Abstract: Skeletal iron catalysts are prepared and utilized for producing synthetic hydrocarbon products from CO and H2 feeds by Fischer-Tropsch synthesis process. Iron powder is mixed with aluminum, antimony, silicon, tin or zinc powder and 0.01-5 wt. % metal promotor powder to provide 20-80 wt. % iron content, then melted together, cooled to room temperature and pulverized to provide 0.1-10 mm iron alloy catalyst precursor particles. The iron alloy precursor particles are treated with NaOH or KOH caustic solution at 30-95° C. to extract or leach out a major portion of the non-ferrous metal portion from the iron and provide the skeletal iron catalyst material. Such skeletal iron catalyst is utilized with CO+H2 feedstream in either fixed bed or slurry bed type reactor at 200-350° C. temperature, 1.0-3.0 mPa pressure and gas hourly space velocity of 0.5-3.0 L/g Fe/h to produce desired hydrocarbon products.

Abstract: Skeletal iron catalysts are prepared and utilized for producing hydrocarbon products from CO and H2 feeds by Fischer-Tropsch synthesis process. Iron powder is mixed with aluminum, antimony, silicon, tin or zinc powder and 0.01-5 wt % metal promotor powder to provide 20-80 wt % iron content, then melted together, cooled to room temperature and pulverized to provide 0.1-10 mm iron alloy catalyst precursor particles. The iron alloy precursor particles are treated with NaOH or KOH caustic solution at 30-95° C. to extract or leach out a major portion of the non-ferrous metal portion from the iron, and then dried and reduced under hydrogen atmosphere to provide the skeletal iron catalyst material. Such skeletal iron catalyst is utilized with CO+H2 feedstream in either fixed bed or slurry bed type reactor at 200-350° C. temperature, 1.0-3.0 mPa pressure and gas hourly space velocity of 0.5-3.0 L/g Fe/h to produce desired hydrocarbon products.