Methods of deresinating crude oils using carbon dioxide
AssigneeNorth Carolina State University
InventorsNael Naguib Zaki, Peter Kelley Kilpatrick, Ruben Guillermo Carbonell
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Abstract
A method of deresinating a crude oil comprises contacting the crude oil with a carbon dioxide containing fluid, the crude oil having an initial API gravity and comprising an oil phase, resins, and asphaltenes, and wherein the carbon dioxide containing fluid enters the oil phase of the crude oil in a manner such that the resins and asphaltenes precipitate out of the crude oil such that the final API gravity of the crude oil is higher than the initial API gravity of the crude oil.
Claims18
A method of deresinating a crude oil comprising:
- contacting the crude oil with a carbon dioxide containing fluid, the crude oil having an initial API gravity and comprising an oil phase, resins, and asphaltenes, and wherein the carbon dioxide containing fluid enters the oil phase of the crude oil so that the resins and asphaltenes precipitate out of the crude oil and the final API gravity of the crude oil is higher than the initial API gravity of the crude oil, wherein the crude oil comprises water and includes from about 20 to about 60 vol/vol percent of the water.
A method of deresinating a crude oil comprising:
- contacting the crude oil with a fluid consisting essentially of carbon dioxide, the crude oil having an initial API gravity and comprising an oil phase, resins, and asphaltenes, and wherein the fluid enters the oil phase of the crude oil so that the resins and asphaltenes precipitate out of the crude oil and the final API gravity of the crude oil is higher than the initial API gravity of the crude oil, wherein the crude oil comprises from about 20 to about 60 vol/vol percent of the water.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.