Refinery Processes

History of Petroleum Refining

 History of Petroleum Refineries
• Available in small quantities through natural
seepage
• Drilling of petroleum from first oil well was in
Pennsylvania, US in 1859.
• The availability of crude oil in abundant
quantities led to the development large scale
Simple Distillation units.
• Primary product was Kerosene, used for
lighting lamps.
 History of Petroleum Refineries
• The lowest boiling fraction obtained was
straight naptha, primarily used as a solvent
• Higher boiling fractions were used as Fuel oils,
and lubricants
• Development of the IC engine, and
subsequently automobile, in the end of 19th
Century increased the demand of light
petroleum gasoline, and led to advancements
in petroleum refining.
 History of Petroleum Refineries
• Major landmarks in the development of
petroleum refineries have been:
– Automobile industry
– Increased demand for transportation fuels during
WW
– Increased demand for jet fuels during 1950’s-60’s
– Realisation of adverse impacts on Environment in
th 1990’s
 Raw Material: Crude oil
• Hydrocarbons made of carbon and H2 atoms
• Simplest is having one carbon, and four
Hydrogen atoms, called Methane.
• Molecules join each other and form long
hydrocarbon chains.
• Carbon atom has four valence electrons, which
can combine with hydrogen in different ways to
form Alkanes, Alkenes, Alkynes, and
naphthenes.
 Raw Material: Crude oil
• Saturated chain molecule: Paraffins
– General formula CnH2n
– Also known as paraffins
– Saturated hydrocarbons as all the four valences of
Carbon atoms are taken up by hydrogen atoms.
– Chemically most stable
– Arrangement of chains of paraffins can be
straight(normal) or branched chains(iso)
– Naturally occurring paraffins are straight chain, and
refinery processes produced branched
 Raw Material: Crude oil
• Saturated Cyclo-Comounds
– More than four carbon atoms, with a ringed
structure
– Saturated cyclo compounds are called Naphthenes
– Naphthenic crude oils have low potential for
manufacture of lube oil, but higher conversion to
gasoline fractions.
 Raw Material: Crude oil
• Unsaturated ringed Comounds
– All available valencies of carbon arent bonded with
hydrogen
– Double or triple carbon-carbon bond may be formed
– Arrangement of carbon atoms is either as chained
structure (Olefins) or rings (Aromatics)
– Chemically unstable and reactive, good combustion
properties
– Small volumes found in crude oil, but produced as a
result of petroleum refining processes
– Simplest Aromatic compound is benzene (C6H6)
 Raw Material: Crude oil
• Crude oil composition:
– Complex mixure of very long chain hydrocarbon
molecules
– Broad characterization of crude oil is based on the
most prevailent form of HC ie, Praffins,
Naphthenes or Aromatics
– Small quantities of compounds of sulfur, Nitrogen,
and Oxygen are also present
– Minute traces of heavy metals like Ni, V, Na,Ar etc
decide the quality of refined products
 AGENDA
• Feed Stock to products
• Refinery Processes
• Integration of Process Units
Crude Oil to Products

Main Products

Increasing Boiling Point (deg C)

Lt Distillate C3-C4 LPG 0
C5-C10 PETROL
100

C9-C16 KERO 200

Middle
CRUDE OIL Distillate 300
REFINING C14-C24 HSD

400
Heavy ends >C22 FO
500

Main process - simple distillation

 Key Refined Products
Main Applications Key Qualities
Domestic & Industrial Vapour Pressure
LPG
heating,Transport C2 & C5 content

Octane, Sulfur, PETROL

Transport
Vapour Pressure,Benzene NAPHTHA

Aviation, heating, Freezing point,

KERO/ATF
lighting Smoke point, Flash

Transport, Power Sulfur, Cetane, Pour point

HSD
Distillation,Flash point

Industries, Power Viscosity, Pour point, FO/LSHS

Sea transport Metals, Cal value
 DENSITY / API GRAVITY
Density is used for:
₋ Weight to volume or vice versa calculations
₋ Checking the consistency of crude supply
₋ Control of refinery operations
₋ Used in various correlations
₋ Also gives a rough indication of type of crude oil

API GRAVITY= 141.5

SP.GR.@ 60/60°F
- 131.5
Examples:
Water = 10 API
Kerosene = 45 API
Motor Gasoline = 58 API
Natural Gasoline = 75 API
Crude oils are categorized based on gravity
Light grades : Above 33 degree API
Medium grades: 23-33 degree API
Heavy grades: up to 22 degree API
 Crude Oil
Quality indicators
API gravity
Above 50 : Condensate
33 to 50 : Light
24 to 33 : Intermediate
Below 24 : Heavy
Sulphur

Below 0.5% : Low

0.5 %- 1.5% : Medium
Above 1.5% : High
 Different crude – different yields

Lt Distillate

Middle
Distillate

Heavy ends

O
API 40 33.6 34.2 31.0
% Sulfur 0.17 0.18 1.9 2.7
 CRUDE OIL COMPOSITION
 COMPOSTION OF CRUDE OIL:
– LARGE NO. OF DIFFERENT HYDROCARBONS
– IMPURITIES SUCH AS ‘S’, N, O2 METALS, ETC.
– BOTTOM SEDIMENTS & WATER (BS & W)
– SALTS, SUCH AS NACL, MGCL2, ETC.

 TYPES OF HYDROCARBONS:
– PARAFFINS
– NAPHTENES
– AROMATICS
– OLEFINS
 TYPES OF HYDROCARBON

• PARAFFINS :

- Open chain saturated compounds of C & H

having general formula CnH2n+2.
– Have great chemical stability.
– Two types
• n - Paraffins
• Iso - Paraffins.
– N-Paraffins have low Octane No. & high ignition
properties.
– Iso-Paraffins have high Octane No.
 TYPES OF HYDROCARBON (Contd…)
• NAPHTHENES :
– Saturated Cyclic hydrocarbons.
– High chemical stability.
– General Formula CnH2n.

• OLEFINS :
– Unsaturated open chain hydrocarbons.
– Highly reactive.
– Generally formed during cracking / conversion processes.
 TYPES OF HYDROCARBON (Contd…)

• AROMATICS :
– Unsaturated Cyclic hydrocarbons having general formula
CnHn.
– Chemically reactive.
– Aromatics in Gasoline increases Octane number.
– Undesirable in Kerosene because of their tendency to
give smoky flame.
 IMPURITIES IN CRUDE OIL
• SULPHUR:
– Major impurity and present in elemental form.
– Sulfides / oxides of sulfur (H2S, Mercaptans, SO2 etc)
generated in refinery processes.
– Present as H2S / Mercaptans in LPG, as Sulfur / Mercaptans in
Gasoline, Kerosene, ATF and as sulfur in HSD & Residues.
– Sweetening Processes (caustic washing, Mercaptan Oxidation)
are used to remove these impurities from products.
 IMPURITIES IN CRUDE OIL (Contd..)

• NITROGEN :
– Present in elemental form and also as oxides of Nitrogen.
– Forms Acids and causes corrosion.
– Removal is necessary to get on-grade products and
secondary units feedstocks.

• OXYGEN :
– Present in elemental form and also as compounds of
Oxygen.
– Forms Naphthenic Acids and causes stress corrosion.
 IMPURITIES IN CRUDE OIL (Contd..)
• METALS :
– Main metals in Crude oil are - Lead, Nickel, Vanadium & Copper.
– Present in very small quantity (ppm level), in Crude and gets distributed
in various products.
– Poison to catalysts even in very small amount.

• SALTS :
– Are formed during Refining process.
– Main salts - NaCL, MgCL2, KCL.
– Acids formed from these salts attacks plant equipments and corrosion
sets In.
• SEDIMENTS & WATER:
– Sediment: Fine particles of sand clay, volcanic ash,drilling mud, rust, iron
sulphide, metals and scale.
– Damaging Effects Plugging Abrasion and residual product contamination.
– Water causes irregular behaviour in distillation.
Reid Vapour Pressure (RVP) and Light End Analysis

RVP indicates relative Percentage of gaseous and

lighter hydrocarbons in crude oil.
POUR POINT

• Indicates relative amount of wax present in crude oil

• Is the temperature below which pumping and
transportation problems may be encountered
• Along with viscosity, is used in pumping and design
calculations:

WAX CONTENT

Normal paraffins above CI6 are solid at somewhat ambient

temperatures. These hydrocarbons
• Affect the flow behaviour of crude
• Affect the product quality of gas oil, VGO and asphalt
• Lube manufacture is also dependent on wax content of
the crude.
 COMPARISON OF IND. & ME CRUDES QUALITY
PROPERTIES UNIT BH KUWAIT ARAB IRN IRN
MIX LT. HY.

API Gravity @ 150C --- 38.3 31.2 30.3 34.0 31.1

0
Pour Point C +30 -17 -15 -12 -6
% wt
Wax Content 14.7 4.5 5.6 5.7 4.4
% wt
Asphaltenes 0.05 1.3 2.7 0.9 2.0
% wt
Total Sulfur 0.2 2.54 2.65 1.4 1.65

Primary Yields
% wt
Light Distillates 24 14 16 17 16
% wt
Middle Distillates 46 36 36 43 36
% wt
Residue 30 50 48 40 48
 YIELD PATTERN OF VARIOUS CRUDES (% WT)

STREAMS BH KUWAIT DUBAI

GAS 0.2 0.3 0.1
LPG 1.1 1.2 2.5
NAPHTHA 23.0 16.0 12.9
KEROSENE 20.5 16.5 15.3
HSD 25.0 18.0 27.2
RCO 30.0 48.0 42.0
LVGO + HVGO 74.0 58.0 52.0
VACUUM DIESEL 3.0 1.0 2.0
VACUUM RESIDUE 23.0 41.0 46.0
 REFINERY CONFIGURATION

• Catalytic Cracking, Hydro Cracking, Coking, Reformer, etc are referred to as

secondary processing units
• Nelson Complexity Index
• Captures the proportion of the secondary conversion unit capacities
relative to the primary distillation or topping capacity
• Typically varies from ~ 2 for Hydro skimming refineries to ~ 5 for
Cracking refineries and > 9 for Coking refineries
• Refineries with high Nelson Complexity Index have
• Flexibility to process wide range of cheap crudes
• Capable of achieving higher distillate yields & hence higher value
addition
 Yields are dependent on
Refinery configuration
Relative
capital cost
(per MMT) 1.0 2.1 3.6 4.3 >9

LPG

Naphtha
Yield (% wt.)

Petrol

Kerosene

Diesel

Heavy ends

Fuel & loss

 Typical Refinery economics

140.0
Yield - %wt on crude,
117.0 120.0 Price - % of crude price
120.0
Avg product price – 104.6 %
100.0
Crude
80.0 70.0
64.1
% 53.4
60.0

40.0 26.4 30.9

20.0
13.9 9.7

0.0
Light distillate Middle distillate Heavy ends

Yield Wt. Avg Price Realization

Improving yield of value added products

is the mantra of any Refinery
 REFINERY CONFIGURATION - TOPPING

Separates the crude into petroleum products by Atmospheric Distillation. Topping

Refinery produces naphtha but no gasoline
LPG 0
Crude Distillation Unit

Naphtha 100

CRUDE
CDU

OIL Jet / Kerosene 200

300
Diesel / Gas oil

400

Fuel Oil
(Atmospheric
Residue)
 HYDRO SKIMMING REFINERY
Refinery equipped with Atmospheric Distillation, Naphtha reforming and necessary treating
processes. More complex than topping refinery and produces gasoline

LPG LPG 0

Mogas
Mogas
CRU
Crude Distillation Unit

Naphtha 100
Catalytic Reformer
CDU

CRUDE
OIL Jet / Kerosene 200

Gas Oil Low-sulphur 300

Diesel / Gas oil

Desulphuriser
400

Fuel Oil
(Atmospheric Residue)
 CRACKING REFINERY
Also has Vacuum Distillation and Catalytic Cracking. Adds complexity to the hydro skimming
refinery & converts fuel oil to light and middle distillates

LPG LPG LPG

Mogas
Crude Distillation Unit

Mogas
CRU Mogas
Catalytic Reformer Naphtha
CDU

CRUDE
OIL Jet / Kerosene

Gas oil Low-sulphur

Desulphuriser Diesel / Gasoil

Vacuum Distillate
(Vacuum Gasoil,
Vacuum Distillation

Waxy Distillate)
Catalytic Cracker
FCCU
VDU

Fuel Oil Component

(Vacuum Residue)
 COKING REFINERY
Converts the vacuum residue into high value products using Delayed Coker. Adds further
complexity to the cracking refinery by high conversion of fuel oil into distillates and petroleum
coke (used as power fuel)

LPG LPG LPG LPG

Crude Distillation Unit

Mogas Mogas
Mogas
CRU
Catalytic Reformer Naphtha
CDU

CRUDE
OIL Jet Jet / Kerosene

Diesel
Gasoil

VLS
Low-sulphur
Desulphuriser Diesel / Gasoil
Vacuum Distillation

Hydrocracker

Vacuum Distillate
HCCU

(Vacuum Gasoil,
VDU

Waxy Distillate)

Coke

Hydrogen

Coker
 HYDROCRACKING + RDS REFINERY
Adds further complexity to the hydro cracker cracking refinery by high conversion of
fuel oil into distillates. Also has Residue Desulfuriser. Produces low sulphur fuels

LPG LPG LPG 0

Crude Distillation Unit

Mogas Mogas
Mogas
CRU
Catalytic Reformer Naphtha 100
CDU

CRUD
E OIL Jet Jet / Kerosene 200

Diesel
Gasoil

VLS
Low-sulphur 300
Desulphuriser Diesel / Gasoil
400
Vacuum Distillation

Vacuum Distillate
Hydrocracker
HCCU

(Vacuum Gasoil,
Waxy Distillate)
VDU

Low Sulfur Fuel Oil

Hydrogen

AR/VRDS
REFINERY CONFIGURATION
 Refinery Processes

• Crude Distillation

• Catalytic Naphtha Reforming

• Fluidized Catalytic Cracking

• Hydro Processing (DHDS, HCU/LOBS, NHT)

• Residue Upgradation (BBU, VRDS, Coking)

• MISC – Aromatics, Treatment, MTBE, Merox

 Atmospheric Distillation
• First Step in the refining of crude oil
• Crude oil is fractionated into sharp cuts in an atmospheric
distillation column
• These cuts are generally Unstabilized Naphtha, HN, Kero/ATF,
Light gas oil, Heavy gas oil
• Bottoms of the crude column is known as reduced crude oil
• A single or multiple columns could be used for fractionation
• Crude is first preheated in preheat exchangers / heaters and
then pumped to Crude column
 Atmospheric Distillation
• Crude column operates at normally 2-3 Kg/Cm2g
pressure
• Yield of various products depends on type of crude
oil
• Products obtained from crude column are known as
straight run products / components
• Energy intensive process
• Maximum distillates recovered in CDU till cracking
temperatures at operating pressure
 Crude Distillation Unit
Gas

LPG
110 C
2.0 ata Lt Distillate
Naphtha
upto 170 C

Heater Kerosine
Distillation
column upto 270 C
370 C
Middle
Distillate
CRUDE Diesel
upto 360 C

360 C
2.2 ata

RCO/Atmospheric Residue
Heavy ends
>360 C
 Typical Product Pattern

Product TBP Cuts, 0C Yield wt%, LS Yields, %wt

(Mumbai High) HS (AMX)
Fuel Gas C1-C2 0.3 0.04

LPG C3-C4 1.5 1.36

Stabilized C5-90 16.5 11.58

Naphtha
Heavy Naphtha 90-140 3.3 3.42

Kero/ATF 140-280 23.3 16.67

LGO 150-360 16.1 16.35

HGO 220-415 6.0 8.81

RCO 360+ 33.0 41.77

 Vacuum Distillation
• To recover distillates from RCO, vacuum distillation is
utilized
• By reducing the operating pressure further distillates
are recovered at lower than cracking temperatures
• Vacuum unit generally prepare feedstock for FCC and
Hydrocracking Units
• Main distillates from vacuum units are called Vacuum
Gas Oil (VGO)
• Vacuum column bottom is known as short residue
 VDU Process
Off gas

Vacuum Diesel
Atmospheric VDU LVGO
10-20
Residue mmHg abs
Heavy vacuum
400-405 HVGO
Deg C gas oil

Slops

Vacuum
Residue
 Typical Product Pattern

Product TBP Cuts, 0C Yield wt%, LS Yields, %wt

(Mumbai High) HS (AMX)
Off Gas C1-C2 0.4 0.5

Vacuum Diesel 200-360 11.5 7.8

Vacuum Gas Oil 320-580 78.1 48.1

Slops 500-650 0.0 6.0

Short Residue 580+ 10.0 37.6

 Catalytic Naphtha Reforming

• Cat Reforming produces high octane

reformate (gasoline) or aromatics raw material
for further downstream processing
• By products are H2 and LPG
• Accomplished in H2 atmosphere at elevated
temperature & pressure in presence of a PT-
Rh catalyst
 CRU Process
H2 rich gas

Hydrotreated Fuel Gas

Naphtha CRU
505-535 Deg C
22-23 kg/cm2g
LPG

Reformate
 Typical Yield

Parameter MS Mode Aromatic Mode

Naphtha Feed Heavier Lighter
H2 rich gases 6.5 10.1
Fuel gas 1.2 1.6
LPG 1.9 4.1
Reformate 90.3 84.3
Reformate RON 92 95
 FCC
• Purpose of FCC unit is to convert the low value
vacuum gas oils to high value products such as
LPG and Gasoline
• VGO is catalytically cracked to lighter
molecules
• Most profitable unit in the refinery
 FCC
• FCC “heart” of a modern Refinery
– Nearly every major fuels refinery has an FCCU
• One of the most important & sophisticated
contributions to petroleum refining technology
• Capacity usually 25% to 35% of the crude distillation
capacity
• Contributes the highest volume to the gasoline pool
(35-40%)
 FCC Process
Fuel gas

Cracked LPG
Vacuum
Gas Oil Gasoline
FCC Light Cycle Oil
Heavy Cycle Oil
Clarified Oil

Slurry Recycle
 Fluid Catalytic Cracking unit
P-2.0 bar T-495 to 515 C

Vapors to fractionator

Flue gases to Co-boiler

P-1.7-2.1
bar
T-700
C

Stripper

Catalyst

Regenerator T-685
C

Riser
Reaction
C30  C-C-C + C-C-C-C-C + C-C-C-C
Air Steam
+ C8 +C 10
VGO
 Typical Product Pattern

Product TBP Cuts, 0C Yield wt%, LS Yields, %wt

(Mumbai High) HS (Kuwait)
Fuel Gas C1-C2 1.85 2.52

LPG C3-C4 20.0 15.19

Gasoline C5-180 41.6 41.61

Light Cycle Oil 180-360 16.22 18.36

Heavy Cycle Oil 220-415 12.46 14.46

Clarified Oil 415+ 3.7 3.55

Coke 4.17 4.31

 Hydroprocessing
• Hydrotreating
– Removal of hetero atoms & saturation of carbon-carbon
bonds
• Nitrogen, oxygen & metals removed
• Olefinic & aromatic bonds saturated
– Reduce average molecular weight & produce higher yields
of fuel products
• Hydrodesulfurization
– Remove sulfur compounds
– Minimum conversion of feed to lighter products
– 10% to 20% conversion
• Hydrocracking
– Severe type of hydrotreating
• Cracking of carbon-carbon bonds
• Drastic reduction of molecular weight
– 50%+ conversion
 Purpose of Hydrotreating
• Desirable for feeds with small concentrations of aromatics &
contaminants
• Remove contaminants & break aromatic bonds
– Sulfur removed as hydrogen sulfide
– Metals deposited on catalysts
• Breaks aromatic bonds
– Lowers average molecular weight
– Produces higher yields of fuel products
• Minimum cracking
• Products suitable for further processing: reforming, catalytic
cracking, hydrocracking
 Types
• Naphtha hydrotreating
– For preparing feedstock to Catalytic Reformer
– 230-330 Deg C, 22 kg/cm2g
• Distillate Hydrotreating
– For clean fuels (Diesel)
– 310-390 C, 40 kg/cm2g
• Vacuum Gas Oil Hydrotreating
– For better FCC feedstock
• Residue Hydrotreating
– Pretreatment of Coker/VRDS feedstock
 What Does a Hydrocracker Do?
• Removes Metals (HDM) 100%
• Removes Olefins 100%
• Removes Sulfur (HDS) 100%
• Removes Nitrogen (HDN) 100%
• Saturates Aromatics (HDA) 50-95%
• Convert Feed to Products 40-100%
• H2 Consumption 1000-2500 SCF/Bbl
• Operating Pressure 70-210 Kg/Cm2
• Operating Temperature 315-430°C
 Hydrocracker Process
Fuel gas

LPG
Vacuum
Gas Oil HCU Light Naphtha
170-180
Kg/cm2g Heavy Naphtha
380-390 C
350-360 C Kerosene / ATF
HSD

Unconverted Oil
 Residue Upgradation Process
Fuel gas

Atmospheric
Cracked LPG
/ Vacuum
Residue Naphtha
RUP
LCGO
HCGO

Coke
/ Unconverted Oil
 PRODUCT TREATMENT- OBJECTIVES
 Primary separation only physical separation; products need
treatment to meet desired specifications.

 To make petroleum products suitable for use with respect to

performance, corrosively, suitability of storage, odor etc.

 Treatment of products to render them marketable – e.g.

Hydro-treating of HSD, Merox sweetening of LPG and
Gasoline.

 Recovery of environmentally hazardous materials through

processing e.g. Sulfur Recovery Unit.

 Treatment of intermediate product cuts (e.g. Naphtha, VGO,

VR, etc.) before secondary processing (like reforming,
cracking) helps to protect catalyst, improve yields.
 Major contaminants of Petroleum
distillates and their effects
Contaminants Effects
Hydrogen Sulfide Acidity, corrosion, obnoxious combustion
products, reduced octane no., foul odour
Mereaptans Corrosion, obnoxious combustion products,
reduced octane no., gum deposits, engine
deposits, foul odour
Naphthenic Acid Acidity and corrosion

Phenol compounds Engine deposits

Total Sulfur Corrosion, obnoxious combustion products,

reduced octane no.
Nitrogen bases Foul odour, colour formation, possible engine
deposits
Traces of Metals Gum formation, Engine deposits
 PRODUCT TREATMENT
• Intermediate & Raw Product Streams from CDU/VDU
and Secondary Processing Units like FCC / VBU / DCU
are treated to remove impurities to maintain desired
Product Specifications.

LPG - Caustic Wash / Merox

Naphtha – Hydrodesulfurization (NHDS) / Hydrotreater (NHDT)
ATF/ Kerosene – Kero Merox (KMU) / Kero Hydrotreater (KHDT)
HSD – Hydrodesulfurization (DHDS) / Hydrotreater (DHDT)
VGO – Hydrotreater (VGO-HDT)
AR – Hydrodesulfurization (ARDS)
VR – Hydrodesulfurization (VRDS)
FCC Gasoline – Hydrodesulfurization
Coker Naphtha & Gas Oil – Hydrotreater
Vis-breaker Naphtha & Gas Oil – Hydrotreater
 PRODUCT TREATMENT (Contd.)
De-asphalted Oil (DAO) from SDA - is processed in
- Solvent Extraction Unit and
- De-waxing Unit,
for the removal of aromatics & wax respectively, and Hydrotreated in
- Hydro-finishing Unit,
for the manufacture of Finished Lube Oil Base Stocks (LOBS).

Sulphur is a By-product produced in Product Treatment Units

• Fuel Oil produced from VR, Asphalt produced in SDA & Petroleum Coke from
Coker Unit can be utilized for Power Generation.

• Petroleum Coke can also be calcined to produce calcined petroleum coke (CPC).
 PRODUCT BLENDING
• OBJECTIVE –

To produce marketable finished product of required quality / specifications and

suitable for a particular application / end use.

• NEED FOR PRODUCT BLENDING –

- Availability of multiple streams of same finished product from

primary / secondary processing units.
- Streams of same finished product needs to be stored
together to reduce product tanks requirements.
- Finished product optimization with respect to quality
giveaway.
- Certain intermediate product stream (ex. VR, LDO) doesnot
meet finished product specifications.
 PRODUCT BLENDING

• TYPES OF BLENDING
1. On-line blending – For products like LPG,
Naphtha, MS, ATF, Kerosene, Diesel, etc.

2. Tank to tank blending – For products like

Furnace oil, LDO, Lube oil base stocks.

* Sometimes ATF and MS are also blended

using tank to tank blending.
 REFINERY PRODUCTS
LOBS PRODUCTS: SPECIAL PRODUCTS
1. NEUTRAL OILS 1. FG HEXANE
2. TURBINE OILS 2. MTO
3. INDUSTRIAL
3. INDUSTRIAL OILS SOLVENTS
4. AXLE OILS 4. BENZENE
5. TOLUENE
5. TRANSFORMER OIL
6. MIX XYLENES
6. BRIGHT STOCK
7. MTBE
8. LABFS
BY-PRODUCT
9. CBFS
1. SULPHUR
10. CALCINED COKE
CRITERIAS FOR PRODUCT SPECIFICATIONS

1) End Use and Applications

2) Safety in Handling & Storage

3) Environmental Protection

4) Equipment Corrosion

5) Flow Properties
 PRODUCT PROPERTIES

• FLASH POINT : Lowest temperature at which vapors from the oil

ignite instantaneously.

• POUR POINT : Lowest temperature at which no oil flows.

• FREEZING POINT : Constant temperature at which oil solidifies.

• VISCOSITY : A measure of resistance to flow of oil.

• RECOVERY(%) : Percent of oil Distilled at 370 deg. C.

• OCTANE NO. : Determines the anti-knock property of Gasoline.

Higher the octane, better the anti-knock property.

• VISCOSITY INDEX : Determines temperature stability of lube oil with

respect to viscosity.
 PRODUCT SPECIFICATIONS
 Important specifications for main Refinery Products

Refinery Product Specification

L.P.G. Vapor. Pressure, H2S.

Gasoline Octane No., Boiling Range, Sulfur, Aromatic / Olefins content
Naphtha Boiling Range, Sulfur
Kerosene Smoke point, Flash Pt. Sulfur content
Jet Fuel Freezing point, Flash point,
Boiling point
Diesel Oil Cetane no., Carbon Residue
Pour point, Flash Point.
Lubricating Oil Viscosity, Viscosity Index,
 PRODUCT QUALITY TESTS &
THEIR SIGNIFICANCE

TEST - DISTILLATION
- Significance varies from Product to Product.

- For Crude oil, ASTM Distillation gives idea about the quantum of various
fractions.
- TBP Distillation reveals characteristics useful for the design of the
Refinery.
- 10% vol. of Distillation for MS is the indication of ease of Engine start.
- Too high FBP will cause crank case oil dilution.
 PRODUCT QUALITY TESTS &
THEIR SIGNIFICANCE

TEST - VAPOUR PRESSURE

- Pressure exerted by vapors when it is in equilibrium with the liquid.
- Vapor pressure of volatile, non-viscous products is determined by
Reid Method.
Significance
- Test is important with respect to safety in transport, vapor lock in the gasoline engines,
types and design of storage tanks employed.
- High vapor pressure entails loss of product during storage and transportation.
 PRODUCT QUALITY TESTS &
THEIR SIGNIFICANCE

TEST - OCTANE NUMBER

- Test for rating the antiknock of motor fuels
- O.N. is defined as the % volume of ISO-octane in a Mixture of ISO-octane and
n-Heptane that gives the same knocking as the fuel.

- Octane requirements of gasoline engines depend on their compression ratio.

Significance
- O.N. signifies the ignition quality of gasoline in automobile engines.
- For optimum delivery of power to the engine, fuel-air mixture injected into the engine
should ignite at the right time.

- Due to heat of compression, the temp. in the cylinder goes high and there could be
mistimed ignition. A high octane gasoline is better for ignition. Mistimed ignition
produce knocking in the engine.

- Knocking in an engine may result in loss of energy and may cause severe damage
-Minimum required octane ensures trouble free operation.
 • The different hydrocarbon in gasoline :

 Straight chains paraffin

 ISO –paraffin
 Naphthenes
 Aromatics

₋ For the same Carbon No; straight chain paraffin have lowest octane No.

₋ Branched chain paraffin (isomers), Naphthenes have higher octane No.

₋ Olefins also have high O.N. but they cause gum deposits in the fuel tank
and are not desirable.

₋ Aromatic have high O.N. but their content is being restricted due to their
carcinogenic nature.
 PRODUCT QUALITY TESTS &
THEIR SIGNIFICANCE

TEST - FLASH POINT

- Lowest temp. at which application of test flame causes vapor above the sample
to ignite.

- Flash point below 500C - Abel apparatus

- Flash point above 500C - Pensky / Martenes.

Significance

- Low flash products are potential to fire hazards.

 PRODUCT QUALITY TESTS &
THEIR SIGNIFICANCE

TEST - CETANE NUMBER

- Determined in a single cylinder CFR engine.
- Compares ignition delay characteristics of fuel with reference blend of known
cetane number.
- Reference fuel used are normal Cetane (100 c.n.) and alpha-methyl-
naphthalene (0 c.n.).
Significance
- Indication of ignition quality of fuel
- High Cetane number facilitate easy starting of compression ignition engines
and lessen engine roughness.
 PRODUCT QUALITY TESTS &
THEIR SIGNIFICANCE

TEST - SMOKE POINT

- Maximum flame height in mm at which fuel will burn without

smoking when determined in a smoke point apparatus under
specified conditions.
Significance
- Important test for kerosene evaluating their ability to burn
without producing smoke.

- Higher the smoke point, better it is for domestic use.

- Serves as a guide to assess the aromatic content of kerosene.

 PRODUCT QUALITY TESTS &
THEIR SIGNIFICANCE

TEST - FREEZING POINT

- Temperature at which crystals of hydrocarbons formed on cooling,

disappear.

Significance

- Detection of separated solids in aviation engine fuels at

temperatures likely to be encountered during flight.
 PRODUCT QUALITY TESTS &
THEIR SIGNIFICANCE
TEST - POUR POINT

- Lowest temperature at which oil is observed to flow when cooled

and examined under prescribed conditions.

Significance
- Serves as a guide to its pump-ability.
- Indicates waxy nature of the oil.
 Gasoline Specification
Characteristics Bharat Euro III Euro IV
Stage II Equivalent Equivalent
Sulfur, % mass, total, max. 0.05 150 (mg/Kg) 50 (mg/Kg)

RVP, kPa, max. 35 – 60 60 60

Benzene,% vol., max. 3 1 1

Aromatics, %vol., max. - 42 35

Olefins %, vol., max. - 21 21

Distillation :
@ rec. up to 700C,% vol. 10 – 45 10 – 45 10 – 45
@ rec. up to 1000C,% vol. 40 – 70 40 – 70 40 – 70
@ rec. up to 1800C,% vol. 90 75, min. 75, min.
Final BP, 00 C, max. 215 210 210
Residue, % vol., max. 2 2 2

RON, min. 88 91 91
MON, min. - 81 81
 Diesel Specifications
Characteristics Bharat Stage II Euro III Euro IV
Equivalent Equivalent

Sulfur, % mass, total, 0.05 350 (mg/kg) 50 (mg/kg)

max.

Cetane No., min. 48 51 51

45 (for Assam 48 (for Assam 48 (for Assam
crude) Crude) Crude)

Poly-cyclic Aromatics HC - 11 11
(PAH), % mass, max.

Distillation : 85 min. @ 3600 C 3600 C

95% vol. Recovery @ 0 C, 3500C & 95 min.
max. @ 3700 C
 Simple Refinery Process Flow
Chart
PRODUCTS
Crude unit Vacuum unit Secondary unit
4.0 mmta Light distillate

BLENDING
BH +LS crude LPG / C3
CDU-1 HVU VGO CCU Naphtha
Train-1
Atm residue MS
Benzene
LPG C3-C4/MTBE Toluene
NHDS CRU ARU
Hexane
Naphtha
Blending streams – 110 GASOLINE
SBP
Acid gas
CCR To make 32 different
ATU / SRU grade products SPLITTER
Middle distillate
MTO
2.0 mmta
BH +LS crude Crude & product tanks – >100 Kerosene
VGO ATF
CDU-2 FPU FCCU
Train-2 HSD
Atm residue LOBS
LDO
GO
HGU1
Naphtha
VGO
DHDS Heavy ends
Furnace oil
6.0 mmta HGU2
LSHS
Imp HS crude HCU Bitumen
CDU-3 VDU
Train-3 Sulfur
BBU LOBS