Recent progress on catalyst technologies for high quality gasoline production

The growing demand for clean and efficient fuels in the world reflects the rapid growth in automotive vehicles and more stringent environmental regulations. Hence, the refining industry must employ diverse strategies to obtain a gasoline pool made up of streams from different processes focused on improving the fuel quality and the octane ratings suitable for the current demanding automotive performance. The composition of gasoline varies mainly from each country’s policies, climate, environmental regulations, financial capacity, and local producer’s oil refining infrastructure. However, a generally accepted composition by source of the gasoline pool is: FCC naphtha and reformate, making up about 60%, light straight-run naphtha and alkylate gasoline, around 30%, isomerate, close to 5%, and variable proportions of butane, oxygenating agents, such as methyl-ter-butyl ether (MTBE), ter-amyl-methyl ether (TAME) and/or ethanol and additives for the remaining 5%. This review is focused on the recent research in the advancement and development of catalysts for the different processes used by the oil refining industry to improve the composition and properties of gasoline fuels. A detailed section on the Fischer-Tropsch process, where liquid hydrocarbons are potentially employed to further produce clean gasoline, is also discussed. A section devoted to research on biogasoline as a potential renewable fuel is also addressed. Finally, a discussion of the physicochemical properties of the gasoline blending components is also provided.