Professional Documents
Culture Documents
What Goes On in An Oil Refinery?
What Goes On in An Oil Refinery?
What Goes On in An Oil Refinery?
Refinery?
--------AIChE Speaker---------
P e tr o c h e m ic a l
P ro p an e & Fuel
B u ta n e R X ( B a r b e q u e G r ills )
P o ly m e r s ( 7 U P B o ttle s )
F lo w c h a r t N a p h th a
(C 5 - C 10) R X O r g a n ic C h e m ic a ls
G a s o lin e
( A s p ir in , H a ir S p r a y )
R X M o r e P o ly m e r s ( F o o t b a ll H e lm e t , A s t r o
T u r f, N y lo n )
K e ro s en e &
Jet Fuel
G a s O ils (C 10+ ) D ie s e l F u e ls
Conversions
Purifications
Separations
O il C ru d e H o m e H e a t in g
and
S e p a ra tio n s O il, L u b r ic a tin g
W e ll O il
O il, W a x
Coke Fuel
( C a r b o n M a t e r ia l S im ila r t o C o a l)
S te e l M a k in g
G r a p h it e F ib e r s
( T e n n is R a c q u e ts )
A s p h a lt
R oads P o t H o le s
P u r if ic a t io n s r e m o v e s u lf u r a n d h e a v y m e t a ls
R X = C h e m ic a l R e a c tio n s
What Is Crude Oil?
Crude Oil is a liquid mixture of thousands
of organic chemicals found underground. It
is the result of organic matter decaying over
thousands of years; hence the name fossil
fuel
Crude oil is found all over the world and
varies tremendously in its density,
aromatics, sulfur, and metals content
Major Refinery Products
LPG (Propane/Butane)
GASOLINE (hundreds of blends)
JET FUELS
DIESEL FUELS
HEATING OILS
GREASES
ASPHALTS
COKE (not the kind you drink )
Gasoline Specifications
Gasoline must meet many criteria which change with
the time of year and geographic location. Some
critical specifications are:
Vapor Pressure
Octane
Aromatics / Benzene Content
Sulfur Content
REACTIONS
&
SEPARATIONS
So, How Do You Make Good
Stuff Out Of That Gooey Crude?
Separate crude into fractions
Convert low octane components to higher octane
components
Convert the very heavy stuff to heavy oils
Convert heavy oils to gasoline,diesel,jet fuel
Remove sulfur/nitrogen through reaction
Blend intermediate streams together to meet
product specifications
SEPARATIONS
SEPARATIONS -
CRUDE FRACTIONATION
HUGE DISTILLATION COLUMNS
– ATMOSPHERIC DISTILLATION
– VACUUM DISTILLATION
TYPICAL SIZE: 150,000 BARRELS/DAY
750 DEGREES F
OTHER SEPARATIONS
FLASH
DISTILLATION
ABSORPTION
ADSORPTION
SETTLING (WATER/OIL)
REACTIONS
REACTIONS
C C
C=C-C + C-C-C --> C-C-C-C-C
C
propylene isobutane isoheptane (2,2,dmp)
Reactions To Convert Heavy
Oils
HYDROCRACKING
H2 + heavy oil --> gasoline + diesel
550 F 300 F 450 F
use boiling point to describe oils
CAT CRACKING
heavy oil --> gasoline + propylene, butane,
other “light ends”
550 F 300 F
Reactions To Convert Resid
Resid is the “bottom of the barrel” - the
material that is left in the bottom of the
crude/vacuum distillation towers
COKING
resid + heat --> coke + heavy oil
> 900 F solid 550 F
Reactions To Remove Sulfur
HYDRODESULFURIZATION
2 R-SH + H2 --> 2 R + 2 H2S
mercaptan hydrocarbon
SULFUR RECOVERY
convert H2S to elemental sulfur:
2 H2S + 2 O2 --> SO2 + S + 2 H2O
2 H2S + SO2 --> 3S + 2 H2O
MAJOR REFINERY EQUIPMENT
Vessels-Reactors, Separators, Storage Tanks
Pumps & Compressors
Furnaces
Heat Exchangers
Instruments (measure flow, temperature,
pressure, composition)
Control Systems
MINIMIZING POLLUTION
Operate Furnaces Efficiently
Waste Material Goes To The Flare Stack
Avoid Spills & Accidental Releases
Special Treatment of Sewer Water
Lots of Paper Work!
WHAT HAPPENS TO THE
BAD STUFF IN THE CRUDE?
Sulfur
– converted to elemental sulfur
– in high sulfur fuel oil
– in coke
Heavy Metals (nickel, vanadium)
– in high sulfur fuel oil and coke
Nitrogen (organic nitrogen)
– most is converted to ammonia and neutralized
– in high sulfur fuel oil and coke
WHAT ROLE DO
ENGINEERS PLAY IN THE
REFINERY?
What Role Do Chemical Engineers Play?
Operations Engineer
Maintenance Engineer
Control Systems Engineer
Design Engineer
Health/Safety/Environmental Engineer
Planning / Scheduling Engineer
Reliability Engineer
Plant Manager
Other Ways Chemical Engineers
Support The Refining Industry
Research & Development Engineers
Technical Sales Engineers
Engineering & Construction Engineers
Governmental Regulators (EPA)
University Professors
Other Engineering Disciplines In
The Refinery
Mechanical Engineers - design &
maintenance of compressors, vessels …
Electrical Engineers - electrical,
instrumentation, controls
Computer Scientists - main plant control &
information systems
Where to get more information
Other training sessions
List books, articles, electronic sources
Consulting services, other sources
Summary
Refineries are very complicated chemical
processing plants that use reactions and
separations to convert crude oil into
gasoline and other valuable products
Chemical engineers play an important role
in keeping these plants running safely and
efficiently