One of the many claims to fame of the process is the production of high-performance fuels for internal combustion engines. The process also addresses the environmental concerns of the emissions produced in the combustion of theses fuels in such engines. This will be the topic of this blog post.
In reading the most recent data provided by the environmental protection agency for the week ending May, 16 2014, the United States crude oil refinery inputs were approximately 15.9 million barrels per day. The refineries operated at 88.7% capacity, with gasoline production coming out to 9.6 million barrels per day. As for the products supplied, the last four week period saw an average of 18.9 million barrels per day. Of the 18.9 million barrels, gasoline products were responsible for 8.9 million barrels. The number of gasoline products supplied is up 5.3% from last this time last year. This type of an increase is a direct correlation of the importance of oil refining for the gasoline provided for internal combustion engines.
The refining process uses many tools to improve on the environmental emissions produced by the gasoline burned in an internal combustion engine. The government has set strict and imperative environmental regulations on the oil these processes produce which causes the importance of improving these stages of utmost importance to oil companies.
During the refining process, the petroleum undergoes many stages to improve the emission contents of such liquid. The separation process separates the physical constituents within the oil, removing wax, solids and other impurities. While the conversion process is more for the purpose of adjusting the chemical composition, the finishing process plays a large role in the environmental improvement as well. It is here that hydro treating takes place with the intent to remove the main culprits of pollution from emissions, and that is the sulfur and nitrogen components of the oil. As we know, these elements are what create NOx and SOx, both of which are strictly controlled in government regulations.
These processes described above will become more and more imperative to be improved as the demand for high performance fuels increases along with the number of cars that are on the road. As the weather gets warmer in these coming months, we can also expect to see a rise in cars on the roads. This increase in travel is only adding to the need that is always prevalent in the oil refining industry. As the US looks to become an exporter of oil rather than its norm of being an importer the need to produce a quality oil becomes even more important with competing markets.
References:
- Lesson 1: Introduction to Petroleum Refining and Crude Oil Composition: https://cms.psu.edu/section/content/default.asp?WCI=pgDisplay&WCU=CRSCNT&ENTRY_ID=F20C6357261A4AE2A750C141B721E8C1
- This Week in Petrolium: http://www.eia.gov/oog/info/twip/twip.asp
- http://www.eia.gov/oog/info/twip/twip_gasoline.html
- Weekly Petroleum Status Report Highlights: http://www.eia.gov/petroleum/supply/weekly/