing reactions involving the addition or rearrangement of hydrogen atoms in chemical species. It is expected that the catalyst of the present invention will 15 catalyze reactions of inorganic materials in which hydrogen is involved. In particular the cracking and hydroprocessing of petrochemicals is expedited by iMeH catalysts. Organic compounds are defined as compounds of carbon. Other elements that may be included in organic compounds include hydrogen oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur, phosphorus, halogens, and metals. Classes of organic compounds include aliphatic compounds, including straight chain 20 and cyclic alkanes, ckefins, and acetylenes, atomatic compounds, including polycyclic structures, oxygen bearing compounds, including alcohols, ethers, aldehydes, ketoncs, carboxylic acids, esters, glycerides, and carbohydrates, nitrogen bearing compounds, including amines, amides, pyrroles, and porphyrins, sulfur bearing compounds, including thiols, sulfides, and thiophenes, phosphorus bearing compounds, including phosphate esters, 25 organo- metallic compounds, and campounds. with halogens, such as fluorine and chlorine. The following terms are used in the description of processes in which the present invention can be practiced: • Hydroprocessing - General term used to describe all catalytic processes involving hydrogen. Includes the reaction of any petroleum fraction with hydrogen in the 30 presence of a catalyst. Examples include hydrocracking, hydrotreating and hydrodesulfurization. 14 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 · Hydrocracking - A process used to convert heavier feedstocks into lower-boiling, higher-value products. The process employs high pressure, high temperature, a catalyst, and hydrogen Typically 50% or more of the feed is reduced in molecular size. 5 · Dewaxing - The process of removing waxes from a processed oil stream in order to improve low temperature properties. Waxes are high molecular weight saturated hydrocarbons or paraffins, typically those that are solids at room temperature. Dewaxing, can be accomplished by solvent separation,chilling and filtering. The catalytic dewaxing process uses one or two zeolite catalysts to selectively hydrocrack 10 the waxes into lower molecular weight materials. · Catalytic Dewaxing - A catalytic hydrocracking process which uses molecular sieves to selectively hydrocrack the waxes present into hydrocarbon fractions. This process is also referred to as hydrodewaxing. · Hydrotreating - Processes which remove undesirable impurities such as sulfur, 15 nitrogen, motals, and unsaturatcd compounds in the presence of hydrogen and a catalyst. In contrast with hydrocracking, essentially none of the feed Is reduced in molecular size in hydrotreating. · Hydrodenitrogenation - A hydratreating process in which the nitrogen species which are present in heavier distillates are removed. 20 · Hydrodcmetalization (HDM) - A hydrotreating process in which metal species, typically nickel and vanadium, which are present in heavier distillates are removed. · Hydrodesulfurization (HDS) - A catalytic process in which the principal purpose is to remove sulfur from petroleum fractions in the presence of hydrogen. · Feedslock - Petroleum fraction subjected to a treatment process, including 25 hydroprocessing and cracking. · Cracking - The conversion of feedstocks into fighter products. Conventional catalysts show increased activity with increased temperature, and are generally subjected to thermally-conducted conventional heating to increase temperatures. 30 Selected catalysts can also be heated dielectrically. Dielectric heating refers to a broad range of electromagnetic heating, either magnetically or electric field coupled, and includes radio frequency (RF) heating and microwave heating. It has been found that the value added for the process is maximized by using a minimum of dielectrically coupled energy, and by using 15 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 conventional heat to supplement the total process energy. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, microwave or RF energy is used in conjunction with fuel-fired heating or resistive heating. The exclusive use of microwave heating of RF heating, in the absence of fuel-fired heating or resistive heating, is not an economically viable process. In the present 5 process, the primary effect provided by microwave and RF energy is the enhancement of the catalyzed chemical reaction, rather than the indirect effect of heating. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention when used with microwave enhancement, the iMeH is in direct contact with a support; the iMeH functions as the primary microwave absorption material and no other microwave absorbing component is needed in 10 the catalyst. If the iMeH is suitably dispersed, for example in a slurry comprising, a feedstock and iMeH, it may be used in the absence of a separate support material. The dielectric parameter called the loss tangent is Known by those skilled in the art to measure the relative RF or microwave energy that a particular material absorbs at a given frequency. The loss tangent, also called the loss factor, is the ratio of the energy lost to the 15 energy stored, A larger loss targent for a material means that more energy is absorbed relative to a material with a lower loss tangent. The dielectric absorption of energy can cause ifferent materials to heat, at substantially different cates and to achieve considerably different temperarures within the same RF or microwave field. The dielectrically absorbed energy can also directly contribute to the process energy 20 balance. When used to drive an endothermic reaction, such as a cracking reaction, this means that if the absorbed RF ar microwave energy equals the heat-of-reaction cracking energy, then there will not be a net increase in the bulk temperature for the process. However if more RF or microwave energy is absorbed than is necessary for the cracking reaction, or if there is a resulting exothermic reaction, e.g, hydrogenation from the release of monatomic hydrogen, 25 then there will be a net increase in the bulk temperature. In the preferred embodiment, for use with microwave and RF enhancement, the iMeH catalytic material is selected to have a higher loss factor than the cata1yst support or other materials comprising the catalyst. In this preferred embodiment, the iMeH catalyst combines the two attributes of; 1) iMeH catalytically active sites and 2) iMeH material being the 30 primary microwave and RF energy absorber due to its higher loss factor than other materials comprising the catalyst. This embodiment of the present invention has been found to produce higher reaction efficiencies than previously obtained. In another embodiment of the invention, the iMeH is the primary absorber of microwave or RF energy, but one or more other secondary microwave absorbing components 16 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 are present In yet another embodiment of the invention, the iMeH is not the primary absorber of microwave or RF energy and does not have the highest loss factor, but the iMeH material is in direct thermal contact with materials that are the primary absorbers of microwave or RF energy and have higher loss factors. 5 Loss factors for the bulk iMeH catalyst of 0.30 or less, particularly 0.20 or less, such as 0.01 to 0.20, have been found to enhance reactions, while minimizing nonselective heating of the foedslock. This consideration for loss factor values maximizes the penetration depth of RF or microwaves, enabling the process of the present invention to be carried out on a large scale. In the preferred embodiment the loss factor for the iMeH, in combination with the 10 support or bulk of the catalyst, is greater than that of the feedstock. Therefore the energy goes into catalyzing the reaction rather than the nonselective heating of the feedstock. The penetration depth is also a function of frequency. The combined Use of iMeH catalyst along with microwave or RF energy comprises two new process variables with which to optimize catalytic hydroprocessing. The iMeH 15 serves as a high density source of interstitial monatomic reactive hydrogen. The application of microwave or RF energy provides a means of controlling the reaction of iMeH monatomic hydrogen with the feedstock. Also, proper application of microwave or RF energy promotes higher flux exchange of monatomic hydrogen from the matrix and further enhances the hydroprocessiing reactions. This also controls and promotes the adsorption of molecular 20 hydrogen to be dissociated into monatomic hydrogen. More specifically, the proper application includes control of the microwave or RF intensity or field strength, frequency, and making use of modulation techniques. Control of these parameters, in particular, using any number of modulation tachniques known, to those skilled in the art, for example amplitude modulation, frequency modulation and puise width modulation, is of great utility 25 to precisely control or to maximize the flux exchange of monatomic hydrogen from the iMeH to react with organic compounds. Altetnatively, the catalyst of the present invention may contain a separate microwave absorption material in combination with the iMeH. The support may be catalytically inactive or active. If the support is catalytically active, its activity may be enhanced by the production 30 of monatomic hydrogen by the iMeH, with which the support is in close contact. An iMeH catalyst used in combination with microwave energy can be configured in a variety of ways to produce a catalyst optimized for a particular reaction or function. If a more intimate mixture is desired, so that the iMeH and the support are in closer contact, finer 17 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 powders, sub-micron or nano-particles, can be used; and would also increase catalytic surface area. In the present invention, monatomic hydrogen, which can also be described as interstitial (dissociated) atomic-hydrogen radicals, from within the matrix of the iMeH is used 5 for the hydrogenation of organic compounds and their derivatives. These dissociated monatomic hydrogen radicals are not covalently or ionically bound to metal atoms within the iMeH. The population of these free monatomic hydrogen radicals is generally in equilibrium between the interstitial hydrogen of the selected iMeH and its surface. This equilibrium is governed by factors of iMeH structure, temperature, pressure, and field strength of the radio 10 frequency or microwave energy. The absorption of monatomic hydrogen by the crystal lattice of the iMeH is an exothermic reaction. The surface monatormc hydrogen radicals, in equilibrium with the interstitial matrix of the iMeH, may be directly reacted with organic compounds and their derivatives contacted at or near the surface of the iMeH, It is believed, without wishing to be bound by this characterization of the invention, that this hydrogenation 15 happens because a localized high density of monatomic hydrogen radicals results in reactivity equivalent to or higher than that produced by non-localized high density of molecular hydrogen exerted by high hydrogen pressure. Hydrogen is more reactive with the C-C bond when it is in a radical monatomic form than when it is in the form of a diatomic molecule. Catalytic reactions involving an iMeH can provide a performance equivalent or better to that 20 of a high-pressure zone of molecular hydrogen. The processes of the present application, even though they may not result in an increase in the hydrogen content of the product, depend on hydrogen availability for two reasons: 1) hydrogen availability prevents poisoning of calayst, and 2) hydrogen availability is a key factor permitting molecules to undergo rearrangement. Ideally, a molecule binding 25 to an active catalytic site undergoes the desired reaction or rearrangement and leaves the catalytic surface. However, if there is a local deficiency of hydrogen, the molecule may polymerize, react with another active molecule, or deposit on the catalytic surface as coke; all three of these outcomes can reduce the number of available catalytic sites. In the absence of hydrogen, the catalyst becomes deactivated more rapidly and requires more frequent cycling, 30 Because the catalyst of the present invention can provide hydrogen from its own structure as well as accommodate hydrogen from the reaction medium, problems of localized hydrogen deficiency are minimized. In addition, because of its ability to stabilize monatomic hydrogen, the catalyst of the present invention is able to promote reactions in which hydrogen atoms are added to the feedstock molecules. 18 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 Test results indicate that it is important to balance tite hydrogenation with other catalytic functions such as cracking or desulfurization so as to minimize undesired reactions like coking. This balance is achieved by controlling the ratio of iMeH contenl and its respective surface area to the content and surface area of the support and other catalytic 5 components. The present invention has been also found to be particularly useful in the cracking or hydrocracking of heavy organic compounds. The dielectric properties of heavy organic compounds allow them to be selectively heated by RF and microwave heating. If they crack near the surface of the iMeH, then they will react with monatomic hydrogen and undergo 10 hydro genation, desulfurization and other desired processes. The produets of the cracking reaction have lower microwave loss factors than do the reactants, and are thus less subject to undergo RF and microwave heating, than the reactants. The reactants are therefore selectively heated and selectively reacted, resulting in enhanced process efficiency. Compositions of iMeH The following are examples of catalyst compositions according to the present invention: Cat 100 (AT5-Type 20 Crystal structure: Hexagonal General formula: A1-xMxT5-y-zByCz x=0.0-l.0, y=0.0.2.5, z=0.0-0.5 A = Mm(misehmetal); T=Ni; M =La, Pr, Nd or Ce; B=Co; C = Mn, Al or Cr 25 Cat 200 A2T14B-type Crystal stricture: Tetragonal General formula: A2-xMxT14-yCyDzB x = 0.0-2.0, y =0.0 - 14, z = 0.0-3.0 30 A = Nd or Pr; T = Fe; M = La, Pr, Nd or Ce; B = Boron; C = Co; D = Cr, Ni or Mn 19 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 Cat 300 A2T-Type Crystal structure: Monoclinic General formula: A2-xMxT1-yBy 5 x = 0.0 - 0.5, y=0.0-0,5 A=Mg; T=Ni or Cu, M = La; B = Fe or Co Catalysts of the present invention may also contain combinations of these compositions. 10 The catalyst of the present invention may be used with all varieties of process reactor configurations, which are known to those skilled in the art. Generally common to these configurations are a reaction vessel designed to permit the introduction of gas and liquid, to contain the feedstock and the catalyst at a suitable pressure and temperature, and that accommodates the removal Of product, as shown in Fig. 5. Altenatively either gas and/or 15 liquid may be pre - heated, depending upon process conditions, as is common practice to those skilled in the art. The catalyst is introduced into the raction vessel under conditions preventing the formation of surface oxides. Depending on the reactivity of the catalyst, exposure of the catalyst to oxygen or water vapor at high temperature may be avoided, or an inert atmosphere may be used to blanket the catalyst. The catalyst may take the form Of a bed 20 in the reaction vessel, or the catalyst and feedstock may be circulated so that they are in close contact with each other during processing, resulting in a catalyst-feedstock (catalyst-organic compound) mixture. It is known to those skilled in the art that other types of reactor catalyst beds are possible, e.g. fixed beds, moving beds, slurry reactors, fluidized beds. Preferably provision is made for recirculating hydrogen during the catalytic process. Reaction occurs On 25 introduction of feedstock and hydrogen gas on to catalyst within the reaction vessel .The feedstock (organic compounds) reacts with the monatomic hydrogen at the surface of the catalyst. Energy is applied to the catalyst, feedstock (organic compound), reaction mixture or the catalyst-feedstock (catalyst-organic compound) mixture; these may be heated by heat resulting from a chemical reaction sach as combustion, by resistive heating or by acoustic 30 heating, may be heated diclectrically by radio frequency or microwave energy, or they may be heated by a combination of these methods. Combustion is the chemical combination of a substance with oxygen. Resistive heating is heating resulting from the flow of a current through an electrical conductor. Acoustic heating is heating resulting from physical morion 20 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 of vibration induced in a sample, with a sonit frequency of less than about 25 KHz, or an ultrasonic frequency greater than about 25 KHz, typically 40 KHz. Radio frequencies range from about 3 x 105 Hz to about 3 x 108 Hz; microwave frequencies range from about 3x108 Hz to about 3 x 1012 Hz. Coolling mechanisms known to those skilled in the art may be 5 combined with the reaction vessel to accommodate exothermic reactions (eg. The introduction of quenching gases or liquids). The reaction products may be recovered upon their removal from the vessel. The feedstock (organic compounds) may be preheated before contact or in combination wrth the catalyst by heal resulting from a chsirtical reaction such as combustion, by resistive heating or by acoustic heating, or may be heated dielectrically by 10 radio frequency or microwave energy. The catalyst of the present invention may be used with all varieties of processes that are known to those skilled in the art. Typical process condition include temperatures of at least about 150oC, more particularly, at least about 225oC, and even more particularly, at least about 300oC. Generally, the methods are carried out at temperatures less than about 15 600oC, more particularly, less than about 550°C, and even more particularly, less than about 450oC. The pressure at which the methods may be practiced are generally, at least ambient pressure (14.7 psia, more particularly, at least about positive 25 psig, and even more particularly, at least about positive 50 psig, Typically, the pressure is less than about positive 600 psig, more particularly, less than a positive pressure of about 450 psig, and even more 20 particularly, less than, a positive pressure of about 300 psig. RF ro microwave energy at a frequency greater than a equal to about i MHz, and more particularly, at least about 500 MHz may generally be applied. RF or microwave energy at a frequency less than about 10,000 MHz, and more particularly less than about 3,000 MHz, of RF or microwave energy may be generally applied. The liquid hourly space velocity (LBSV) defines, the feedstock to 25 catalyst ratio. LHSV is the liquid hourly space velocity defined as the ratio of the volume of feedstock to the volume of catalyst that passes through the catalyst on an hourly basis. The LHSV range is generally at least about 0.10 per hour, and more particularly at least about 0.20 per haur, and even mare particularly about 0.30 per hour. The LHSV tends to he less than about 10 per hour, and more Specifically, less than about 5 per hour, and even more 30 specifically, less than about 3 per hour. Batch process reactors accommodating the catalyst and process of the present invention operate at temperature and pressure. The batch process may have means to heat and/or cool the reactor, add and remove catalyst, receive Feedstock and gas, and remove 21 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 product and gas. Preferred configurations include a means to stir or recirculate the gas, catalyst and feedstock, a means to recharge the catalyst, and a means to provide RF or microwaves to the reaction site. The preferred embodiment is a continuous flow process, Corrtinuous flow reactors 5 accommodating the catalyst and process of the present invention operate at elevated temperature and pressure. They may contain means to heat and/or cool the reactor, add and remove catalyst, receive feedstock and gas, preheat feedstock and gas, and remove product and gas, preferred configurations include a means to stir or recirculate the gas, catalyst and feedstock, a means to recharge the catalyst, and a means to provide RF or microwaves to the 10 reaction site, Recirculalion capabilities add to the utility of reactors used in the present invention. Fig. 6 depicts the use of a reactor with the capability of preheating the gas and liquid and recinculating the reaction mixture or components of the reaction mixtureinternally and externally, Fig. 7 depicts the use of a reactor with the capability of recirculating the reaction 15 mixture or components of the reaction mixture internally and externally, as well as the capability of recirculating the catalyst for regeneration or recharging. The catalyst reclrculation loop for regeneration or recharge can stand alone as seen in option I or be combined with existing loops as seen in options 2 or 3. Fig. 8 depicts improved handling of the output for any reactor design of the process for the present invention having the capability 20 of separating product into gas and liquid. The option shown in Fig. 8 can be used with any of the reactors shown in Figs 5, 6, and 7. Fig. 9 depicts improved handling of the output for any reactor design of ihe process for the present invention having the capability of gas product collection, gas product recycling, liquid product collection and liquid product recycling and a means for injecting the gas and liquid to be recycled and injected back into the feed or input 25 stream. The option shown in Fig, 9 can be used with any of the reactors shown in Figs 5,6, and 7. Example 1 Logarithmic Pressure Composition Isotherms of an iMeH Catalyst 30 Figure 10 shows the logarithmic pressure composition isotherms for the monatumic hydrogen desorption curve of iMeH Cat 100, Mm(1.1) Ni(4.22)Co(0.42)Al(0.15)Mn(0.15). The plot displays the results at constant temperatures and equilibrium conditions for Cat 100 powder, relating pressure amd stored iMcH hydrogen density. The plot shows that at a constant 22 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 temperature, the iMeH hydrogen density increases as a non-linear function of pressure. The plot also shows that decreasing the temperature of the isotherms results in an increase of the iMaH hydrogen density. This data characterixes the iMeH catalyst' s hydrogen capacity to provide monatomic hydrogen for hydrogenation or hydroprocessing reactions. 5 Example 2 Selection of an iMeH Catalyst To select an iMeH for a catalytic process, and to determine the operating parameters, 10 it is useful to know how much hydrogen an iMeH material stores, the temperature at which the monatomic hydrogen desorbs, and the effect of pressure on menatomic hydrogen desorption. In Fig. 11, plots of total hydrogen capacity versus temperature at ambient pressure are Shown for Cat 100, Cat 200 and Cat 300, three example catalysts of the present invention. 15 The compositions of these examples of iMeH catalysts according to the present invention are as follows; Cat 100 Mm(1.1)Ni(4.22)Co(0.15)Mo(0.13) 20 Cat 200 Ncl(2.05)Dy(0.25)Fe(1.3)B(1.05) Cat 300 25. Mg(1.05)Ni(0.95)Cu(0.07) Given the standard industial tolerances in the production of metals it is expected that very similar properties will be exhibited by a composition with the following general formulas: 30 Cat 100 Mm(30+34.5)(Ni, Co, Al, Mn)(69.9-66.4) 23 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 Cat 200 (Nd, Dy)(15.5-10.5)(Fe, B)(83.5-84.5) Cat 300 5 Mg(44-56) (Ni, Cu)(54-56) Monatomic hydrogen desorbs from Cat 100 at lower temperatures, below 200oC while monatomic hydrogen desorbs from Cat 300 at temperatures above 250°C. Also, the transition for desorption for Cat 300 is sharper. Thus, for a reaction at ambient pressure, one 10 would select Cat 100 for a low temperature reaction below 200°C and Cat 300 for a higher temperature reaction above 300°C Cat 200, while it has s lower total hydrogen capacity, has the property of desorbing monatomic hydrogen over an extended temperature range, When the pressure is adjusted, the operating temperature that optimizes the release of monatomic hydrogen is changed. Table 1 shows that at a given temperature, less monatomic 15 hydrogen is released as the operating pressure increases. Therefore, selection of iMeH depends up on both process temperature and pressure. The hydrogenation performance of the iMeH can be controlled by the opeating parameters so that, in this example, the low temperature iMeH can be used at higher temperatures by increasing the process pressure, within its thermodynamic limit. 20 Example 3 Microwave Enhanced Hydroprocessing with Respect to Feedstock For heavy oils, such as pitch residuum, microwave energy is preferentially absorbed 25 by the aromatic arid polar compounds in The oil thereby promoting their reaction. This is shown in fig. 12 where the less tangent (y-axis) for pitch residuum is approximately an order of magnitude gresler than fox microwave processed pitch (reduced molecular weigjht and lower boiling point) across a wide range of microwave frequencies (0.5 -2,8 GHz). The loss tangent, also called loss factor or the dissipation factor, is a measure of the material's 30 microwave adsorption. The loss tangent is also the ratio of the energy lost to the energy stored. In hydroprocessing according to the present invention the proper control and use of the dielectric loss tangent leads to the efficient use of microwave energy. The fraction of microwave energy, which is absorbed by any component of the oil and catalyst mixture, can 24 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 be efficiently controlled. For example, when the dielectric loss tangent of the catalyst is equal to the oil, then approximately half the microwave energy initially goes into heating the oil and half into the catalyst. The primary method of loss tangent control is by adjusting the meterial compositions of the individual components. This includes the optimization of 5 catalyst composition or the blending of feedstocks. In the case where increased hydrogenation is desirable, hydrogenation can be enhanced by incrsasing the loss tangent of the iMeH catalyst component relative to that of the oil. For heavy oils, as the oil is reacted from residuum to cracked oil, on a local scale, more of the microwave energy, as further explained in example 5 and shown in Figure 13, is 10 available to go into the catalyst, further promoting hydrogenation enhancement, in comparison to thermal heating of the oil. When lighter oil is being hydrogenated, the oil itself would already have a lower loss tangent. In this case the catalyst can be adjusted to maintain a high fixed loss tangent ratio of the catalyst to the oil. Microwave energy can thereby be efficiently directed to promote 15 hydrogenation by the coupting, into the hydrogenation components of the catalyst. Methods for adjusting the catalyst loss tangent include, but are not limited to controling iMeH dispersion, iMeH concentration, and selection of iMeH alloy type or composition and/or type. Similar modification to the support structure can be made as well as doping and coating with selected materials. 20 Similarly hydrocracking can be controlled through the adjustment of the dielectric properties of the catalyst. Microwave energy can be efficiently directed to promote cracking by the coupling into the hydrocracking components of the catalyst. Example 4 25 Evaluation of Microwave Assisted Processing of Heavy Petroleum Fractions The feed samples used for this example were pitch residuum, heavy residue left after straight run atmospheric distillation in the production of gasoline and diesel fuels. The samples were processed, using microwave energy at 2,45 GHz, stightly below ambient 30 pressures under a blanket of nitrogen. Several types of commercially available zeolites were used as catalyst: 5A; I3X, and ammonium Y. Spot checks of the bulk temperature of the catalystpitch mixture were conducted using a type, K thermocouple. Temperatures ranged from about 200°C to 475CC. Temperature checks were conducted as rapidly as possible after 25 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 the microwave power was turned off, Typically within five to ten seconds, to minimize cooling of the sample. These tests show the effect of using only a simple catalyst without the addition of iMeH catalyst. The properties of the feed (pitch residuum) and the product (microwave 5 processed pitch) are shown in Table 2. Microwave processing of the feed reduced the pour point reduced from 95 to 30 and the viscosity was lowered from 413 cSt at 100°C to 7 cSt at 50°C. Additionally, the simulated distillation results show that the boiling point distribution has significantly shifted from mostly high boiling organic compounds, in the pitch feed, to lower boiling organic compounds in the product. Liltle change was observed in either the 10 specific gravity or in the concentration of sulfur. This indicates that without the use of an mproved catalyst, the product was produced via cracking reaction. There was little esulfurization or addition of hydrogen. In another series of tests the pitch was microwave processed with and without iMeH catalyst in a microwave oven to evaluate the effect of the iMeH catalyst component white 15 using the pitch feedstock. Tests were performed with the following catalyst mixtures: I) commercial 13X zeolite. 2) a mixture of connmercially available 13X zeolite and ammonia-Y catalyst, and 3) a mixture commercial sodium-Y catalyst with iMeH Cat 100. As before, the samples were processed slightly below ambient pressures under a blanket of nitrogen at an approximate temperature of 250oC. Lead acetate paper was positioned near the reaction 20 vessel outlet to derermine the presence hydrogen sulfide (H2S). Only the tests Using catalyst with the iMeH Cat 100 pomponent rapidly turned the lead acetate paper black, indicating that large quantities of hydrogen sulfide were being produced and the product was being desulfurized. No H2S was detected during tests conducted with, catalysts without the iMeH Cat 100 component. 25 The stored monatomic hydrogen within the iMeH catalyst w as the only source of free hydrogen. These tests show that the iMeH catalyst component, with the enhancement of the microwave energy, assists the catalytic hydrogenation and release of H2S to promote desulfurization. These tests show that microwave energy and iMeH catalyst promote hydrogenatlon and hydroprocessing at low pressure. 26 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 Example 5 Description of microwave enhanced hydrogenation with respect to iMeH catalyst Fig. 13 depicts measurements obtained in a batch reactor test. In this test, 3D cc of 5 iMeH catalyst (50% Cat 300/50% USY (1 %Pd) was placed in a reactor with 30 cc of coker- kero feed. This feedstock has both sulfur and aromatic components. The reactor pressure, microwave power at 2.45 GHz, and the iMeH catalyst bulk temperature were monitored along with the H2 flow rate into the reactor. The initial pressure was set at 50 psig. Upon heating to 200°C the pressure increased to 60 psig where it was Maintained throughout the 10 test. Fig, 13 shows that, when the microwaves are applied into the reactor, the flow of gaseous molecular hydrogen (H2) into the reactor is zero. For this example of feedstock, catalyst, temperature, and low pressure, hydrogenation occurs only when monatomic hydrogen (H+) is reacted into the coker-kero feedstock through the effects of both the iMeH 15 catalyst and the micrawaves. The data shows that the pressure remains eithet constant ar is slightly reduced during the time when the microwaves are on. Hydrogenation occurs when the microwave field simultaneously stimulates the iMeH and causes the direct reaction of the monatormic hydrogen (H+), from within the interstitial lattice of the iMeH, to catalyze and combine ivith the coker-kero hydrocarbons and sulfur compounds comprising the feedstock. 20 This direct catalytic reaction however temporarily depletes the monatomic hydrogen (H+) from within the interstitial lattice of the iMeH. When the microwaves are not being applied into the reactor, the gaseous hydrogen (H2) flows into the reactor to replenish the hydrogen consumed by the monatomic (H+) hydnogenation reactions. When die gaseous hydrogen contacts the surface of the iMeH, it is 25 dissociated inio monatomic hydrogen (H+) by the fundamental nature of the iMeH and is absorbed into the interstitial structure of the iMeH. There is a useful, but reduced catalytic effect when using iMeH without the benefit of microwaves. In the case without microwaves, an equilibrium exchange is reached whereby the rate of gaseous hydrogen (H2) into the iMeH is in balance with the rate of monatomic hydrogen (H+) reacted into the feedstock. However 30 the equilibrium rate of monatomic hydrogen (H+) reacted into the feedstock is typically lower without microwaves. Using the hydrogenation of naphthalene as an example,microwaves 27 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 tripled, the production of decalin and increased hydrogen uptake by 62% to 6.5Wl%. as shown in Tables 4 and 7, Example 6. Example 6 5 Quantilative Hydrogenation Test Results for Naphthajene A sequence of tests was conducted on naphthalene (C10H8) as a model compound to demonstrate the hydrogenation capability of the iMeH catalysts and the effect of microwave enhancement of the hydrogenation reactions catalyzed by iMeH, Shown in this example are 10 tests conducted under identical temperature and pressure (200oC and 50 psi H2) and the same liquid hourly space velocity (LHSV) setting of 0.5, The microwave frequency was 2.45 GHz, The feed naphthalene solution was prepared with n-dodecane (n-C12H26) as solvent, and n-nonarue (n-C9H20) as an internal standard. Major hydrogenation products include tetralin(C10H12) and cis- and trans-decalin (C10H18). The formation of tetralin requires the 15 addition of four hydrogen atoms per molecule, while the formation of decalin needs the addition of 10 hydrogen atoms. Decalin is the fully-saturated reaction product for the hydrogenation of naphthalene. The yield of tetralin and decalin is a measure of the extent of naphthalene hydrogenation, as shown through the following reactions: C10H8 + 2H2 -> C10H12(tetralin) 20 C10H8 + 5H2 -> C10H18 (cis- and trans-decalin) After a test, the product gas phase and liquid phase were analyzed with gas chromatographs (GC) to determine their chemical makeup. The GC results allowed for quantitative determination of the concentration of naphthalene remaining in the product and the amaunts of tetralin and cis and trans decalin produced. A mass balance was performed 25 for each test. Ihe change in hydrogpn content was calculated by subtracting the hydrogen in feed from the hydrogen in product. The following test results show that the iMeH catalyst has a large hydrogenation capacity, even at significantly lower pressure (200oC, 50 psi). Such capacity is significantly enhanced with the application of microwave energy. 30 Test results provide evidence of the advantages of using interstitial metal hydrides (iMeH) with and without microwave energy. Data for three distinct classes of iMeH catalysts are presented, Cat 100, Cat 200, and Cat 300. The iMeH component is mixed with a 28 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 commercial ultra-stabilized Y (USY) zeolite powder with a silica to alumina ratio of 80, The USY powder was tested as is or chemically coated with 1 wt% palladium (Pd), All catalysts were tested in pellet from. The combinations of support and iMeH catalyst combination are not optimized and 5 do not limit ths use of iMeH with other supports for other hydrogenation examples (ZSM-5) ZrO2, silica, alumina). Other catalytic materials tested included a commercial H-Oil catalyst and hydride materials prepared by conventional methods. The iMeH powder was mixed with Pd coated or unerased USY powder at two 10 composition level (30 wt%, 50 wt%). The test results in tabular form displayed by the product hydrogen uptake and the weight percent of decalin produced, normalized to the total conversion of naphthalene feed. Three tests art presented in Table 3. They compare three catalyst compositions used for naphthalene hydrogenation tests. These tests were processed using conventional beat at 15 the process conditions of 200oC, 50psig, 0.5 LHSV. The first catalyst, 100% USY is a zeolite support is shown to be ineffective at hydrogenating naphthalene at these process conditions. The second catalyst was made by the addition themically dispersed palladium, 1 wt%Pd, to the USY support, by techniques known to those skilled in the art. Palladium is Known a. hydrogenation, catalyst, but this napluthalene hydrogenation reaction is generally 20 performed a pressures exceeding 1000 psi. This catalyst allowed for production of tetralin yielding a hydrogen uptake of 1 .6%. The last catalyst was made by mixing 30wt% of iMeH Cat 100 power together with USY powder. This catalyst resulted in a hydrogen uptake of 1.9% demonstrating that the iMeH Cat 100 is an effective hydragenation substitute for palladium. 25 Naphthalene Hydrogenation Tests Comparing Catalyst with iMeH Cat 100 Processed with Conventional or Microwave Energy Table 4 presents the test results of catalyst containing iMeH Cat 100 At two concentrations, 30wt% and 50wt%. These tests were processed using either conventional heat or microwave energy at the process conditions of 200oC, 50 psig, 0.5 LHSV. The USY 30 powder was coated with 1 wt% palladium and mixed together with iMeH Cat 100 powder. All catalyst combination provided for higher hydrogen uptake and the production of the more fully saturated decalin. Conclusions drawn from this data include: 29 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 · Hydrogen uptake is enhanced by combining the Pd coated USY with Cat 100 · Hydrogen uptake increases with increased Cat 100 content · Hydrogen uptake is enhanced with microwaves 5 Table 5 presents the test results of catalyst containing iMeH Cat 200 at two concentrations, 30wt% and 50wt%, and iMeH Cat 300 at the 50wt% concentration. These tests were processed using either conventional heat or microwave energy at the process conditions of 200oC, 50 psig, 0.5 LHSV. The USY powder was coated with lwt% palladium and mixed together with iMeH powder. Conclusions drawn from this data include: 10 · Cat 100 hydrogenates naphthalene batter than Cat 200. · Hydrogen uptake/decalin production, for Cat 200, is significantly enhanced with microwaves · Hydrogen uptake increases slightly with increased Cat 200 content · Cat 300 hydregenates better than Cat 200 but less than Cat 100 15 The hydrogenation performance of each iMeH material can be explained by the level of monatomic hydrogen produced at the operating conditions of 200oC and 50 psig. It should be noted that multiple test runs, under identical conditions, indicate a standard deviation of less than 3% of value for the increase in hydrogen content and for dccalin production. Test results for the present invention now allow for a method to determine the proper pressure and 20 temperature to maximize hydraprossing given the input feedstock and the desired product. Table 6 compares the performance of prior art or commercial catalysts. These tests were processed using either conventional heat or microwave energy at the process conditions of 200°C, 50 psig, 0.5 LHSV. Commercial H-Oil catalyst was processed using microwave energy, as it is well 25 known that it does not work well at low pressures. The lack of hydrogenation of current best practice catalysts demonstrates the effectiveness of iMeH catalysts of the present invention. The second catalyst was a metal hydride prepared by conventional methods and tested using conventional heat. The lack of hydrogenation demonstrates that it does not function as art iMeH catalyst of the present invention. 30 Table 7 compares iMeH Cat 100 at two microwave energy power levels and in a partially oxidized state- These tests were processed using microwave energy at the process conditions of 200oC, 50 psig, 0.5 LHSV. Att previous tests were contacted at a set microwave power level I estimated to be one watt/cm3. A secend microwave pawer level, 30 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 power level 2, was selected for comparison and is estimated to be 1.9 watts/cm3. For both microwave power levels, the microwave energy provides both the preheat energy and the reaction enhancement energy, The test results show that significant increase in hydrogen uptake, 47% increase, and 5 an increase in decalin production, 128%, was realized by adjusting the microwave to power level 2. It is thought that the higher microwave power setting provided more microwave energy to the reaction as the bulk temperatures were held to the same levels. The third catalyst, of the same composition, was prepared without the precautions taken according to the present invention to minimized the formation if an oxide layer on the iMeH. The resulting 10 reduction of 58% hydrogen uptake and reduction of 99.8% of decalin production demonstrates the effectiveness of iMeH catalysts of the present invention. Example 7 Benzothiophene Ring Opening 15 Tests ware done with the model compound benzothiophene to show desulfurization via ring opening. Benzothiophene is an aromatic, heterocyclic sulfur compound, with a side benzene ring, commonly found in petroleum (C8H6S). Tests were performed using a benzothiophene solution prepared with dodecane as a solvent and nonane as an internal 20 standard. The benzothiophene solution was processed using an iMeH Cat 300, 50% Cat300- 50% USY (1% Pd), with microwave energy at 2.45 GHz, power level 2 at the processing conditions of 200°C, 50 psigh and 0,5 LHSY. 93% of benzothiophene was converted, and H2S gas was detected, demonstrating a hydrodesulfurization process via carbon-sulfur bond 25 cleavage and ring opening. Example 8 Quantitative Hydrogenation Test Results for Commercial Test Feeds 30 The following tests were performed with commercial test feeds. These tests include light gas oil (LGO), coker-kero oil, and heavy vacumm gas oil (HVGG). The present invention works at much lower pressures than existing hydroprocessing reactions. This provides additional flexibility in selecting process variables. For example, 31 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 for any given feedstock, the process temperature and pressure determine the fraction of organic compounds in the vapor phase and the fraction in the liquid phase. Depending on the hydroprprossing reaction, controlling the vapor to liquid fraction ratio can improve the process efficiency- This is true at temperatures below 550°C at pressures below 600 psig and 5 especially for pressures below 300 psig. The following test results provide one skilled in the art examples to determine the proper catalyst composition and reaction conditions (i,e. temperature, pressure LHSV, microwave energy level) to maximize hydroprocessing for a given feedstock and desired product. 10 Light Gas Oil Hydrogenation Tests Light Gas Oil (LGO) is petroleum fraction containing a complex mixture of hydrocarbons with a boiling point range from 140 to 450oC at one atmosphere, 90% of the hydrocarbon compounds boil between 160-370°C at ambient pressure. The level of 15 aromatics in the LGO is estimated to be about 30 wt%. The feed was placed in a batch microwave reactor in quantities and time to treat the feed at 0.5 LHSV, An HCNS analyzer was used to measure the feed and product hydrogen to carbon (H/C) molar ratio. The higher the H/C ratio, the more hydrogen tn the product. Test results are presented to show the increase in hydrogen content (wt%) added to the product. 20 LGO was processed using an iMeH Cat 300 catalyst, 50% Cat 300- 50% USY (1 %Pd). Two tests were performed using microwave energy at 2,45 GHz, power level 2, at two different operating pressures, 50 psig or 150 psig at the same test conditions of 200°C, and 0.5 LHSY. at 50 psig, the LGO was hydrogenated increasing the hydrogen content in the product by 0.2 wt%. At 150 psig, the amount of hydnogenation increased by a factor of 25 two to 0.4 wt%. Coker-Kero Hydrogenation Tests Table 8 shows test results with coker-kera feed, Coker-kero feed is a low-value product fraction from the coking process, It contains a complex mixture of organic 30 compounds with a boiling point range from 160 to 400°C. 90% of the organic compounds boil between 200-360oC. It has a high-level of aromatic content, and a sulfur content of over 1.5 wt% Table 9 presents the coker-kero hydrogenation test results for an iMeH Cat 3.00, 50% Cat 300- 50% USY (1%Pd). Three tests were performed using microwave energy at 2,45 32 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 GHz, power level 2, and 0.5 LHSV, The tests compare the effects of increasing either the operating temperature or operating, pressure from the process conditions of 200°C, 50 psig, 0.5 LHSV, The test results from Table 8 show that the iMeH Cat 300 catalyst was able to 5 hydrogenate and to hydrodesulfurize the coker-kero. The level of hydrogenation doubled and the level of desulfurization increased by 8 fold when the operating pressure was changed from 50 psig to 150 psig. This same increase in hydrogenation and desulfurization was observed when the operating temperature was increased to 250oC. For this example a process pressure increase from 50 to 150 psig at 200°C was approximately equal in 10 hydrogenation performance to a change in process temperature from 200 to 250oC at 50psig. These results are significant because this sulfur reduction, performed at low pressure, is due to hydrogenation of the sulfur-bearing compounds without the use of standard desulfurization catalysts such as Ni/Mo and Co/Mo. The palladium metal component of this catalyst is not generally used in industry for desulfurization because it is readily poisoned by 15 sulfur. Additional tests were carried out with a catalyst using 50% iMeH Cat 300 with a 50- 50 mixture of USY(1%Pd) and a sulfided Ni/Mo supported alumina. The coker-kero Was processed witti a combination of conventional preheat and microwave energy. The process conditions were feed preheat to 40O°C, reaction temperature405°C, 150 psig, 0.5 LHSV. 20 The average microwave power density at 2.45 GHz was estimated to be 0.12 watts/cm3. The analysis of the feed and product showed an increase in product hydrogen content of 0.51wt% and the level of hydrodesulfurization was 57.3% (i.e. sulfur content reduced from 3.61 wt% sulfur to 1.54 wt% sulfur). It is believed the higher level of desulfurization is attributable to the addition of the sulfided Ni/Mo alumins to catalyst pellet. Table #9 shows 25 the improvement of other physical properties including a 65% increase in the cetane index, Heavy Vacuum Gas Oil Hydrogenation Teats Heavy vacuum gas oil is obtained from the residue of atmospherie distillation using reduced pressures (25-100 mm Hg) to avoid thermal cracking. The boiling range is 30 approximately 260 to 600°C at one atmosphere pressure. The density is approximately 0.97 g/ml. The aromatic content is greater than 50% and the sulfur content is about 35 wt%. Tests were carried out with a catalyst using 50% iMeH Cat 300 with a 50-50 mixture of USY(1%Pd) and a sulfided Mi/Mo supported, on alumina. The HVGO feedstock was processed wife a combination of conventional preheat and microwave energy. The process 33 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 conditions were feed preheat w 400°C, reaction temperature 405oC, 150 psig, 0.5 LHSV. The averiga microwave power density at 2.45 GHz was estimated to be 0.12 watts/cm3. The analysis of the feed and product showed a slight increase in product hydrogen content of 0.08 Wt% but the level of hydrodesulfurization was 68 .8%. It is believed the higher 5 level of desulfurization is attributable to the addition of the sulfided Ni/Mo alumma to catalyst pellet. also, during the test ammonia was delected in the gas phase providing evidence of hydrodenitrogenation, Table #10 shows the improvement of other physical properties including a reduction in viscosity from174 cst to less than 7 cSt amd a 55% increase in the API gravity. 10 TABLE 1. Percent iMeH Hydrogen Released 34 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 TABLE 3: Naphthalene Hydrogenation Tests with Conventional Heat Comparing Calayst with and without Pd to catalyst with iMeH Cat 100 5 Test Conditions: 200oC, 50 psig, 0.5 LHSV 10 T ABLE 4-. Naphthalene Hydrogenation Tests Comparing Catalyst with iMeH Cat 100 Processed with Conventional Heat or Microwave Energy Test Conditions: 200°C, 50 psig 0.5 LHSV 15 20 TABLE 5: Naphthalene Hydrogennation Tests Processed with Conventional Heat or Microwave Energy for Catalysts Containing iMeH Cat 200 or iMeH Cat 300 Test Conditions: 200°Cd 50 psig, 0.5 LHSV 15 35 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 TABLE 6: Naphthalene Hydrogenation Tests for Comparison to Prior Art Catalysts and Metal Hydride Processed with Conventional Heat or Microwave Energy Test Conditions; 200°C. 50 psig, 0,5 LHSV 5 TABLE 7; Naphthalene Hydrogenation Tests Comparing iMeH Cat 100 at Two Microwave 10 Energy Power Levels and in a Partially Oxidized State Test Conditions: 200oC, 50 psig, 0.5 LHSV 15 TABLE 8: Coker-Kero Hydrogenation Test Results Processed with Microwave Energy for iMeH Cat 300 Catalyst, 50%Cat300-50%USY(1%Pd), at Three Combinations of Operating Temperatures and Pressures 20 Test Condition: 0.5 LHSV 36 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 TABLE 9: Physical Properties of Coker-Kera Before and After Processing Catalyst: 50%Cat300-25%USY(l%Pd)-25% sulfided Ni/Mo Alumina Process Energy: Combination of Conventional Preheat and Microwave Energy 5. Test Conditions: 405°C, 150 psig, 0,5 LHSVS 5 TABLE 10: Physical Properties of HVGO Before and After Processing Catalyst: 50%Cat300-25%USY(l%Pd)-25%sulfided Ni/Mo Alumina 10 Process Energy: Combination of Conventional Preheat and Microwave Energy Test Conditions: 405oC, 150 psig, 0.5 LHSV 37 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 THE INVENTION CLAIMED IS 1. A catalyst comprising an interstitial metal hydride having a reaction surface and monatomic hydrogen at the reaction surface. 5 2. The catalyst of claim 1, further comprising a support in contact with the interstitial metal hydride. 3. The Catalyst of claim 2, wherein the support comprises at least one of 10 inorganic oxides, carbon, and combinations thereof. 4. The catalyst of claim 2, further comprising at least one of Pt, Pd and a combination thereof. 15 5. The catalyst of claim 2, wherein the metal hydride comprises particles having diameters from about 0,01 micrometers to about 1000 micrometers. 6. The catalyst of claim 1, wherein the reaction surface is substantially free of an oxide layer. 20 7. The catalyst of claim 1, -wherein the interstitial metal hydride, is in the form of a particle having a diameter; and wherein the reaction surface has an oxide layer having a thickness equal to or less than half the diameter of the iMeH particle. 25 8. The catalyst of claim 7, wherein the thickness of the oxide layer is equal to or less than one quarter the diameter of the iMeH particle. 9. The citalyst of claim 7, wherein the thickness of the oxide layer is equal to or 30 less than one tenth the diameter of the iMeH particle. 10. The catalyst of claim ), wherein the monatomic hydrogen has a concentration at the catalyst surface and the concentration is maximized by exclusion of oxygen and water vapor at elevated temperatures. 38 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 11. The catalyst of claim 1, further comprising an RF or microwave energy absorber in thermal contact with the metal hydride. 12. The catalyst of claim 1 wherein the metal hydride functions as a primary RF 5 or microwave energy absorber. 13. The catalyst of claim 1, further comprising at teast one hydroprocessing component, wherein exposure to oxygen and water vapor at elevated temperatutes is minimized. 10 14. The catalyst of claim 1, wherein the metal hydride comprises at least one of an AT5 catalyst, an A2T14B catalyst and art A2T catalyst, and combinations thereof, wherein, for the AT5 catalyst, the general formula is A1-xMxT5-y-zByCz with x=0.0-1.0, y=0.0-2.5, z=0.0-0.5; A= Mm (Mischmetal); T =Ni; M= La, Pr, or Ce; B= 15 Co; C =Mn, Al or Cr; wherein, for the A2T14B catalyst, the general formula is A2-xMxT14-yCyDzB with x= 0.0-2.0, y=0.0-14, z= 0.0-3.0; A=Nd, T= Fe, M=La, Pr or Ce, B=Boron; C =Co; D=Cr, Ni or Mn; and wherein, for the A2T catalyst, the general formula is A2-xMxT1-yBy with x= 20 0.0-0.3, y= 0.0-0.5; A=Mg; T=Ni or Cu; M=La; B = Fe or Co. 15. The catalyst of claim 13, wherein the metal hydride comprises at least one of Mm(11)Ni(4.22)Co(0.42)Al(0.15)Mn(0.15). Nd(2.05)Dy(0.25)Fe(1.05) and Mg(1.05)Ni(0.95)Cu(0.07),and combinations thereof. 25 16. A catalyst comprising: a support; an RF or microwave energy absorber, and a catalytically active phase; 30 wherein the catalyticaly active phase stores and produces hydrogen in monatomic form. 39 WO 2004/033205 PCT/US2003/032587 17. The catalyst of claim 16, wherein the catalytically active phase comprises an interstitial metal hydride. 18. The catalyst of claim 17, wherein the interstitial rnetal hydride has a reaction 5 surface, and the reaction surface is substantially free of an oxide layer. 19. The catalyst of claim 16, wherein the support comprises at least one of inorganic oxides, metals, carbon, and combinations thereof. 10 20. A catalyst comprising; a metal hydride having a reaction surface; monatomic hydrogen at the reaction surface; and at least one of a hydroprocesstng component, a cracking component and a combination thereof. 15 21. The catalyst of claim 20, further comprising an RF or microwave energy absorber in thermal contact with the metal hydride. 22. The catatyst of claim 20. wherein the at least one of a hydroprocessing 20 component, a tracking component and a combination thereof also functions as an absorber of microwave orRF energy absorber. 23. The catalyst of claim 20, wherein the reaction surface is substantially free of an oxide layer. 25 24. A mixture comprising an interstitial metal hydride and a liquid organic compound. 25. The mixiure of claim 24, wherein the interstitial metal hydride has a reaction 30 surface, and wherein the capalyst further comprises monatomic hydrogen at the reaction surface. 26. The mixture of claim 25, wherein the reaction surface is substantially free of an oxide layer. 40 Acatalyst for the hydroprocessing of organic compounds, composed of an intersititial metal hydride having a reaction surface in which monatomic hydrogen is available. The activity of the catalyst is maximized by avoiding surface oxide formation Transition metals and lanthanide metals campose the compound from when the Interstitial metal hydride is formed. The catalyst's capabilities can be further enhanced using radio frequency (RF) or microwave energy. |
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| Patent Number | 216046 | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Indian Patent Application Number | 00908/KOLNP/2005 | ||||||||||||||||||
| PG Journal Number | 10/2008 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Publication Date | 07-Mar-2008 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Grant Date | 06-Mar-2008 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Date of Filing | 17-May-2005 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Name of Patentee | CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY | ||||||||||||||||||
| Applicant Address | 5000 FORBES AVENUE, PITTSBURGH PA 15213, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. | ||||||||||||||||||
Inventors:
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| PCT International Classification Number | B01J 23/889, 23/83 | ||||||||||||||||||
| PCT International Application Number | PCT/US2003/032587 | ||||||||||||||||||
| PCT International Filing date | 2003-10-16 | ||||||||||||||||||
PCT Conventions:
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