Hydroconversion of a hydrocarbon-based heavy feedstock in a hybrid ebullated-entrained bed, comprising mixing said feedstock with a catalyst precursor containing an organic additive

A process for hydroconversion of a heavy oil feedstock (101) containing a fraction of at least 50% by weight having a boiling point of at least 300° C., and containing metals and asphaltenes, wherein the heavy oil feedstock (101) comprises at least one of the following feedstocks:

• heavy crude oil, oil sand bitumen, atmospheric tower bottoms, vacuum tower bottoms, resid, visbreaker bottoms, coal tar, heavy oil from oil shale, liquefied coal, heavy bio oils, and heavy oils comprising plastic waste and/or a plastic pyrolysis oil, said process comprising:
• (a) preparing a conditioned heavy oil feedstock (103) by mixing said heavy oil feedstock (101) with a catalyst precursor formulation (104) in a manner so that a colloidal or molecular catalyst is formed when the catalyst precursor formulation (104) reacts with sulfur, said catalyst precursor formulation (104) comprising:
• a catalyst precursor composition (105) comprising an oil soluble organo-metallic compound or complex comprising molybdenum, and
• an organic chemical compound (102) is selected from the group consisting of ethylhexanoic acid, naphthenic acid, caprylic acid, adipic acid, pimelic acid, suberic acid, azelaic acid, sebacic acid, ethyl octanoate, ethyl 2-ethylhexanoate, 2-ethylhexyl 2-ethylhexanoate, benzyl 2-ethylhexanoate, diethyl adipate, dimethyl adipate, bis(2-ethylhexyl) adipate, dimethyl pimelate, dimethyl suberate, monomethyl suberate, hexanoic anhydride, caprylic anhydride, and mixtures thereof, and
• the molar ratio between said organic chemical compound (102) and molybdenum in said catalyst precursor formulation (104) being between 0.1:1 and 20:1;
• (b) heating said conditioned heavy oil feedstock (103) from (a) in at least one preheating device;
• (c) introducing said heated conditioned heavy oil feedstock (106) from (b) into at least one hybrid ebullated-entrained bed reactor comprising a hydroconversion porous supported catalyst and operating said hybrid ebullated-entrained bed reactor in the presence of hydrogen and at hydroconversion conditions to produce an upgraded material (107) and wherein the colloidal or molecular catalyst is formed in situ within the conditioned heavy oil feedstock at (b) and/or at (c).