Properties of Petroleum and Natural Gas

2nd Stage/Chemical Eng. Dept.

Asst. Professor Hameed Hussein Alwan

5 Physical Properties
5.1 Specific gravity and Density
Specific gravity of liquid (sp. gr.): is defined as the ratio of the density of the liquid to the
density of water, both taken at the same temperature and pressure.

Where ρo is the density of liquid

ρw is the density of distilled water
Density is the mass of a unit volume of material at a specified temperature and has the
dimensions of grams per cubic centimeter (gm/cm3).
Specific gravity is given as sp. gr. 60°/60°F for crude oil and petroleum products, which means
that the densities of both the petroleum and the water were measured at 60°F and atmospheric
pressure.

Where ρo at 60°F is the density of petroleum at 60°F

ρw is the density of distilled water at 60°F
It means that the specific gravity of petroleum is equal to the mass of a unit petroleum volume
at 60°F to the mass of the same volume of water at 60°F.
The petroleum industry also uses another gravity term called API gravity degree which is
defined as:

Where: sp.gr. is the specific gravity at 60°/60°F.

Although density and specific gravity are used extensively, the (American Petroleum Institute)
API gravity is the preferred property. This property was derived from the Baume´ scale:

The density of any liquid is a function of the temperature, there being expansion as the
temperature rises therefore a reduction in the density. The variation of density is defined as:

( ⁄ ) ( )

Where: SG at TF is the specific gravity at any temperature in °F.

ζ is the thermal expansion coefficient values of 0.000517- 0.000897.

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Properties of Petroleum and Natural Gas
2nd Stage/Chemical Eng. Dept.
Asst. Professor Hameed Hussein Alwan

5.2Viscosity
Dynamic viscosity (μ) is the force in dynes required to move a plane of 1 cm2 area at a
distance of 1 cm from another plane of 1 cm2 area in 1 sec (is the tangential force per unit area
required to move one horizontal plane with respect to another plane) . In the cgs system, the
unit of viscosity is the poise (gm/cm.s) or centipoise (0.01 P). Fluidity is simply the reciprocal
of viscosity
Capillary Method
Many types of instruments have been proposed for the determination of dynamic viscosity.
The simplest and most widely used are capillary types, and the viscosity is derived from the
Hagen-Poiseuille equation:

Where η is the absolute (dynamic) viscosity

ΔP is the pressure drop along the ends of capillary tube (gm/cm2)
R radius of capillary tube (cm)
t the time of liquid flow through capillary tube (sec)
L the capillary tube length (cm)
V volume of flow liquid through capillary tube (ml)
Batch flow times are generally used; that is, the time required for a fixed amount of sample to
flow from a reservoir through a capillary is the datum actually observed. Some of the principal
capillary viscometers in use are those of Ubbelohde, Ostwald.

Figure 5 Glass capillary viscometers after a) Ubbelohde and b) Ostwald

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Properties of Petroleum and Natural Gas
2nd Stage/Chemical Eng. Dept.
Asst. Professor Hameed Hussein Alwan

Summary of Test Method ASTM D445

The time is measured for a fixed volume of the liquid to flow through the capillary viscometer
under an accurately reproducible head and at a closely controlled temperature. The kinematic
viscosity is then calculated from the measured flow time and the calibration constant of the
viscometer.
Kinematic viscosity (ν): It is the dynamic viscosity in centipoises divided by the density at the
same temperature:

Where ν is kinematic viscosity

μ is dynamic viscosity
ρ is the density
Kinematic viscosity has the unit of stoke (cm2/sec), although centistokes (0.01 cSt) is in more
common usage.
Saybolt Method
The Saybolt universal viscosity (SUS) is the time in seconds required for the flow of 60 ml of
petroleum from a container, at constant temperature, through a calibrated orifice. Another type
the Saybolt furol viscosity (SFS) is determined in a similar manner, except that a larger orifice
is employed.

Where a and b are constants.

Figure 6 Saybolt viscometer

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Properties of Petroleum and Natural Gas
2nd Stage/Chemical Eng. Dept.
Asst. Professor Hameed Hussein Alwan

The relation of Petroleum Viscosity and Temperature

Various studies have also been made on the effect of temperature on viscosity since the
viscosity of petroleum, or a petroleum product, decreases as the temperature increases. The
rate of change appears to depend primarily on the nature or composition of the petroleum, but
other factors, such as volatility, may also have a minor effect. The effect of temperature on
viscosity is generally represented by the equation:
( )
Where ν is kinematic viscosity in cS, T is temperature in ° K , A and B are constants. This
equation has been sufficient for most purposes and has come into very general use. The
constants A and B vary widely with different oils, but c remains fixed at 0.6 for all oils with a
viscosity over 1.5 cSt; it increases only slightly at lower viscosity (0.75 at 0.5 cSt).
The viscosity–temperature characteristics of any oil, so plotted, thus create a straight line, and
the parameters A and B are equivalent to the intercept and slope of the line. To express the
viscosity and viscosity–temperature characteristics of an oil, the slope and the viscosity at one
temperature must be known; the usual practice is to select 38°C (100°F) and 99°C (210°F) as
the observation temperatures.

Viscosity Index
The viscosity index (VI) is a parameter that indicates the rate of change of the oil viscosity due
to a variation in temperature. This index is defined as the ratio of the difference of viscosity
(U) of the lube oil to be used with respect to the viscosity (L) of petroleum (aromatic) oil
having zero VI to the difference of viscosity (H) of high VI oil (paraffinic; 100 VI) to the
viscosity (L) of zero VI oil for a temperature change from 38°C to 99°C. This can be written in
the following way;
( )
( )
Where L, U, and H are the viscosities of the low VI reference oil (VI = 0), the sample oil, and
the high VI reference oil (VI = 100), respectively, all at a temperature of 38°C. Note that the
viscosity of the sample (U) and reference oils (L and H) must be so selected that they have the
same viscosity at 99°C. This can be explained graphically as below:

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Properties of Petroleum and Natural Gas
2nd Stage/Chemical Eng. Dept.
Asst. Professor Hameed Hussein Alwan

Figure 7 Graphical representation of the viscosity index.

The relation of Petroleum Viscosity and Pressure
The viscosity of petroleum fractions increases on the application of pressure, and this increase
may be very large. The pressure coefficient of viscosity correlates with the temperature
coefficient, even when oils of widely different types are compared. A plot of the logarithm of
the kinematic viscosity against pressure for several oils has given reasonably linear results up
to 20,000 psi.

Where νp is the viscosity at pressure p

νo is viscosity at atmospheric pressure
c is constant
At higher pressures, the viscosity decreases with increasing temperature, as at atmospheric
pressure; in fact, viscosity changes of small magnitude are usually proportional to density
changes, whether these are caused by pressure or by temperature.
5.3 Melting Point and Freezing Point
In general melting point is the temperature at which material is converted from solid state to
liquid state at 1 atm. while freezing point is the temperature at which material is converted
from liquid state to solid state at 1 atm.
Melting point is a test that is widely used by wax suppliers and consumers. It is particularly
applied to petroleum waxes that are rather highly paraffinic or crystalline in nature (ASTM
D87); freezing point it is the temperature (TFZ) at which the crystals formed by cooling of
petroleum and petroleum products.
There are some notes and factors that affecting these points:

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Properties of Petroleum and Natural Gas
2nd Stage/Chemical Eng. Dept.
Asst. Professor Hameed Hussein Alwan

1. The melting points of components of an oil increase with their molecular weight or number
of C atoms as in Table-1.
2. The branched-chain hydrocarbons usually have melting points higher than their normal
straight-chain compounds, whereas n-pentane melts at -130°C the 2,2-dimethylpropane thus
melts at -20°C and whereas n-octane melts at -57°C 2,2,3,3-tetramethylbutane does so at
104°C . In contrast the phenomena are inverted for freezing point.

C atoms / molecule Melting pint °C C atoms / molecule Melting pint °C

1 -182 20 36
5 -130 30 66
10 -30 40 82
15 10 50 92
Table 1 Melting Points of n-Paraffins
The cloud, pour, melting, and freezing points of petroleum and petroleum products are varied
depending on the following:
1. These points will be raised as the molecular weight of petroleum increased.
2. These points will be raised as the coordination of hydrocarbon molecules increased.
3. These points will be raised as the hydrocarbon molecules are more saturated.
Hydrocarbon No. of C atoms Freezing point °C
Butane 4 -138°C
Decane 10 - 29.7°C
Tridecane 13 -6.2°C

Table 2 Freezing point of hydrocarbon

Notes
1. Pour point (Tp) and melting point (TM) have limited uses in wax and paraffinic heavy oils to
determine the degree of solidification.
2. For petroleum mixtures, there are ranges of melting and freezing points versus percent of the
mixture melted or frozen. For a mixture, the initial melting point is close to the melting point of the
lightest compound in the mixture, while the initial freezing point is close to the freezing point (or
melting point) of the heaviest compound in the mixture.

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Properties of Petroleum and Natural Gas
2nd Stage/Chemical Eng. Dept.
Asst. Professor Hameed Hussein Alwan

5.4 Surface and Interfacial Tension

Surface tension is a measure of the attracting force acting at a boundary between two phases. If
the boundary is between a liquid and a solid or between a liquid and a gas (air) the attractive
forces are referred to as surface tension, but the attractive forces between two immiscible
liquids are referred to as interfacial tension. Temperature and molecular weight have a
significant effect on surface tension
The surface tension of petroleum and petroleum products has been studied for many years. The
narrow range of value (approximately 24–38 dyn/cm) for such widely diverse materials.

( ⁄ )
Where σ in dyne/cm, K is the Watson characterization factor , sp.gr. is the specific gravity,
and T is the temperature in K.

Petroleum Product Surface Tension (dyne /cm)

Gasoline 26
Kerosene 30
Lube oil No. 10 32
Lube oil No. 50 34
Heavy Residue 37

Table 3 Surface tension of some petroleum products

From Table 3 it seems that value of surface tension increase with the increase of molecular
weight of petroleum compounds.
The interfacial tension between oil and distilled water provides an indication of compounds in
the oil that have an affinity for water. The measurement of interfacial tension has received
special attention because of its possible use in predicting when oil (lube oil) in constant use
will reach the limit of its serviceability. This interest is based on the fact that oxidation
decreases the interfacial tension of the oil.
5.5 Molecular Weight
In principle, the relation between molecular weight of oil compounds and the average boiling
point is well-known. The characterization of a crude oil or oil fraction requires determining a
boiling range, which can be established by either (i) recording a distillation curve or, more
simply, (ii) the temperatures at which 5%-95% of the total distillate have accumulated in a

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Properties of Petroleum and Natural Gas
2nd Stage/Chemical Eng. Dept.
Asst. Professor Hameed Hussein Alwan

receiver. Figure-8, illustrates the increase of boiling points with the increase of molecular
weights among n-alkanes and condensed aromatics.

Figure 8 Hydrocarbon boiling points, determined from GC retention times.

5.6 Refractive Index
The refractive index is the ratio of light velocity in vacuum to light velocity in substance and
expressed by:

Where Co and Cs are the velocities of light in a vacuum and when passing through a substance
and can be written as:

Where i is the angle of incidence and r the angle of refraction, both determined with incident
light normal to the surface of the substance.
Refractive index normally used to estimate the density and the hydrocarbon composition for
petroleum distillate by comparison with pure hydrocarbons.
°API Density na
6 1.029 1.566
22 0.918 1.509
44 0.802 1.448
58 0.742 1.417
72 0.691 1.390
Table 4 Relationships between API Density, and Refractive Index

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Properties of Petroleum and Natural Gas
2nd Stage/Chemical Eng. Dept.
Asst. Professor Hameed Hussein Alwan

The refractive index of oil is generally measured with a conventional (Abbe refract meter) and
monochromatic Na-D light at 20°C (ASTM D-1218).
Under these conditions n ranges from 1.39 to 1.49, but depends on density or some covariant
function. Among n-alkanes, n thus increases with the molecular weight (see Table 5); among
oil fractions of similar average molecular weight, it increases sequentially from paraffinic to
naphthenic and aromatic species; and among naphthenes and aromatics, it tends to be
significantly higher for polycyclics than for the corresponding monocyclics.

C5H12 1.3579 Eincosane 1.4425

C6H14 1.3749 Cyclopentane 1.4064
C7H16 1.3876 Cyclohexane 1.4266
C8H18 1.3975 Cycloheptane 1.4449
C9H20 1.4054 Benzene 1.5011
C10H22 1.4119 Methylbenzene 1.4961
Nanodecane 1.4409 Ethylbenzene 1.4959
Propylbenzene 1.4920

Table 5 Refractive Indices of Some Hydrocarbons Commonly Occurring in Crude Oils

3.6 Electrical Conductivity

The electrical conductivity of hydrocarbons is quite small. For example the normal
hydrocarbons (hexane and up) have an electrical conductivity smaller than 10-16 Ω-1cm-1;
benzene itself has an electrical conductivity of 4.4 × 10-16 Ω-1cm-1 and cyclohexane has an
electrical conductivity of 7 ×10-16 Ω-1cm-1. It is generally recognized that hydrocarbons do not
usually have an electrical conductivity larger than 10-18 Ω-1cm-1. Thus, the electrical
conductivity of hydrocarbon oils is also small of the order of 10-19 to10-12 Ω-1cm-1.
Conductivity is frequently more dependent on the method of measurement and the presence of
trace impurities than on the chemical type of the oil. Conduction through oils is not ohmic; that
is, the current is not proportional to field strength: in some regions it is observed to increase
exponentially with the latter. Most oils increase in conductivity with rising temperatures.

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