AdvancedTopic 95 of 100Materials & Chemical
Petroleum refining
Crude oil fractionation and conversion into fuels.
In depth
Crude oil is desalted, distilled atmospherically and under vacuum, then converted by cracking (FCC, hydrocracking), reforming, alkylation, isomerisation, hydrotreating and coking into fuels and feedstocks. Complexity index and product slate depend on crude quality and market.
Key points
- Octane and cetane numbers
- Sulphur removal
- Heat integration of preheat train
ExampleA refinery makes petrol, diesel, jet fuel and LPG from crude.
What is Petroleum refining?
Crude oil fractionation and conversion into fuels.
Why is it important to understand petroleum refining?
Petroleum refining turns crude oil into fuels and chemicals, and it is one of the largest chemical industries in the world.
What is fractional distillation in a refinery?
Crude oil is heated and separated into fractions by boiling range in a tall column, with each fraction drawn at a different height.
What is cracking?
Breaking large hydrocarbon molecules into smaller and more valuable ones, using heat or catalysts.
How is Petroleum refining used in practice?
Typical applications include separating crude oil into gasoline, kerosene and diesel fractions, upgrading heavy residues by cracking into lighter products and blending fuels to meet octane and sulphur specifications.
What should I learn before Petroleum refining?
Study "Biochemical engineering" first (topic 94 of 100 in Materials & Chemical). It covers the groundwork this topic builds on.
What are the key points of Petroleum refining?
Octane and cetane numbers. Sulphur removal. Heat integration of preheat train.
Can you give an example of Petroleum refining?
A refinery makes petrol, diesel, jet fuel and LPG from crude.
What comes after Petroleum refining?
The next topic is "Polymer and petrochemical industries", which builds directly on this one.
How difficult is Petroleum refining?
It is classed as Advanced in Materials & Chemical (topic 95 of 100). It is an advanced topic. It assumes you are comfortable with the intermediate topics in Materials & Chemical.