FOULING OF A SWEET CRUDE OIL UNDER INERT AND OXYGENATED CONDITIONS

A. Paul Watkinson
Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering The University of British Columbia Vancouver, ВС, Canada V6T 1Z4

B. Navaneetha-Sundaram
Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering The University of British Columbia Vancouver, B.C., CANADA V6T 1Z4

D. Posarac
Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering The University of British Columbia Vancouver, B.C., CANADA V6T 1Z4

Abstract

Fouling of a sweet crude oil derived from oil sands was studied in a re-circulation heating loop to identify causes of refinery pre-heater fouling. Oil was re-circulated for periods of up to six days through an electrically heated annular probe. The oil was maintained under gaseous atmospheres with air/nitrogen molar ratios from zero to 0.25, at total pressures of 460 kPa. The effects of wall and bulk temperature, flow velocity, dissolved oxygen content, and mineral particle additions on the fouling rate are reported.