655
24
Product Improvement
and Treating
24.1 INTRODUCTION
As already noted (Chapter 1), petroleum and its derivatives have been used for millennia (Abraham,
1945; Forbes, 1958a,b, 1959; James and Thorpe, 1994) and it is perhaps the most important raw
material consumed in modern society. It provides not only raw materials for the ubiquitous plastics
and other products, but also fuel for energy, industry, heating, and transportation. Thus, the use
of petroleum and the development of related technology is not such a modern subject as we are
inclined to believe. However, the petroleum industry is essentially a twentieth-century industry but
to understand the evolution of the industry, it is essential to have a brief understanding of the first
uses of petroleum.
From a chemical standpoint, petroleum is an extremely complex mixture of hydrocarbon compounds, usually with minor amounts of nitrogen-, oxygen-, and sulfur-containing compounds as
well as trace amounts of metal-containing compounds (Chapter 8; Speight, 2001, and references
cited therein; Speight, 2002, and references cited therein). In addition, the properties of petroleum
vary widely (Chapters 1 and 9) and are not conducive to modern-day use. Thus, petroleum is not
used in its raw state. A variety of processing steps are required to convert petroleum from its raw
state to products that are usable in modern society.
The fuel products that are derived from petroleum supply more than half of the world’s total
supply of energy. Gasoline, kerosene, and diesel oil provide fuel for automobiles, tractors, trucks,
aircraft, and ships. Fuel oil and natural gas are used to heat homes and commercial buildings, as
well as to generate electricity. Petroleum products are the basic materials used for the manufacture
of synthetic fibers for clothing and in plastics, paints, fertilizers, insecticides, soaps, and synthetic
rubber. The uses of petroleum as a source of raw material in manufacturing are central to the functioning of modern industry.
For the purposes of terminology, it is preferable to subdivide petroleum and its related materials
into three major classes (Chapter 1): (1) materials that are of natural origin, (2) materials that are
manufactured, and (3) materials that are integral fractions derived from the natural or manufactured
products. The materials included in categories 1 and 2 are relevant here because of their participation in product streams. Straight-run constituents of petroleum (i.e., constituents distilled without
change from petroleum) (Chapter 17) are used in products. Manufactured materials are produced
by a variety of processes (Chapters 17 through 22) and are also used in product streams. Category 3
materials are usually those materials that are isolated from petroleum or from a product by use of a
variety of techniques (Chapter 9) and are not included here.
The production of liquid product streams by distillation (Chapter 17) or by cracking processes
(Chapters 18, 19, and 22) are only the first of a series of steps that leads to the production of marketable liquid products. Several other unit processes are involved in the production of a final product.
Such processes may be generally termed secondary processes or product improvement processes
since they are not used directly on the crude petroleum but are used on primary product streams that
have been produced from the crude petroleum (Bland and Davidson, 1967; Hobson and Pohl, 1973;
Speight and Ozum, 2002; Hsu and Robinson, 2006; Gary et al., 2007; Speight, 2011).
In addition, the term product improvement as used in this chapter includes processes such as
reforming processes in which the molecular structure of the feedstock is reorganized. An example
24
Product Improvement
and Treating
24.1 INTRODUCTION
As already noted (Chapter 1), petroleum and its derivatives have been used for millennia (Abraham,
1945; Forbes, 1958a,b, 1959; James and Thorpe, 1994) and it is perhaps the most important raw
material consumed in modern society. It provides not only raw materials for the ubiquitous plastics
and other products, but also fuel for energy, industry, heating, and transportation. Thus, the use
of petroleum and the development of related technology is not such a modern subject as we are
inclined to believe. However, the petroleum industry is essentially a twentieth-century industry but
to understand the evolution of the industry, it is essential to have a brief understanding of the first
uses of petroleum.
From a chemical standpoint, petroleum is an extremely complex mixture of hydrocarbon compounds, usually with minor amounts of nitrogen-, oxygen-, and sulfur-containing compounds as
well as trace amounts of metal-containing compounds (Chapter 8; Speight, 2001, and references
cited therein; Speight, 2002, and references cited therein). In addition, the properties of petroleum
vary widely (Chapters 1 and 9) and are not conducive to modern-day use. Thus, petroleum is not
used in its raw state. A variety of processing steps are required to convert petroleum from its raw
state to products that are usable in modern society.
The fuel products that are derived from petroleum supply more than half of the world’s total
supply of energy. Gasoline, kerosene, and diesel oil provide fuel for automobiles, tractors, trucks,
aircraft, and ships. Fuel oil and natural gas are used to heat homes and commercial buildings, as
well as to generate electricity. Petroleum products are the basic materials used for the manufacture
of synthetic fibers for clothing and in plastics, paints, fertilizers, insecticides, soaps, and synthetic
rubber. The uses of petroleum as a source of raw material in manufacturing are central to the functioning of modern industry.
For the purposes of terminology, it is preferable to subdivide petroleum and its related materials
into three major classes (Chapter 1): (1) materials that are of natural origin, (2) materials that are
manufactured, and (3) materials that are integral fractions derived from the natural or manufactured
products. The materials included in categories 1 and 2 are relevant here because of their participation in product streams. Straight-run constituents of petroleum (i.e., constituents distilled without
change from petroleum) (Chapter 17) are used in products. Manufactured materials are produced
by a variety of processes (Chapters 17 through 22) and are also used in product streams. Category 3
materials are usually those materials that are isolated from petroleum or from a product by use of a
variety of techniques (Chapter 9) and are not included here.
The production of liquid product streams by distillation (Chapter 17) or by cracking processes
(Chapters 18, 19, and 22) are only the first of a series of steps that leads to the production of marketable liquid products. Several other unit processes are involved in the production of a final product.
Such processes may be generally termed secondary processes or product improvement processes
since they are not used directly on the crude petroleum but are used on primary product streams that
have been produced from the crude petroleum (Bland and Davidson, 1967; Hobson and Pohl, 1973;
Speight and Ozum, 2002; Hsu and Robinson, 2006; Gary et al., 2007; Speight, 2011).
In addition, the term product improvement as used in this chapter includes processes such as
reforming processes in which the molecular structure of the feedstock is reorganized. An example