Hydrocracking process utilizing high surface area catalysts

Claim 1

A hydrocracking process which comprises contacting a hydrocarbonaceous oil feed in the presence of added hydrogen at hydrocracking conditions with a high surface area catalyst prepared by the steps which comprise: (a) adding to a hydrocarbon oil chargestock having a Conradson carbon content up to about 50 weight percent, a thermally decomposable metal compound in an amount sufficient to provide a ratio of atoms of oil chargestock Conradson carbon to atoms of metal constituent of said thermally decomposable metal compound of less than about 750 to 1, said metal constituent being selected from the group consisting of Group II, Group III, Group IV, Group V, Group VIB, Group VIIB and Group VIII of the Periodic Table of Elements and mixtures thereof; (b) heating said thermally decomposable metal compound within said chargestock at an elevated temperature in the presence of a gas selected from the group consisting of a hydrogen-containing gas, a hydrogen sulfide-containing gas, and a gas comprising hydrogen and hydrogen sulfide, to produce a solid high surface area catalyst within said chargestock, and (c) recovering said high surface area catalyst.