What Goes On In An Oil Refinery? AIChE Speaker this presentation is probably too long; pick and choose from this material

Introduction l Introduce Yourself l Explain Why You Are Here l Explain Why You Are Talking About Refineries

Agenda this presentation is probably too long, select from: l Introduction l What is the Purpose of an Oil Refinery? l What Goes In/Out of the Refinery l How Do You Get from Crude Oil to Products? –Separations –Chemical Reactions cont...

Agenda - Cont. l How Do You Get from Crude Oil to Products? –Separations –Chemical Reactions –Major Equipment –Minimizing Pollution l What do The Chemical Engineers Do?

Overview THE PURPOSE OF AN OIL REFINERY IS TO TRANSFORM RELATIVELY LOW VALUE CRUDE OIL INTO HIGH VALUE PRODUCTS AS EFFICIENTLY, PROFITABLY AND ENVIRONMENTALLY SOUND A WAY AS POSSIBLE

Overview - Cont. The price and quality of crudes is constantly changing. The price and specifications of the products is constantly changing. Government regulations add additional constraints. There is not much differential between the price of crude and products. HOW DO I KEEP IN BUSINESS?

How Do I Keep In Business ? l I need to design and revamp the plant utilizing the latest technology to be more efficient l I need to make the plant more flexible and responsive l I need to operate (control) the plant in the most efficient manner possible l I need to keep the equipment running all the time I NEED CHEMICAL ENGINEERS!

OK, But... WHAT GOES ON IN AN OIL REFINERY?

THE REFINERY

What Is Crude Oil? l 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 l Crude oil is found all over the world and varies tremendously in its density, aromatics, sulfur, and metals content

Major Refinery Products l LPG (Propane/Butane) l GASOLINE (hundreds of blends) l JET FUELS l DIESEL FUELS l HEATING OILS l GREASES l ASPHALTS l 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: l Vapor Pressure l Octane l Aromatics / Benzene Content l Sulfur Content Gasolines are always a blend of a number of streams in the refinery

Other Specifications Other refinery products must meet other specifications such as: l Cetane number l Density l Pour Point l Flash Point l Viscosity

So, How Do You Make Good Stuff Out Of That Gooey Crude?

REACTIONS & SEPARATIONS

So, How Do You Make Good Stuff Out Of That Gooey Crude? l Separate crude into fractions l Convert low octane components to higher octane components l Convert the very heavy stuff to heavy oils l Convert heavy oils to gasoline,diesel,jet fuel l Remove sulfur/nitrogen through reaction l Blend intermediate streams together to meet product specifications

SEPARATIONS

SEPARATIONS - CRUDE FRACTIONATION l HUGE DISTILLATION COLUMNS –ATMOSPHERIC DISTILLATION –VACUUM DISTILLATION l TYPICAL SIZE: 150,000 BARRELS/DAY l 750 DEGREES F

OTHER SEPARATIONS l FLASH l DISTILLATION l ABSORPTION l ADSORPTION l SETTLING (WATER/OIL)

REACTIONS

Almost all the reactions in the refinery use special catalysts that increase the rate and selectivity of the reaction. This improves efficiency and reduces unwanted byproducts.

Reactions to Make Higher Octane ISOMERIZATION C-C-C-C-C-C --> C C nC6 C-C-C-C iC6 REFORMING C-C-C-C-C-C-C --> C nC7 C C-CH3 C C toluene C

Reactions To Make Higher Octane ALKYLATION 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 l Vessels-Reactors, Separators, Storage Tanks l Pumps & Compressors l Furnaces l Heat Exchangers l Instruments (measure flow, temperature, pressure, composition) l Control Systems

MINIMIZING POLLUTION l Operate Furnaces Efficiently l Waste Material Goes To The Flare Stack l Avoid Spills & Accidental Releases l Special Treatment of Sewer Water l Lots of Paper Work!

WHAT HAPPENS TO THE BAD STUFF IN THE CRUDE? l Sulfur –converted to elemental sulfur –in high sulfur fuel oil –in coke l Heavy Metals (nickel, vanadium) –in high sulfur fuel oil and coke l 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? l Operations Engineer l Maintenance Engineer l Control Systems Engineer l Design Engineer l Health/Safety/Environmental Engineer l Planning / Scheduling Engineer l Reliability Engineer l Plant Manager

Other Ways Chemical Engineers Support The Refining Industry l Research & Development Engineers l Technical Sales Engineers l Engineering & Construction Engineers l Governmental Regulators (EPA) l University Professors

Other Engineering Disciplines In The Refinery l Mechanical Engineers - design & maintenance of compressors, vessels … l Electrical Engineers - electrical, instrumentation, controls l Computer Scientists - main plant control & information systems

Where to get more information l Other training sessions l List books, articles, electronic sources l Consulting services, other sources

Summary l Refineries are very complicated chemical processing plants that use reactions and separations to convert crude oil into gasoline and other valuable products l Chemical engineers play an important role in keeping these plants running safely and efficiently