(103d) Salt Hydrolysis in Crude & Bitumen Refining

Salt Hydrolysis in Crude and Bitumen Refining Paul Eaton, Champion Technologies, Fresno TX; Murray Gray University of Alberta; Edmonton, Alberta; Tuyet Le, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta

Crude oil charged to the refinery, contains clay minerals, and may also contain chloride salts. The chlorides can undergo hydrolysis to form corrosive hydrochloric acid during the distillation process. Crude oil also contains significant concentrations of organic acid components known as naphthenic acids, which can cause corrosion in overheads and downstream equipment. In the presence of steam, the chloride salts, clays and organic acids may interact synergistically to promote formation of hydrochloric acid, causing significant corrosion in the downstream equipment. Despite the importance and the impact of these components to product quality and refinery operation, their behavior under upgrading conditions is not well understood.

The objective of this research is to investigate the rate and the extent of the hydrolysis reactions for salts contained in crude oil as a function of mineralclays and napthenic acid. Laboratory glassware is used to expose mixtures of bitumen, salts and organic acids to flowing steam at 100 oC to 400 oC under nitrogen purge. The vapors are condensed and the condensate is analyzed for chloride using ion chromatography. This apparatus promotes the formation of hydrochloric acid, and allows us to investigate the interactions of the salts with organic acids and clays and napthenic acid under upgrading conditions.

Mitigation of the hydrolysis reactions is shown to be possible with the use of chemical additives.