Method of preventing corrosion of oil pipelines, storage structures and piping
AssigneeCeramatec, Inc.
InventorJohn Howard Gordon
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Corrosion of ferrous material such as steel or stainless steel is a problem in oil pipelines, oil storage tanks, and the piping and process equipment at oil refineries, and this corrosion may be reduced by reducing the TAN value of the oil feedstock that is used/transported within the ferrous material. This TAN value may be reduced by reacting the oil feedstock with an alkali metal, thereby forming a de-acidified alkali metal. The de-acidified alkali metal has a TAN value of less than or equal to 1 mgKOH/g.
Claims12
A method of reducing corrosion of ferrous materials used to process or transport oil feedstocks, the method comprising:
- obtaining a quantity of an oil feedstock, wherein the oil feedstock comprising napthenic acids such that the TAN value of the oil feedstock is greater than or equal to 1 mgKOH/g;
- and
- reacting the quantity of the oil feedstock with an alkali metal to form a de-acidified oil feedstock, wherein the de-acidified oil feedstock has a TAN value that is less than 1 mgKOH/g,
- wherein the de-acidified oil feedstock decreases the likelihood that the ferrous materials used to process or transport the oil feedstock will corrode.
A method of reducing corrosion of ferrous materials used to process or transport oil feedstocks, the method comprising:
- reacting an alkali metal with a quantity of an oil feedstock in the presence of a non-oxidizing gas;
- removing solids formed from the reaction, thereby forming a de-acidified oil feedstock liquid;
- contacting the de-acidified oil feedstock liquid with a ferrous material, wherein the de-acidified oil feedstock liquid has a TAN value of less than or equal to 1 mgKOH/g.
A ferrous material used to process and/or transport an oil feedstock comprising:
- a quantity of a de-acidified oil feedstock within the ferrous material, wherein the de-acidified oil feedstock has a TAN value that is less than 1 mgKOH/g;
- and
- droplets of an alkali metal, wherein, wherein the alkali metal will be oxidized before the ferrous material, thereby preventing the ferrous material from corroding.
A reactor comprising:
- an oil feedstock material;
- a quantity of an alkali metal, wherein the alkali metal reacts with the oil feedstock to reduce a TAN value of the oil feedstock to less than 1 mgKOH/g.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.