Licensed SoftLoad™ Technology

Catalyst Services is now offering the latest advancement in catalyst loading technology for primary reformer tubes in the ammonia, methanol, hydrogen and other reformer-based plants.   The technology, known as SoftLoad™, focuses on the benefits of high uniform catalyst density for efficient operation of all primary reformers.   SoftLoad™ has been used for loading virtually all common catalyst brands into all common reformer designs, worldwide. 

• A simple and fast loading technology applicable to tube sizes from 2.8 to 6” internal diameter and all tube shapes.
• No pre-socking of the catalyst and no vibration of the reformer tubes are required.
• SoftLoad™ combines a high quality loading with being a fast, accurate catalyst loading method that removes the "human element" from the loading process.                               

SoftLoad™ Principle                                                                                                               
Catalyst is filled into the tube with a specialized loading rope attached to an automated filling machine. The helixes on the rope, made with very flexible S/S springs, reduce the speed of the catalyst particles by transferring the energy into rotational motion so that breakage is avoided. The helixes also remove the linear falling motion of the particles, allowing them to roll, thereby preventing bridging and excessive void spaces. Hence, there is no need for vibration or correction to the loading.                                                                                                                                   

By applying the SoftLoad™ technology, the loading time of your primary reformer can be substantially reduced while maintaining an exceptionally high quality of loading. The typical loading time for a 4” tube is 25 minutes, less than half the time for a sock loaded tube.                 

SoftLoad™ technology ensures that the pressure drop variations of the tubes will be within a very narrow range. The density will normally be higher than the “sock” loading method resulting in a slightly increased P due to the better packing of the catalyst. Since there are no extra voids, no further settling of the catalyst occurs and thus the pressure drop increase over the run will be minimal.                                                                                                                               

SoftLoad™ gives high uniform density along the full length of the tubes providing fewer tendencies to form “hot spots” and thus contributes to lower tube wall temperatures and longer tube life.

Conclusion
SoftLoad™ is a fast, predictable loading method which ensures a highly uniform loading on any style or size of reformer (Kellogg, KTI, Technip, SELAS, UhdE, Foster-Wheeler, Davy, Howe-Baker, Toyo, HRC and others). It works equally well with all common types and sizes of catalyst used today (Haldor Topsoe, Johnson Matthey, Sud-Chemie, Unicat and others).