Refinery Processes Crude oil is refined by distillation.

Distillation is the process whereby crude is heated and split into fractions, which are individually collected. Distillation is done in a distillation column as shown below. Typical fractions in order of recovery are: Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) Gasoline Naphtha Kerosene & Jet Fuel Diesel Fuel Fuel Oils Lubricating Oils Paraffin Wax Asphalt & Tar Petroleum Coke

Liquefied petroleum gas (also called LPG, GPL, LP Gas) is a mixture of hydrocarbon gases used as a fuel in heating appliances and vehicles. Varieties of LPG include mixes that are primarily propane, like butane, and propane. Gasoline is a petroleum derivative, primarily used as fuel in internal combustion engines. It also is used as a powerful solvent much like acetone.

Naphtha is a number of different flammable liquid mixtures of hydrocarbons, i.e. a distillation product from petroleum or coal tar Naphtha is used primarily as feedstock for producing a high octane gasoline component (by the catalytic cracking process). It is also used in the petrochemical industry for producing olefins and in the chemical industry for solvent (cleaning) applications. Kerosene, also known as paraffin, is a combustible hydrocarbon liquid. Kerosene is widely used to power jet aircraft (jet fuel) and some rockets, but is also commonly used as a heating fuel. Fuel oil is a fraction obtained from petroleum distillation, either as a distillate or a residue. Fuel oil is any liquid petroleum product that is burned in a furnace or boiler for the generation of power. Lubrication oil is one of the single largest applications for lubricants, in the form of motor oil, is to protect the internal combustion engines in motor vehicles and powered equipment. Paraffin wax is mostly found as a white, odorless, tasteless, waxy solid. It is insoluble in water, but soluble in ether, benzene, and certain esters. Paraffin is unaffected by most common chemical reagents, but burns readily. Asphalt is a sticky, black and highly viscous liquid or semi-solid that is present in most crude oils. Petroleum coke is a carbonaceous solid derived from oil refinery coker units or other cracking processes.

Crude Oil Quality The physical characteristics of crude oils differ. Crude oil with a similar mix of physical and chemical characteristics, usually produced from a given reservoir, field or sometimes even a region, constitutes a crude oil "stream." Most simply, crude oils are classified by their density (API grade) and sulfur content. Less dense (or "lighter") crudes generally have a higher share of light hydrocarbons -- higher value products -that can be recovered with simple distillation. The denser ("heavier") crude oils produce a greater share of lower-valued products with simple distillation and require additional processing to produce the desired range of products. Some crude oils also have a higher sulfur content, an undesirable characteristic with respect to both processing and product quality. For pricing purposes, crude oils of similar quality are often compared to a single representative crude oil, a "benchmark," of the quality class. In addition to gravity and sulfur content, the type of hydrocarbon molecules and other natural characteristics may affect the cost of processing or restrict a crude oil's suitability for specific uses. The presence of heavy metals, contaminants for the processing and for the finished product, is one example. The molecular structure of a crude oil also dictates whether a crude stream can be used for the manufacture of specialty products, such as lubricating oils or of petrochemical feedstocks. In general, refinery profits have steadily declined in spite of crude price fluctuations. In particular, since the lighter crude world-wide has been drastically depleted, the remaining crude oil quality has deteriorated towards the heavy sour crude, which is more difficult and less profitable to refine.

Refining of Residue In the case of older, less efficient refineries, it may be possible to further distill the output and recover more valuable products for the local market or even for export. Residues can consist of several types, however, in the case of older refineries that are trying to refine heavy crudes; the output can be further refined by using a Mini-Refinery. These are relatively small, economical, quickly constructed and erected either Atmospheric Distillation Units (ADU) or further refined by Vacuum Distillation Units (VDU) The distillated a Mini-Refinery can produce, depends on the quality of the feedstock.

Typical Mini-Refinery This is determined by a laboratory fractional distillation test. This test takes a sample of the feedstock and using a bench-top fractional distillation system, distills it into fractions which are subsequently analyzed for purity. A second type of residue is the waste oil that is generated during the drilling process and is subsequently left in waste oil pits. This oil can be removed from the waste oil pits, purified and processed into lubrication oil by a process similar to vacuum distillation. The lubrication oil can be used in tractors, motor vehicles and other equipment.

Typical Waste Oil Purification System For more information please visit www.allenfiltersinc.com