Heavy oil ultrapyrolysis

A large number of runs have been performed using heavy oil samples and the major products of heavy oil ultrapyrolysis identified are lighter components (methane, ethylene, ethane and propylene) and some aromatic compounds, such as benzene, toluene and naphthalene. 

ULTRAPYROLYSIS OF HEAVY OILS REACTION KINETICS AND REACTOR TECHNOLOGY... 

An innovative micro-reaction system, based on the Curie Point Pyrolyser, has been developed at the University of Calgary and successfully employed for kinetic studies dealing with ultrapyrolysis of various hydrocarbons, including propane, n-hexadecane and heavy oils (Rastogi et al., 1988a Fairburn et al., 1990 Tan and Behie, 1991). 

To study the coke formation during ultrapyrolysis of heavy oils, a Model 240 Elemental Analyzer has been employed to analyze the carbon deposited onto the ferromagnetic wire and/or the glass microreactor walls. The influence of temperature and total reaction times on the amount of carbon formed have been studied. The experimental results confirmed that the coke yield increases sharply with temperature and reaction time. However, at the upper boundary of the ultrapyrolytic regime, a maximum coke yield of 17 wt% has been observed at 1000°C with a total reaction time of 1 second. For the same total reaction time, coke yields of 10 wt% and 6.5 wt% have been measured at 900 and 800°C, respectively, sharply decreasing from those values with a decrease in reaction time. Compared to the above values, industrial pyrolysis processes produce very high yields of undesirable coke. 

A 1 barrel/day (159 L/day) pilot plant has been constructed and operated for ultrapyrolysis of steam atomized Alberta heavy oil. Successful results have been obtained and an upgraded oil of reduced viscosity (280 mPa s at 25 °C) has been produced. 

Ultrapyrolysis of Heavy Oils Reaction Kinetics and Reactor Technoiogy M.P. DudukovU, N. Devanathan 325... 

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