Even carbon number paraffin composition and method of manufacturing same

Abstract

Paraffin compositions including mainly even carbon number paraffins, and a method for manufacturing the same, is disclosed herein. In one embodiment, the method involves contacting naturally occurring fatty acid/glycerides with hydrogen in a slurry bubble column reactor containing bimetallic catalysts with equivalent particle diameters from about 10 to about 400 micron. The even carbon number compositions are particularly useful as phase change material.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A phase change material composition comprising at least 75 wt % even carbon number paraffins, wherein the paraffins are produced by hydrogenation/hydrogenolysis of naturally occurring fatty acids and esters. 
     
     
         2 . The composition of  claim 1  comprises at least 80 wt % even carbon number paraffins 
     
     
         3 . The composition of  claim 1  wherein the even carbon number paraffins comprise n-hexadecane and n-octadecane. 
     
     
         4 . The composition of  claim 1  wherein the even carbon number paraffins comprise n-octadecane and n-docosane. 
     
     
         5 . The composition of  claim 1  wherein the even carbon number paraffins comprise n-dodecane and n-tetradecane. 
     
     
         6 . The composition of  claim 1  wherein the composition is used in thermal storage devices. 
     
     
         7 . The composition of  claim 1  wherein the composition is used as feedstock to produce even carbon number n-paraffin products. 
     
     
         8 . The composition of  claim 1  wherein the hydrogenation/hydrogenolysis occurs in the presence of a catalyst containing nickel, molybdenum, cobalt, and/or tungsten. 
     
     
         9 . The composition of  claim 8  wherein the catalyst has an equivalent diameter of about 400 microns or less. 
     
     
         10 . The composition of  claim 8  wherein the catalyst has an equivalent diameter of about 80 micron or less. 
     
     
         11 . The composition of  claim 10  wherein the hydrogenation/hydrogenolysis occurs in slurry phase.