US 8,058,493 B2 · Removing amines from hydrocarbon streams

Abstract

Corrosive amine salts in hydrocarbon streams such as desalted crude oil streams can be prevented or avoided by adding certain amine scavenging chemicals to the streams to remove the amines therefrom. Suitable amine scavengers include, but are not necessarily limited to, carboxylic anhydrides and copolymers of carboxylic anhydrides, aromatic anhydrides, isocyanates, polyisocyanates, and epoxides. The non-corrosive reaction products of the amines and/or ammonia with these scavengers are preferably oil-soluble, non-basic and thermally stable. The amine scavengers bind up and react with the amines and/or ammonia to keep them from reacting with materials such as acids (e.g. HCl) to form corrosive amine salts.

Claims14

Dependent claims

A method of at least partially removing a nitrogen compound from a hydrocarbon stream comprising:

introducing a hydrocarbon stream to a distillation tower, where the hydrocarbon stream contains at least one nitrogen compound selected from the group consisting of ammonia and volatile amines;
contacting the nitrogen compound with an amine scavenger in an amount effective to at least partially remove the nitrogen compound from the hydrocarbon stream, where the amine scavenger is selected from the group consisting of:
carboxylic anhydrides and copolymers of carboxylic anhydrides, aromatic anhydrides, and mixtures of these anhydrides;
where the amine scavenger has an absence of a reaction product of a hydrocarbyl succinic anhydride and an amine;
and
contacting the nitrogen compound with the amine scavenger under reaction conditions sufficient to form an oil-soluble, non-corrosive, non-basic, thermally stable reaction product that remains in tower bottoms during distillation.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Removing amines from hydrocarbon streams

Life of this patent

Removing amines from hydrocarbon streams

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims14