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ChemEngineering
Volume 10
Issue 5
10.3390/chemengineering10050057
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This is an early access version, the complete PDF, HTML, and XML versions will be available soon.
Article

Selective Hydrogen and Olefins Formation via Microwave Assisted Pyrolysis of Crude Oils Using NiO/Al2O3 and NiO/ZSM-5 Catalysts

by
Intisar Ul Hassan
1,
Meshari Ahmed M AlZahrani
1,
Ruaa AlaEldin Ageeb Abakar
1,
Zia Ur Rahman
2,
Aniz Chenampilly Ummer
3,
Usama Ahmed
1,4,
Mohammad Nahid Siddiqui
2,5 and
Abdul Gani Abdul Jameel
1,2,*
1
Department of Chemical Engineering, King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals, Dhahran 31261, Saudi Arabia
2
Interdisciplinary Research Center for Refining & Advanced Chemicals, King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals, Dhahran 31261, Saudi Arabia
3
Research & Development Division, SIPCHEM, Al Khobar 31952, Saudi Arabia
4
Interdisciplinary Research Center for Hydrogen & Energy Storage, King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals, Dhahran 31261, Saudi Arabia
5
Department of Chemistry, King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals, Dhahran 31261, Saudi Arabia
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
ChemEngineering 2026, 10(5), 57; https://doi.org/10.3390/chemengineering10050057
Submission received: 25 January 2026 / Revised: 27 March 2026 / Accepted: 17 April 2026 / Published: 4 May 2026
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fuel Engineering and Technologies)
Versions Notes

Abstract

This research systematically investigated the catalytic pyrolysis of Arab Heavy (AH) and Arab Light (AL) crude oils using NiO supported on Al2O3 or ZSM-5 in a microwave-assisted reactor, with particular emphasis on hydrogen (H2) generation and value-added chemicals. To understand how both the catalyst and feedstock affect reaction products, gas and liquid products as well as catalyst activity were carefully examined. The production of H2 and olefins was significantly enhanced by the NiO/Al2O3 catalyst, especially when using AL crude. This is most likely due to favorable metal-support interactions that increase the dehydrogenation activity. However, when paired with lighter feedstock, NiO/ZSM-5 greatly increased paraffin production and encouraged light alkane synthesis in both phases. GC-MS and FTIR spectroscopy confirmed that NiO/Al2O3 produced liquid products richer in aromatics while also containing a significant fraction of paraffins. Remarkably, the AL over NiO/Al2O3 combination showed very little liquid recovery, indicating that gas generation was higher in these reaction conditions. These results showed how H2 selectivity and hydrocarbon routes in NiO/ZSM-5 and NiO/Al2O3 are controlled by various microwave-catalyst interactions. This work further highlights the importance of matching catalyst properties with feedstock type to control product selectivity, with NiO/Al2O3 showing particular promise for H2-focused applications.
Keywords: crude oil; catalytic cracking; pyrolysis; microwave reactor; H2 production crude oil; catalytic cracking; pyrolysis; microwave reactor; H2 production

Share and Cite

MDPI and ACS Style

Hassan, I.U.; AlZahrani, M.A.M.; Abakar, R.A.A.; Rahman, Z.U.; Ummer, A.C.; Ahmed, U.; Siddiqui, M.N.; Abdul Jameel, A.G. Selective Hydrogen and Olefins Formation via Microwave Assisted Pyrolysis of Crude Oils Using NiO/Al2O3 and NiO/ZSM-5 Catalysts. ChemEngineering 2026, 10, 57. https://doi.org/10.3390/chemengineering10050057

AMA Style

Hassan IU, AlZahrani MAM, Abakar RAA, Rahman ZU, Ummer AC, Ahmed U, Siddiqui MN, Abdul Jameel AG. Selective Hydrogen and Olefins Formation via Microwave Assisted Pyrolysis of Crude Oils Using NiO/Al2O3 and NiO/ZSM-5 Catalysts. ChemEngineering. 2026; 10(5):57. https://doi.org/10.3390/chemengineering10050057

Chicago/Turabian Style

Hassan, Intisar Ul, Meshari Ahmed M AlZahrani, Ruaa AlaEldin Ageeb Abakar, Zia Ur Rahman, Aniz Chenampilly Ummer, Usama Ahmed, Mohammad Nahid Siddiqui, and Abdul Gani Abdul Jameel. 2026. "Selective Hydrogen and Olefins Formation via Microwave Assisted Pyrolysis of Crude Oils Using NiO/Al2O3 and NiO/ZSM-5 Catalysts" ChemEngineering 10, no. 5: 57. https://doi.org/10.3390/chemengineering10050057

APA Style

Hassan, I. U., AlZahrani, M. A. M., Abakar, R. A. A., Rahman, Z. U., Ummer, A. C., Ahmed, U., Siddiqui, M. N., & Abdul Jameel, A. G. (2026). Selective Hydrogen and Olefins Formation via Microwave Assisted Pyrolysis of Crude Oils Using NiO/Al2O3 and NiO/ZSM-5 Catalysts. ChemEngineering, 10(5), 57. https://doi.org/10.3390/chemengineering10050057

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