We are very active in Isomerization technology.  We provide everything from process licensing to Basic Engineering, catalysts, API610 process pumps and mass transfer internals for any process configuration.

Whether you have a grass roots or revamp application, Sulzer’s experienced engineers will provide you with the best possible, most cost-effective, and robust solution to meet your individual requirements.

Isomerization process

Isomerization is typically used for normal butane conversion to isobutane or straight run naphtha isomerization to substantially improve octane. Here we will focus on naphtha isomerization.

This process isomerizes straight run naphtha, which has a low octane value and catalytically isomerizes it to create a much higher octane product. Sulzer is the licensor for Isomalk 2, an industry leading isomerization process with many plants operating successfully throughout the world. Isomalk 2 can be used to upgrade an existing isom process or for a grass-roots installation.

From a process standpoint, a once-through scheme will require a few rather simple columns. To maximize product octane, a recycle process configuration is used. This requires additional columns for the very difficult iso/normal component separations. These columns use many trays to effect their separations. Because of this, the tray design is extremely important to optimize size and performance of these larger columns. Sulzer UFM and UFMPlus high performance trays are ideal for this application.