(213d) Technical Challenges and Solutions for Processing Distressed Crude Oils

The growing global demand for energy and shrinking supply of “easy oil” lead to ever-increasing production of distressed crudes. Most of those distressed crude oils contain impurities such as unstable sulfur species, high TAN, and high metals, etc, which affects properties of crude oil and creates many operational and quality issues. If those challenging properties are not properly addressed, those distressed crudes may not be safely produced or transported to the market, and   typically suffer a value penalty. As a consequence, there is an increased need of field processing of the crude produced to ensure safe operation, avoid loss of production and improve crude value. This presentation will first examine the key challenges, such as complex feed composition, large throughput, low concentration of impurities to be removed, etc, and then highlight technical gaps for processing various distressed crudes. Potential technical solutions to improve the quality and value of distressed crude oils will be reviewed by using examples from both recent literatures and authors’ experiences.  The need for better understanding of fundamental phenomena and steps involved in various processes to develop innovative separation technologies will also be discussed.