Preparation of Iron-Based Catalysts by Mechanical Solid-Phase Ball Milling and Their Applications in Cohydrogenation of Coal and Petrochemical Coking Residual Oil

Catalysts are an important factor in reducing harsh reaction conditions and increasing oil yields for the cohydrogenation of coal-oil. In this article, nano-iron-based catalysts have been prepared by mechanical solid-phase ball milling with FeCl3·6H2O, Fe(NO3)3·9H2O, and ammonium carbonate as reactants. The catalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. With these catalysts, cohydrogenation behaviors of coal-oil have been carried out with Hami Baishihu coal and Karamay petrochemical coking residual oil under conditions of 400 °C, initial pressure of 7 MPa, and reaction time of 1 h. The results showed that the coal conversion rate reached 98.45% and the oil yield reached 77.73% when the catalyst prepared with FeCl3·6H2O as an iron source was added. Compared with research results reported in the literature, under the same conditions, the catalyst prepared in this article showed better catalytic activity in the cohydrogenation of coal-petrochemical coking residual oil.