OIL REFINERY PROCESSES

CHE-401
Petroleum Engineering

OUTLINE
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.

Introduction
Physical Processes
Thermal Processes
Catalytic Processes
Conversion of Heavy Residues
Treatment of Refinery Gas Streams
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INTRODUCTION

Oil refining is a key activity in the Petrochemical

Industries.
Over 600 refineries worldwide have a total
annual capacity of more than 3500 x 106 tonnes.
Goal of oil refining is twofold:
i.
ii.

production of fuels for transportation, power generation

and heating
production of raw materials for the Petrochemical
Industries

Oil refineries are complex plants but are

relatively mature and highly integrated.
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CRUDE OIL

Crude oil is a non-uniform material. The composition depends on its location.

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The majority of crude oil is alkanes, cycloalkanes (naphthenes),

aromatics, polycyclic aromatics, S-containing compounds, etc.
Gasoline: branched alkanes
Diesel: linear alkanes

Heavier crude contains more polycyclic aromatics

lead to carbaneceous deposits called coke

Some crudes contain a lot of sulfur, which leads to processing considerations.

Overview
After desalting and dehydration, crude is separated
into fractions by distillation.
The distilled fractions can not be used directly.
The reason for such a complex set of processes is
the difference between the crude oil properties and
the needs of the market.
Another reason for complexity is environmental.
Legislation demands cleaner products and is the
major drive for process improvement and
development of novel processes.
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Refining operations
Petroleum refining processes and operations can be
separated into five basic areas:

Fractionation
Conversion Processes
Treatment Processes
Formulating and Blending
Other Refining Operations
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Refining operations
Fractionation (distillation) is the separation of crude oil in
atmospheric and vacuum distillation towers into groups of
hydrocarbon compounds of differing boiling-point ranges called
"fractions" or "cuts."
Conversion Processes change the size and/or structure of
hydrocarbon molecules. These processes include:
Decomposition (dividing) by thermal and catalytic cracking;
Unification (combining) through alkylation and polymerization; and
Alteration (rearranging) with isomerization and catalytic reforming.

Treatment Processes to prepare hydrocarbon streams for additional

processing and to prepare finished products. Treatment may include
removal or separation of aromatics and naphthenes, impurities
and undesirable contaminants. Treatment may involve chemical or
physical separation e.g. dissolving, absorption, or precipitation using
a variety and combination of processes including desalting, drying,
hydrodesulfurizing, solvent refining, sweetening, solvent
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extraction, & solvent dewaxing.

Refining operations
Formulating and Blending is the process of mixing
and combining hydrocarbon fractions, additives, and
other components to produce finished products with
specific performance properties.
Other Refining Operations include:

light-ends recovery;
sour-water stripping;
solid waste, process-water and wastewater treatment;
cooling, storage and handling and product movement;
hydrogen production;
acid and tail-gas treatment;
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sulfur recovery.

Refining operations
Auxiliary Operations and Facilities include:
light steam and power generation;
process and fire water systems;
flares and relief systems;
furnaces and heaters;
pumps and valves;
supply of steam, air, nitrogen, and other plant gases;
alarms and sensors;
noise and pollution controls;
sampling, testing, and inspecting laboratory;
control room;
maintenance;
administrative facilities.
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Flow scheme of a modern refinery

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Physical & Chemical Processes

Physical
Distillation
Solvent extraction
Propane deasphalting
Solvent dewaxing
Blending

Chemical
Thermal
Catalytic
Visbreaking
Delayed coking
Flexicoking

Hydrotreating
Catalytic reforming
Catalytic cracking
Hydrocracking
Catalytic dewaxing
Alkylation
Polymerization
Isomerization

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PHYSICAL PROCESSES

Desalting/dehydration
How does distillation work?
Crude distillation
Propane deasphalting
Solvent extraction and dewaxing
Blending

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Desalting/dehydration
Crude oil often contains water, inorganic salts, suspended solids, and
water-soluble trace metals.
Step 0 in the refining process is to remove these contaminants so as
to reduce corrosion, plugging, and fouling of equipment and to
prevent poisoning catalysts in processing units.
The two most typical methods of crude-oil desalting are chemical
and electrostatic separation, and both use hot water as the extraction
agent.
In chemical desalting, water and chemical surfactant (demulsifiers)
are added to the crude, which is heated so that salts and other
impurities dissolve or attach to the water, then held in a tank to settle
out.
Electrical desalting is the application of high-voltage electrostatic
charges to concentrate suspended water globules in the bottom of the
settling tank. Surfactants are added only when the crude has a large
amount of suspended solids.
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A third (and rare) process filters hot crude using diatomaceous earth.

Desalting/dehydration
The crude oil feedstock is heated to 65-180C to reduce viscosity and
surface tension for easier mixing and separation of the water. The
temperature is limited by the vapor pressure of the crude-oil feedstock.
In both methods other chemicals may be added. Ammonia is often
used to reduce corrosion. Caustic or acid may be added to adjust the
pH of the water wash.

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Desalting/dehydration

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How does distillation work?

Distillation is defined as:
a process in which a liquid or vapour mixture of
two or more substances is separated into its
component fractions of desired purity, by the
application and removal of heat.

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How does distillation work?

Distillation is based on the fact that the vapour of a
boiling mixture will be richer in the components
that have lower boiling points.
Thus, when this vapour is cooled and condensed,
the condensate will contain the more volatile
components. At the same time, the original mixture
will contain more of the less volatile components.
Distillation is the most common separation
technique and it consumes enormous amounts of
energy, both in terms of cooling and heating
requirements.
Distillation can contribute to more than 50% of
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plant operating costs.

How does distillation work?

Distillation columns are classified by the manner
in which they are operated:
1. Batch, in which the feed to the column is
introduced batch-wise. That is, the column is
charged with a 'batch' and then the distillation
process is carried out. When the desired task is
achieved, a next batch of feed is introduced.
{Moonshine}
2. Continuous columns process a continuous feed
stream. No interruptions occur unless there is a
problem with the column or surrounding process
units. They are capable of handling high
throughputs and are the most common of the two
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types.

Continuous distillation columns

1.

2.
3.

4.

Classified according to:

Nature of the feed that they are processing:
binary column - feed contains only two components;
multi-component column - feed contains more than two components.
Number of product streams they have:
multi-product column - column has more than two product streams.
Where extra feed exits when used to help with the separation:
extractive distillation - where the extra feed appears in the bottom
product stream;
azeotropic distillation - where the extra feed appears at the top
product stream.
Type of column internals:
tray column - trays of various designs used to hold up the liquid to
provide better contact between vapour and liquid;
packed column - packings are used to enhance vapour-liquid contact.
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Main Components of Distillation Columns

A vertical shell where separation
of liquid components is done.
Column internals e.g.trays/plates
and/or packings which are used to
enhance component separations.
A reboiler to provide the
necessary vaporization for the
distillation process.
A condenser to cool and condense
the vapour leaving the top of the
column.
A reflux drum to hold the
condensed vapour from the top of
the column so that liquid (reflux)
can be recycled back to the
column.
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Trays and plates

Bubble cap trays
A riser or chimney is
fitted over each hole, and
a cap covers the riser. The
cap is mounted with a
space to allow vapour to
rise through the chimney
and be directed downward
by the cap, finally
discharging through slots
in the cap, and bubbling
through the liquid on the
tray.
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Trays and plates

Valve trays
Perforations are covered by caps
lifted by vapour, which creates a
flow area and directs the vapour
horizontally into the liquid.

Sieve trays
Sieve trays are simply metal
plates with holes in them. Vapour
passes straight upward through
the liquid on the plate. The
arrangement, number and size of
the holes are design parameters.
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Liquid and vapour flows in a tray column

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Liquid and vapour flows in a tray column

Each tray has 2 conduits called
downcomers: one on each side.
Liquid falls by gravity through the
downcomers from one tray to the
tray below.
A weir ensures there is always some
liquid (holdup) on the tray and is
designed such that the holdup is at a
suitable height, e.g. such that the
bubble caps are covered by liquid.
Vapour flows up the column and is
forced to pass through the liquid via
the openings on each tray. The area
allowed for the passage of vapour on
each tray is called the ACTIVE
TRAY AREA.

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Packings
Packings are passive devices designed to increase interfacial area
for vapour-liquid contact.
They do not cause excessive pressure-drop across a packed
section, which is important because a high pressure drop would
mean that more energy is required to drive the vapour up the
distillation column.
Packed columns are called CONTINUOUS-CONTACT
COLUMNS while trayed columns are called STAGEDCONTACT COLUMNS because of the manner in which vapour
and liquid are contacted.

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Basic operation
The feed is introduced somewhere
near the middle of the column to a
tray known as the feed tray.
The feed tray divides the column into
a top (enriching or rectification) and
a bottom (stripping) section.
The feed flows down the column
where it is collected in the reboiler.
Heat (usually as steam) is supplied to
the reboiler to generate vapour.
The vapour from the reboiler is reintroduced into the unit at the bottom
of the column.
The liquid removed from the reboiler
is known as the bottoms product or
simply, bottoms.

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Basic operation
Vapour moves up the column, exits the top, and is cooled in a
condenser. The condensed liquid is stored in a holding vessel
known as the reflux drum. Some of this liquid is recycled back to
the top of the column and this is called the reflux. The
condensed liquid that is removed from the system is known as
the distillate or top product.
Thus, there are internal flows of vapour and liquid within the
column as well as external flows of feeds and product streams,
into and out of the column.

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Crude distillation
Step 1 in the refining process is the separation of crude oil into
various fractions or straight-run cuts by distillation in atmospheric and
vacuum towers. The main fractions or "cuts" obtained have specific
boiling-point ranges and can be classified in order of decreasing
volatility into gases, light distillates, middle distillates, gas oils, and
residuum.
Atmospheric distillation
The desalted crude feedstock is preheated using recovered process
heat. The feedstock then flows to a direct-fired crude charge heater
then into the vertical distillation column just above the bottom, at
pressures slightly above atmospheric and at temperatures ranging
from 340-370C (above these temperatures undesirable thermal
cracking may occur). All but the heaviest fractions flash into vapor.
As the hot vapor rises in the tower, its temperature is reduced. Heavy
fuel oil or asphalt residue is taken from the bottom. At successively
higher points on the tower, the various major products including
lubricating oil, heating oil, kerosene, gasoline, & uncondensed gases
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are drawn off.

Atmospheric distillation

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Simple crude distillation

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Vacuum distillation
To further distill the residuum or topped crude from the atmospheric
tower without thermal cracking, reduced pressure is required.
The process takes place in one or more vacuum distillation towers.
The principles of vacuum distillation resemble those of fractional
distillation except that larger diameter columns are used to maintain
comparable vapor velocities at the reduced pressures. The internal
designs of some vacuum towers are different from atmospheric towers
in that random packing and demister pads are used instead of trays.
A typical first-phase vacuum tower may produce gas oils, lubricatingoil base stocks, and heavy residual for propane deasphalting.
A second-phase tower operating at lower vacuum may distill surplus
residuum from the atmospheric tower, which is not used for lube-stock
processing, and surplus residuum from the first vacuum tower not used
for deasphalting.
Vacuum towers are typically used to separate catalytic cracking
feedstock from surplus residuum.
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DEMISTER PADS
Porous blankets of metal wire or
plastic knitted mesh, designed
and constructed for the efficient,
economical removal of entrained
liquid droplets from vapor
streams.
Mesh and grids may be made
from most metals and plastics i.e.
SS-304, 304L, 316, 316L, 430,
Monel, Nickel, Copper, P.T.F.E.
(Teflon), H.D.P.E., P.P. etc. and
other metals, alloys or plastic
which can be drawn or extruded.

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Vacuum distillation

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Modern crude distillation

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UNIT III
FUEL REFINING

CATALYTIC PROCESSES

Fluid Catalytic Cracking (FCC)

Hydrotreating
Hydrocracking
Catalytic Reforming
Alkylation

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Catalytic Cracking
Main incentive for catalytic cracking is the need to
increase gasoline production.
Feedstocks are typically vacuum gas oil.
Cracking is catalyzed by solid acids which promote the
rupture of C-C bonds. The crucial intermediates are
carbocations (+ve charged HC ions) formed by the action
of the acid sites on the catalyst.
Besides C-C cleavage many other reactions occur:
- isomerization
- protonation and deprotonation
- alkylation
- polymerization
- cyclization and condensation
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Catalytic Cracking
Catalytic cracking comprises a complex network of
reactions, both intra-molecular and inter-molecular.
The formation of coke is an essential feature of the
cracking process and this coke deactivates the catalyst.
Catalytic cracking is one of the largest applications of
catalysts: worldwide cracking capacity exceeds 500
million t/a.
Catalytic cracking was the first large-scale application of
fluidized beds which explains the name fluid catalytic
cracking (FCC).
Nowadays entrained-flow reactors are used instead of
fluidized beds but the name FCC is still retained.
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Fluid Catalytic Cracking

Oil is cracked in the presence of a finely divided catalyst, which is
maintained in an aerated or fluidized state by the oil vapours.
The fluid cracker consists of a catalyst section and a fractionating
section that operate together as an integrated processing unit.
The catalyst section contains the reactor and regenerator, which, with
the standpipe and riser, form the catalyst circulation unit. The fluid
catalyst is continuously circulated between the reactor and the
regenerator using air, oil vapors, and steam as the conveying media.
Preheated feed is mixed with hot, regenerated catalyst in the riser and
combined with a recycle stream, vapourized, and raised to reactor
temperature (485-540C) by the hot catalyst.
As the mixture travels up the riser, the charge is cracked at 0.7-2 bar.
In modern FCC units, all cracking takes place in the riser and the
"reactor" merely serves as a holding vessel for the cyclones. Cracked
product is then charged to a fractionating column where it is separated
into fractions, and some of the heavy oil is recycled to the riser.
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Fluid Catalytic Cracking

Spent catalyst is regenerated to get rid of coke that collects on the
catalyst during the process.
Spent catalyst flows through the catalyst stripper to the regenerator,
where most of the coke deposits burn off at the bottom where
preheated air and spent catalyst are mixed.
Fresh catalyst is added and worn-out catalyst removed to optimize the
cracking process.

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Fluid Catalytic Cracking

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Fluid Catalytic Cracking

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Fluid Catalytic Cracking

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DELAYED COKING
Coking is a severe method of thermal cracking used to upgrade
heavy residuals into lighter products or distillates.
Coking produces straight-run gasoline (Coker naphtha) and
various middle-distillate fractions used as catalytic cracking
feedstock.
The process completely reduces hydrogen so that the residue is a
form of carbon called "coke."
Three typical types of coke are obtained (sponge coke,
honeycomb coke, and needle coke) depending upon the reaction
mechanism, time, temperature, and the crude feedstock.
In delayed coking the heated charge (typically residuum from
atmospheric distillation towers) is transferred to large coke
drums which provide the long residence time needed to allow
the cracking reactions to proceed to completion.
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Sponge coke derived from a petroleum feedstock that shows abundant pore
structure. Note the flow texture in the coke cell walls.
http://mccoy.lib.siu.edu/projects/crelling2/atlas/PetroleumCoke/pettut.html.

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Typical needle coke derived from a petroleum feedstock. The parallel layers and
linear fractures are distinctive and provide slip planes to relieve stress in the
coke.
http://mccoy.lib.siu.edu/projects/crelling2/atlas/PetroleumCoke/pettut.html

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DELAYED COKING
Heavy feedstock is fed to a fractionator.
The bottoms of the fractionator are fed to coker drums via a
furnace where the hot material (440-500C ) is held
approximately 24 hours (delayed) at pressures of 2-5 bar, until it
cracks into lighter products.
Vapors from the drums are returned to a fractionator where gas,
naphtha, and gas oils are separated out. The heavier hydrocarbons
produced in the fractionator are recycled through the furnace.
After the coke reaches a predetermined level in one drum, the flow
is diverted to another drum to maintain continuous operation.
The full drum is steamed to strip out uncracked hydrocarbons,
cooled by water injection, and de-coked by mechanical or
hydraulic methods.
The coke is mechanically removed by an auger rising from the
bottom of the drum. Hydraulic decoking consists of fracturing the
coke bed with high-pressure water ejected from a rotating cutter.
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DELAYED COKING

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Catalytic Reforming
Catalytic reforming is an important process used to convert low-octane
naphthas into high-octane gasoline blending components called
reformates.
Reforming represents the total effect of numerous reactions such as
cracking, polymerization, dehydrogenation, and isomerization taking
place simultaneously.
Depending on the properties of the naphtha feedstock (as measured by
the paraffin, olefin, naphthene, and aromatic content) and catalysts
used, reformates can be produced with very high concentrations of
benzene, toluene, xylene, (BTX) and other aromatics useful in gasoline
blending and petrochemical processing.

Hydrogen, a significant by-product, is separated from the reformate for

recycling and use in other processes.

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Catalytic Reforming
A catalytic reformer comprises a reactor and product-recovery section.
There is a feed preparation section comprising a combination of
hydrotreatment and distillation.
Most processes use Pt as the active catalyst. Sometimes Pt is
combined with a second catalyst (bimetallic catalyst) such as rhenium
or another noble metal.

There are many different commercial processes including platforming,

powerforming, ultraforming, and Thermofor catalytic reforming.
Some reformers operate at low pressure (3-13 bar), others at high
pressures (up to 70 bar). Some systems continuously regenerate the
catalyst in other systems. One reactor at a time is taken off-stream for
catalyst regeneration, and some facilities regenerate all of the reactors
during turnarounds.
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Catalytic Reforming
In the platforming process, the first step is preparation of the naphtha
feed to remove impurities from the naphtha and reduce catalyst
degradation.
The naphtha feedstock is then mixed with hydrogen, vaporized, and
passed through a series of alternating furnace and fixed-bed reactors
containing a platinum catalyst.
The effluent from the last reactor is cooled and sent to a separator to
permit removal of the hydrogen-rich gas stream from the top of the
separator for recycling.
The liquid product from the bottom of the separator is sent to a
fractionator called a stabilizer (butanizer). It makes a bottom product
called reformate; butanes and lighter go overhead and are sent to the
saturated gas plant.

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Catalytic reforming scheme

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Semi-regenerative catalytic reforming

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Continuous regenerative reforming

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Catalytic reforming reactors

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Propane deasphalting
Coke-forming tendencies of heavier distillation products are
reduced by removal of asphaltenic materials by solvent
extraction.
Liquid propane is a good solvent (butane and pentane are
also commonly used).
Deasphalting is based on solubility of hydrocarbons in
propane, i.e. the type of molecule rather than RMM as in
distillation.
Vacuum residue is fed to a countercurrent deasphalting
tower. Alkanes dissolve in propane whereas asphaltenic
materials (aromatic compounds), coke-precursors do not.
Asphalt is sent for thermal processing.
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Propane deasphalting

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Solvent extraction and dewaxing

Solvent treating is a widely used method of refining lubricating
oils as well as a host of other refinery stocks.
Since distillation (fractionation) separates petroleum products
into groups only by their boiling-point ranges, impurities may
remain. These include organic compounds containing sulfur,
nitrogen, and oxygen; inorganic salts and dissolved metals; and
soluble salts that were present in the crude feedstock.
In addition, kerosene and distillates may have trace amounts of
aromatics and naphthenes, and lubricating oil base-stocks may
contain wax.
Solvent refining processes including solvent extraction and
solvent dewaxing usually remove these undesirables at
intermediate refining stages or just before sending the product to
storage.
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Solvent extraction
The purpose of solvent extraction is to prevent corrosion, protect
catalyst in subsequent processes, and improve finished products by
removing unsaturated, aromatic hydrocarbons from lubricant and
grease stocks.
The solvent extraction process separates aromatics, naphthenes, and
impurities from the product stream by dissolving or precipitation.
The feedstock is first dried and then treated using a continuous
countercurrent solvent treatment operation.
In one type of process, the feedstock is washed with a liquid in
which the substances to be removed are more soluble than in the
desired resultant product. In another process, selected solvents are
added to cause impurities to precipitate out of the product. In the
adsorption process, highly porous solid materials collect liquid
molecules on their surfaces.
The solvent is separated from the product stream by heating,
evaporation, or fractionation, and residual trace amounts are
subsequently removed from the raffinate by steam stripping or
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vacuum flashing.

Solvent extraction
Electric precipitation may be used for separation of
inorganic compounds.
The solvent is regenerated for reused in the process.
The most widely used extraction solvents are phenol,
furfural, and cresylic acid.
Other solvents less frequently used are liquid sulfur
dioxide, nitrobenzene, and 2,2' dichloroethyl ether.
The selection of specific processes and chemical agents
depends on the nature of the feedstock being treated, the
contaminants present, and the finished product
requirements.
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Aromatic solvent extraction unit

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Solvent dewaxing

Solvent dewaxing is used to remove wax from either distillate or residual

basestock at any stage in the refining process.
There are several processes in use for solvent dewaxing, but all have the
same general steps, which are::

mixing the feedstock with a solvent;

precipitating the wax from the mixture by chilling; and
recovering the solvent from the wax and dewaxed oil for recycling by
distillation and steam stripping.

Usually two solvents are used: toluene, which dissolves the oil and
maintains fluidity at low temperatures, and methyl ethyl ketone (MEK),
which dissolves little wax at low temperatures and acts as a wax
precipitating agent.
Other solvents sometimes used include benzene, methyl isobutyl ketone,
propane, petroleum naphtha, ethylene dichloride, methylene chloride, and
sulfur dioxide.
In addition, there is a catalytic process used as an alternate to solvent
dewaxing.
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Solvent dewaxing unit

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Solvent dewaxing unit

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Blending
Blending is the physical mixture of a number of different liquid
hydrocarbons to produce a finished product with certain desired
characteristics.
Products can be blended in-line through a manifold system, or batch
blended in tanks and vessels.
In-line blending of gasoline, distillates, jet fuel, and kerosene is
accomplished by injecting proportionate amounts of each component
into the main stream where turbulence promotes thorough mixing.
Additives including octane enhancers, anti-oxidants, anti-knock agents,
gum and rust inhibitors, detergents, etc. are added during and/or after
blending to provide specific properties not inherent in hydrocarbons.

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THERMAL PROCESSES

When a hydrocarbon is heated to a sufficiently

high temperature thermal cracking occurs. This
is sometimes referred to as pyrolysis (especially
when coal is the feedstock). When steam is used
it is called steam cracking. We will examine
two thermal processes used in refineries.
Visbreaking
Delayed coking
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Visbreaking
Visbreaking is a mild form of thermal cracking that lowers the
viscosity of heavy crude-oil residues without affecting the
boiling point range.
Residuum from the atmospheric distillation tower is heated
(425-510C) at atmospheric pressure and mildly cracked in a
heater.
It is then quenched with cool gas oil to control over-cracking,
and flashed in a distillation tower.
Visbreaking is used to reduce the pour point of waxy residues
and reduce the viscosity of residues used for blending with
lighter fuel oils. Middle distillates may also be produced,
depending on product demand.
The thermally cracked residue tar, which accumulates in the
bottom of the fractionation tower, is vacuum-flashed in a
stripper and the distillate recycled.

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Visbreaking

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Visbreaking
Alternatively, vacuum residue can be cracked. The severity of the
visbreaking depends upon temperature and reaction time (1-8 min).
Usually < 10 wt% of gasoline and lighter products are produced.

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Hydrotreating
Catalytic hydrotreating is a hydrogenation process used to remove
about 90% of contaminants such as nitrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and
metals from liquid petroleum fractions.
If these contaminants are not removed from the petroleum fractions
they can have detrimental effects on equipment, catalysts, and the
quality of the finished product.
Typically, hydrotreating is done prior to processes such as catalytic
reforming so that the catalyst is not contaminated by untreated
feedstock. Hydrotreating is also used prior to catalytic cracking to
reduce sulfur and improve product yields, and to upgrade middledistillate petroleum fractions into finished kerosene, diesel fuel, and
heating fuel oils.
In addition, hydrotreating converts olefins and aromatics to saturated
compounds.
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Catalytic Hydrodesulfurization Process

Hydrotreating for sulfur removal is called hydrodesulfurization.
In a typical catalytic hydrodesulfurization unit, the feedstock is
deaerated and mixed with hydrogen, preheated in a fired heater (315425 C) and then charged under pressure (up to 70 bar) through a
trickle-bed catalytic reactor.
In the reactor, the sulfur and nitrogen compounds in the feedstock are
converted into H2S and NH3.
The reaction products leave the reactor and after cooling to a low
temperature enter a liquid/gas separator. The hydrogen-rich gas from
the high-pressure separation is recycled to combine with the feedstock,
and the low-pressure gas stream rich in H2S is sent to a gas treating
unit where H2S is removed.
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Catalytic Hydrodesulfurization Process

The clean gas is then suitable as fuel for the refinery furnaces. The
liquid stream is the product from hydrotreating and is normally sent to
a stripping column for removal of H2S and other undesirable
components.
In cases where steam is used for stripping, the product is sent to a
vacuum drier for removal of water.
Hydrodesulfurized products are blended or used as catalytic reforming
feedstock.

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Hydrotreating: flow scheme

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Hydrotreating: trickle-bed reactor

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Other Hydrotreating Processes

Hydrotreating also can be used to improve the quality of pyrolysis
gasoline (pygas), a by-product from the manufacture of ethylene.
Traditionally, the outlet for pygas has been motor gasoline blending,
because of its high octane number. However, only small portions can
be blended untreated owing to the unacceptable odor, color, and gumforming tendencies of this material.
The quality of pygas, which is high in diolefin content, can be
satisfactorily improved by hydrotreating, whereby conversion of
diolefins into mono-olefins provides an acceptable product for motor
gas blending.

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Other Hydrotreating Processes

Hydrotreating processes differ depending upon the feedstock available
and catalysts used.
Hydrotreating can be used to improve the burning characteristics of
distillates such as kerosene. by converting aromatics into naphthenes,
which are cleaner-burning compounds.

Lube-oil hydrotreating uses hydrogen to improve product quality. With

mild lube hydrotreating saturation of olefins and improvements in
color, odor, and acid nature of the oil are achieved. Operating
temperatures and pressures are usually below 315 C and 60 bar.
Severe lube hydrotreating (T ~ 315 - 400C and hydrogen pressures up
to 205 bar) is capable of saturating aromatic rings, along with sulfur
and nitrogen removal, to impart specific properties not achieved at
mild conditions.
84

Hydrocracking
Hydrocracking is a two-stage process combining catalytic cracking and
hydrogenation, wherein heavier feedstock is cracked in the presence of
hydrogen to produce more desirable products.
The process employs high pressure, high temperature, a catalyst, and
hydrogen. Hydrocracking is used for feedstock that are difficult to
process by either catalytic cracking or reforming, since these feedstock
are characterized usually by a high polycyclic aromatic content and/or
high concentrations of the two principal catalyst poisons, sulfur and
nitrogen compounds.
The process largely depends on the nature of the feedstock and the
relative rates of the two competing reactions, hydrogenation and
cracking. Heavy aromatic feedstock is converted into lighter products
under a wide range of very high pressures (70-140 bar) and fairly high
temperatures (400-800C), in the presence of hydrogen and special
catalysts.
85

Hydrocracking
When the feedstock has a high paraffinic content, the primary function
of hydrogen is to prevent the formation of polycyclic aromatic
compounds.
Another important role of hydrogen in the hydrocracking process is to
reduce tar formation and prevent buildup of coke on the catalyst.

Hydrogenation also serves to convert sulfur and nitrogen compounds

present in the feedstock to hydrogen sulfide and ammonia.

Hydrocracking produces relatively large amounts of isobutane for

alkylation feedstock and also performs isomerization for pour-point
control and smoke-point control, both of which are important in highquality jet fuel.
86

Hydrocracking
Preheated feedstock is mixed with recycled hydrogen and sent to the
first-stage reactor, where catalysts convert sulfur and nitrogen
compounds to H2S and NH3. Limited hydrocracking also occurs.
After the hydrocarbon leaves the first stage, it is cooled and liquefied
and run through a separator. The hydrogen is recycled to the feedstock.
The liquid is charged to a fractionator.
The fractionator bottoms are again mixed with a hydrogen stream and
charged to the second stage. Since this material has already been
subjected to some hydrogenation, cracking, and reforming in the first
stage, the operations of the second stage are more severe (higher
temperatures and pressures). Again, the second stage product is
separated from the hydrogen and charged to the fractionator.
87

Hydrocracking flow scheme

88

Chemical Treatments
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Improvement of color and odor

Removal of sulfur
Removal of gums, resins and asphaltic materials
Improvement of light and air stability
Improved susceptability to additives

Major conversion operations

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

Cracking
Polymerization
Alkylation
Hydrogenation
Hydrocracking
Isomerization
Reforming or Aromatization

Cracking:
Splitting large hydrocarbons into smaller
molecules by the action of catalysts and heat.

Polymerization:
The linking of similar molecules, joining
together light olefins.

Alkylation:

The union of an
olefin with an
aromatic
or paraffinic
hydrocarbon.

Hydrogenation:
The addition of hydrogen to an olefin

Hydrocracking:
Splitting large hydrocarbons into smaller molecules
by the action of catalysts and heat in the presence
of hydrogen.

Isomerization:
Alteration of the arrangement of the atoms in a
molecule without changing the number of atoms.

Reforming or aromatization:

The conversion of naphtas into cyclic and

aromatic compounds.

Isomerization process
Small volume but important refinery process.
Acid catalyzed. To produce branched alkanes.
Bifunctional catalysts activated by inorganic chelorides are
used.
Pt/zeolite is a typical isomerization catalyst.

Oligomerization of Olefines (Dimerization)

To produce polymer gasoline with high octane number.

Acid catalyzed. By phosphoric or sulfuric acid.
The feed is Propylne-propane or propykene-butane mixture.
The alkane is used as diluent.

99

100

101

Hydrotreatment Processes
Hydrotreating is a hydrogen-consuming process to reduce or
remove impurities such as sulfur, nitrogen, and some trace
metals from the feeds.
It also stabilizes the feed by saturating olefinic compounds.
Feeds could be any petroleum fraction, from naphtha to crude
residues.
The feed is mixed with hydrogen, heated to the proper
temperature, and introduced to the reactor containing the
catalyst.

Hydrotreatment Catalysts and Reactions

The same as those developed in Germany for coal hydrogenation.
The cobalt-molybdenum/alumina is an effective catalyst.

hydrodenitrogenation

Hydrotreating
Catalytic hydrotreating is a hydrogenation process used to remove
about 90% of contaminants such as nitrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and
metals from liquid petroleum fractions.
If these contaminants are not removed from the petroleum fractions
they can have detrimental effects on equipment, catalysts, and the
quality of the finished product.
Typically, hydrotreating is done prior to processes such as catalytic
reforming so that the catalyst is not contaminated by untreated
feedstock. Hydrotreating is also used prior to catalytic cracking to
reduce sulfur and improve product yields, and to upgrade middledistillate petroleum fractions into finished kerosene, diesel fuel, and
heating fuel oils.
In addition, hydrotreating converts olefins and aromatics to saturated
compounds.
104

Catalytic Hydrodesulfurization Process

Hydrotreating for sulfur removal is called hydrodesulfurization.
In a typical catalytic hydrodesulfurization unit, the feedstock is
deaerated and mixed with hydrogen, preheated in a fired heater (315425 C) and then charged under pressure (up to 70 bar) through a
trickle-bed catalytic reactor.
In the reactor, the sulfur and nitrogen compounds in the feedstock are
converted into H2S and NH3.
The reaction products leave the reactor and after cooling to a low
temperature enter a liquid/gas separator. The hydrogen-rich gas from
the high-pressure separation is recycled to combine with the feedstock,
and the low-pressure gas stream rich in H2S is sent to a gas treating
unit where H2S is removed.
105

Catalytic Hydrodesulfurization Process

The clean gas is then suitable as fuel for the refinery furnaces. The
liquid stream is the product from hydrotreating and is normally sent to
a stripping column for removal of H2S and other undesirable
components.
In cases where steam is used for stripping, the product is sent to a
vacuum drier for removal of water.
Hydrodesulfurized products are blended or used as catalytic reforming
feedstock.

106

Hydrotreating: flow scheme

107

Hydrotreating: trickle-bed reactor

108

POLYMERISATION

converting light olefin gases ethylene, propylene, and butylene to higher

molecular weight & high O.No. HCs.
combines two or more identical olefin molecules to form a single molecule with
the same elements; unlike olefin molecules combined through
copolymerization.
accomplished thermally or in the presence of a catalyst at lower temperatures.
olefin feedstock is pretreated to remove sulfur and other undesirable compounds.
catalytic process feedstock is either passed over a solid phosphoric acid catalyst
or comes in contact with liquid phosphoric acid, where an exothermic polymeric
reaction occurs. It requires cooling water and the injection of cold feedstock into
the reactor to control temperatures between 300 & 450 F at pressures from 200
psi to 1,200 psi.
Products sent to stabilization and/or fractionator systems to separate saturated &
unreacted gases from the polymer gasoline product.
All attempts are made to terminate the reaction at the dimer or trimer stage.
However, in the petrochemical section of a refinery, polymerization, which results
in the production of, for instance, polyethylene, is allowed to proceed until
109
materials of the required high molecular weight have been produced.

POLYMERISATION

110

PROPANE DEASPHALTING
Coke-forming tendencies of heavier distillation products are
reduced by removal of asphaltenic materials by solvent
extraction.
Liquid propane is a good solvent (butane and pentane are
also commonly used).
Deasphalting is based on solubility of hydrocarbons in
propane, i.e. the type of molecule rather than RMM as in
distillation.
Vacuum residue is fed to a countercurrent deasphalting
tower. Alkanes dissolve in propane whereas asphaltenic
materials (aromatic compounds), coke-precursors do not.
Asphalt is sent for thermal processing.
111

PROPANE DEASPHALTING

112

SOLVENT EXTRACTION &

DEWAXING

Solvent treating is a widely used method of refining lubricating

oils as well as a host of other refinery stocks.
Since distillation (fractionation) separates petroleum products
into groups only by their boiling-point ranges, impurities may
remain. These include organic compounds containing sulfur,
nitrogen, and oxygen; inorganic salts and dissolved metals; and
soluble salts that were present in the crude feedstock.
In addition, kerosene and distillates may have trace amounts of
aromatics and naphthenes, and lubricating oil base-stocks may
contain wax.
Solvent refining processes including solvent extraction and
solvent dewaxing usually remove these undesirables at
intermediate refining stages or just before sending the product to
storage.
113

SOLVENT EXTRACTION
The purpose of solvent extraction is to prevent corrosion, protect
catalyst in subsequent processes, and improve finished products by
removing unsaturated, aromatic hydrocarbons from lubricant and
grease stocks.
The solvent extraction process separates aromatics, naphthenes, and
impurities from the product stream by dissolving or precipitation.
The feedstock is first dried and then treated using a continuous
countercurrent solvent treatment operation.
In one type of process, the feedstock is washed with a liquid in
which the substances to be removed are more soluble than in the
desired resultant product. In another process, selected solvents are
added to cause impurities to precipitate out of the product. In the
adsorption process, highly porous solid materials collect liquid
molecules on their surfaces.
The solvent is separated from the product stream by heating,
evaporation, or fractionation, and residual trace amounts are
subsequently removed from the raffinate by steam stripping or
114
vacuum flashing.

SOLVENT EXTRACTION
Electric precipitation may be used for separation of
inorganic compounds.
The solvent is regenerated for reused in the process.
The most widely used extraction solvents are phenol,
furfural, and cresylic acid.
Other solvents less frequently used are liquid sulfur
dioxide, nitrobenzene, and 2,2' dichloroethyl ether.
The selection of specific processes and chemical agents
depends on the nature of the feedstock being treated, the
contaminants present, and the finished product
requirements.
115

AROMATIC SOLVENT
EXTRACTION UNIT

116

SOLVENT DEWAXING

Solvent dewaxing is used to remove wax from either distillate or

residual basestock at any stage in the refining process.
There are several processes in use for solvent dewaxing, but all
have the same general steps, which are::
mixing the feedstock with a solvent;
precipitating the wax from the mixture by chilling; and
recovering the solvent from the wax and dewaxed oil for
recycling by distillation and steam stripping.
Usually two solvents are used: toluene, which dissolves the oil
and maintains fluidity at low temperatures, and methyl ethyl
ketone (MEK), which dissolves little wax at low temperatures
and acts as a wax precipitating agent.
Other solvents sometimes used include benzene, methyl isobutyl
ketone, propane, petroleum naphtha, ethylene dichloride,
methylene chloride, and sulfur dioxide.
In addition, there is a catalytic process used as an alternate 117
to
solvent dewaxing.

Solvent dewaxing unit

118

Solvent dewaxing unit

119

Crude Quality
Typical Analysis of some crudes
Property

Talih-1
Sudan

Arab
Extra
Light

Alameen
Egypt

Heglig
Sudan

Arab
Heavy

Bakr-9

Gravity, API

43.3

38.5

33.4

32.3

28.0

20.9

Sulfur content
(wt%)

0.01

1.1

086

0.05

2.8

3.8

Iron (ppm)

36

0.4

0.0

60

1.0

Nickel (ppm)

1.6

0.6

0.0

10

9.0

108

Vanadium (ppm)

1.3

2.2

15

0.9

40

150

Pour point (F)

60

35

80

-11

55

Egypt

120

Alkylation
Alkylation combines low-molecular-weight olefins (primarily a
mixture of propylene and butylene) with isobutene in the presence of a
catalyst, either sulfuric acid or hydrofluoric acid.
The product is called alkylate and is composed of a mixture of highoctane, branched-chain paraffinic hydrocarbons.
Alkylate is a premium blending stock because it has exceptional
antiknock properties and is clean burning. The octane number of the
alkylate depends mainly upon the kind of olefins used and upon
operating conditions.

121

Sulphuric acid alkylation process

In cascade type sulfuric acid (H2SO4) alkylation units, the feedstock
(propylene, butylene, amylene, and fresh isobutane) enters the reactor
and contacts the concentrated sulfuric acid catalyst (in concentrations
of 85% to 95% for good operation and to minimize corrosion).
The reactor is divided into zones, with olefins fed through distributors
to each zone, and the sulfuric acid and isobutanes flowing over baffles
from zone to zone.
The reactor effluent is separated into hydrocarbon and acid phases
in a settler, and the acid is returned to the reactor. The hydrocarbon
phase is hot-water washed with caustic for pH control before being
successively depropanized, deisobutanized, and debutanized. The
alkylate obtained from the deisobutanizer can then go directly to
motor-fuel blending or be rerun to produce aviation-grade blending
stock. The isobutane is recycled to the feed.
122

Sulphuric acid alkylation process

123

Sulphuric acid alkylation process

124

Alkylation with H2SO4 in Stratco

contactor with autorefrigeration

125

CONVERSION OF HEAVY
RESIDUES
Processing of light crude, even in a complex refinery with FCC,
hydrocracking etc. does not yield a satisfactory product distribution.
The amounts of fuel oil are too high.

126

CONVERSION OF HEAVY RESIDUES

For heavy oil the situation is even worse with ~ 50% fuel oil being
produced even in a complex refinery.
Fuel oil is worth < original crude. The value of the products
decreases in the order: gasoline> kerosene/gas oil > crude oil > fuel
oil.

127

CONVERSION OF HEAVY RESIDUES

1.

2.

3.

There are several reasons for an increased incentive to convert

fuel oil into lighter products:
The demand for light products such as gasoline and automotive
diesel fuels continues to increase while market for heavy fuel oil
is declining.
Environmental restrictions become more important. Fuel oil
contains high amounts of S, N, and metals, so measures must be
taken to lower emissions.
With the exception of Western Europe, the quality of crude oil
shows a worsening trend. It becomes heavier with higher
amounts of hetero-atoms, so more extensive processing is
required to obtain the same amount and quality of products.
128

CONVERSION OF HEAVY RESIDUES

1.
2.

In principle there are two solutions for upgrading residual oils

and for obtaining a better product distribution. These are carbon
out and hydrogen in processes.
Examples of carbon rejection processes are the Flexicoking
process (Exxon) and the FCC process discussed earlier.
Examples of hydrogen addition processes are the LC-fining
process (Lummus) and the HYCON process (Shell).

129

Fluid Coking and Flexicoking

Both FLUID COKINGTM and FLEXICOKINGTM use fluid bed

technology to thermally convert heavy oils such as vacuum
residue, atmospheric residue, tar sands bitumen, heavy whole
crudes, deasphalter bottoms or cat plant bottoms.
FLEXICOKING goes one step further than FLUID COKING: in
addition to generating clean liquids, FLEXICOKING also
produces a low-BTU gas in one integrated processing step that
can virtually eliminate petroleum coke production.
The advantages are: flexibility to handle a variety of feed types;
high reliability with the average service factor between 90 -95%;
large single train capacity provides an economy of scale that
lowers investment cost; able to process 65 kB/SD of 20 wt%
Conradson Carbon resid in a single reactor; time between
turnarounds routinely approaches two years; able to process very
heavy feed stocks such as deasphalter bottoms at high feed rates.
Additional FLEXICOKING benefit: Integrated gasification of up
to 97% of gross coke production
130

The Fluid Coking Process

The fluid coking residuum conversion process uses non-catalytic,

thermal chemistry to achieve high conversion levels with even
the heaviest refinery feedstocks.
Since most of the sulfur, nitrogen, metals, and Conradson Carbon
Residue feed contaminants are rejected with the coke, the fullrange of lighter products can be feed for an FCC unit.
Use as a single train reduces manpower requirements and avoids
process load swings and frequent thermal cycles that are typical
of batch processes such as delayed coking.
The configurations available with fluid coking are: extinction
recycle, once-through, and once-through with hydroclones.

131

132

The Flexicoking Process

Flexicoking is a thermal technology for converting heavy

feedstocks to higher margin liquids and producing, a low BTU
(i.e. a low energy content) gas, instead of coke.
The conversion of coke to clean fuel gas maximizes refinery
yield of hydrocarbons.
The carbon rejection process results in lower hydrogen
consumption than alternative hydrogen-addition systems.
The low BTU gas is typically fed to a CO boiler for heat
recovery but can also be used in modified furnaces/boilers;
atmospheric or vacuum pipestill furnaces; reboilers; waste heat
boilers; power plants and steel mills; or as hydrogen plant fuel,
which can significantly reduce or eliminate purchases of
expensive natural gas.
The small residual coke produced can be sold as boiler fuel for
generating electricity and steam or as burner fuel for cement
plants.
133

134

The Flexicoking Process

135

Catalytic hydrogenation of residues

This is a hydrogen-in route.

It serves two purposes: removal of Sulphur, Nitrogen and metal
compounds, and the production of light products.
Reactions are similar to those occurring in hydrotreating and
hydrocracking of gas oils, but there are two important
differences.
(1) Residues contain much higher amounts of sulphur, nitrogen
and polycyclic aromatic compounds; and
(2) removal of metals, which are concentrated in the residual
fraction of the crude, means that operating conditions are more
severe and hydrogen consumption greater than for
hydroprocessing of gas oils.

136

Catalyst deactivation

Deposition of metals causes catalyst deactivation.

Basically all metals in the periodic table are present in crude oil
with the major ones being Ni and V.
At the reaction conditions H2S is present, hence metal sulphides
are formed.
The reaction scheme is complex but may be represented simply
as:
Ni-porphyrin + H2 NiS + hydrocarbons
and
V-porphyrin + H2 V2S3 + hydrocarbons
The catalyst is poisoned by this process because most of the
deposition occurs on the outer shell of the catalyst particles,
initially poisoning the active sites then causing pore plugging.

137

Reactors used for catalytic hydrogenation

Three types of reactor are used: (1) fixed-bed reactors; (2) fluidizedbed reactors (also called ebulliated-bed reactors); and (3) slurry
reactors.

138

The LC-fining process

Developed by Lummus.
Uses fluidized-bed reactors.

139

Processes with fixed-bed reactors

Replacement of deactivated catalyst in a conventional fixed-bed reactor is not

possible during operation.
Depending on the metal content of the feedstock various combinations can be
applied.

140

HYCON process

141

Catalyst rejuvenation

Catalyst rejuvenation is achieved by removal of metal sulphides and

carbonaceous deposits (essentially by oxidation), and by extraction of the
metals.

142

Processes with slurry reactors

Slurry processes for residue processing are normally designed

with the objective of maximizing residue conversion.
Downstream reactors are then used to treat the liquid products
for S and N removal.
Examples of the slurry process are the Veba Combi-Cracking
and CANMET process.
Conversion of residual feed takes place in the liquid phase in a
slurry reactor.
After separation the residue from the products they are further
hydro-treated in a fixed-bed reactor containing an HDS catalyst.
A cheap, once-through catalyst is used which ends up in the
residue.

143

Veba Combi-Cracking process

144

TREATMENT OF REFINERY
GASES
Removal of H2S from gases is usually performed by absorption in the
liquid phase.
The concentrated H2S is frequently converted to elemental sulphur by
the Claus process (partial oxidation of H2S)
In the Claus process 95-97% of the H2S is converted.
H2S is often removed with solvents that can be regenerated, usually
alkanolamines: e.g. CH2(OH)CH2NH2 MEA (mono-ethanolamine).
These amines are highly water soluble with low volatility and their
interaction with H2S is much faster than with CO2 so that the amount
of absorbed CO2 can be limited by selecting appropriate conditions.

145

Flow scheme for H2S removal by amine

absorption

146

Flow scheme of a typical Claus process

147

REFERENCES
Some great websites are:
http://lorien.ncl.ac.uk/ming/distil/distil0.htm
http://science.howstuffworks.com/oilrefining.htm

148

LIGHT ENDS

The light ends unit is the only process in a refinery configuration that is designed to
separate almost pure components from the crude oil. Its particular growth has resulted
from the need of those components such as the butanes and propanes to satisfy a market
of portable cooking fuel and industrial fuels. That these products can be suitably
compressed and stored in small, easily handled containers at ambient temperatures
provided the market popularity for these products, suitably titled Butane LPG and
Propane LPG. The term LPG referring to Liquefied Petroleum Gas.
The introduction of the No Lead in gasoline program during the late 1960s set the
scene for the need of Octane sources additional to the Aromatics provided by high
severity catalytic reforming. A source of such high-octane additives is found in some
isomers of butane and pentane. This added to the need for light end processes which in
many cases included the separation of iso butanes from the butane stream and also iso
pentanes from the light naphtha stream.
After leaving the distillation tower, the overhead distillate (full range naphtha) enters the
light ends unit. The initial tower is a Debutanizer unit, which separates the C4 and lighter
from the top. The distillate is separated into a butane fraction and a propane fraction.
This fraction is sweetened to produce LPG.
The bottoms of the debutanizer unit, debutanized naphtha enters the naphtha
fractionator. The distillate enters the gasoline blending pool. The Bottoms product
149
consists of heavy naphtha, and goes to the reformer.

150

 The light end gases are the top cut of crude distillation. Iso and normal
butanes (C4H10) and lighter gases such as methane (CH4), ethane
(C2H6), propane (C3H8) & hydrogen (H2) are then recovered and
separated in the refinery gas plant. Typically:
. Hydrogen, methane, and sometimes ethane are diverted to the
refinery fuel gas header for use in site heaters and furnaces
. Ethan is used as the chemical feedstock for ethylene upon transfer to
a petrochemical complex
. Propane is used for liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) sales or as the
chemical feedstock for propylene
. N-butane is used for motor gasoline blending
. Iso-butane is used as feedstock to the alkylation process
Iso-butane is fed with propylene and other cracked gases form heavy
gas oil to the alkylation reactor to form gasoline components. The
151 or
alkylation process occurs with a catalyst of either sulfuric
hydrofluoric acid.

Hydrocracking process configuration

152

Other Hydrotreating Processes

Hydrotreating also can be used to improve the quality of pyrolysis
gasoline (pygas), a by-product from the manufacture of ethylene.
Traditionally, the outlet for pygas has been motor gasoline blending,
because of its high octane number. However, only small portions can
be blended untreated owing to the unacceptable odor, color, and gumforming tendencies of this material.
The quality of pygas, which is high in diolefin content, can be
satisfactorily improved by hydrotreating, whereby conversion of
diolefins into mono-olefins provides an acceptable product for motor
gas blending.

153

Other Hydrotreating Processes

Hydrotreating processes differ depending upon the feedstock available
and catalysts used.
Hydrotreating can be used to improve the burning characteristics of
distillates such as kerosene. by converting aromatics into naphthenes,
which are cleaner-burning compounds.

Lube-oil hydrotreating uses hydrogen to improve product quality. With

mild lube hydrotreating saturation of olefins and improvements in
color, odor, and acid nature of the oil are achieved. Operating
temperatures and pressures are usually below 315 C and 60 bar.
Severe lube hydrotreating (T ~ 315 - 400C and hydrogen pressures up
to 205 bar) is capable of saturating aromatic rings, along with sulfur
and nitrogen removal, to impart specific properties not achieved at
mild conditions.
154