Combustion of Sour Crude Oil in a Fluidized Catalyst Bed

Abstract

A possibility of environmentally friendly combustion of sulfur crude oil in a fluidized catalyst bed has been studied in an attempt to use this method in energotechnological systems for the local heating. Two types of oil were chosen for the experiments: sour and heavy sour. The oils were combusted in a layer of an Al-Cu-Cr catalyst for deep oxidation of organic substances. For comparison, the oil was combusted in a layer of inert material. The combustion efficiency was determined according to the degree of burning of organic components of sour crude oil and according to the amount of toxic products (CO, SO2 and NOx) in the flue gas. To remove SO2 from the flue gas, calcite was added into the fluidized bed. It was shown that the combustion of the oil in the presence of calcite provides complete combustion of the oil at relatively low temperatures (700 °C) and prevents the presence of CO and SO2 in the flue gas. At that, the concentration of nitrogen oxides is minimal and does not exceed sanitary standards.