Thermal Adsorption Processing of Hydrocarbon Residues

Abstract

The raw materials of secondary catalytic processes must be pre-refined. Among these refining processes are the deasphalting and demetallization including their thermo-adsorption (or thermo-contact adsorption) variety. In oil processing, four main processes of thermo-adsorption refining of hydrocarbon residues are used—Asphalt Residual Treating- residues deasphaltizing (ART), Discriminatory Destructive Distillation (3D), developed in the US; Adsorption-Contact Treatment (ACT) and Express Thermo-Contact Cracking (ETCC), developed in Russia. ART and ACT are processes with absorbers of lift-type reactor, while 3D and ETCC processes are with an adsorbing reactor having ultrashort contact time of the raw material with the adsorbent. In all these processes, refining of hydrocarbon residues is achieved by partial thermo-destructive transformations of hydrocarbons and hetero-atomic compounds with simultaneous adsorption of the formed, on the surface of the adsorbents, resins, asphaltene and carboids, as well as metal-, sulphur-, and nitro-organic compounds. Demetallized and deasphalted light and heavy gas oils or their mixtures are a quality raw material for secondary deepening refining processes (catalytic and hydrogenation cracking, etc.), since they are characterized by low coking ability and low content of organometallic compounds that lead to irreversible deactivation of the catalysts of these deepening processes.

Keywords: Demetallization, deasphaltization, adsorbent, hydrocarbon residues, lift-reactor