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Low-Temperature Oxidation of Heavy Oil Asphaltene with and without Catalyst
Haiyang Yang1,2, Huiyu Yang1, Xuemin Yan2
1School of Chemistry and Materials Science, Hubei Engineering University, Xiaogan 432000, China.
Abstract:
In this study, the asphaltene extracted from Luntai heavy oil was oxidized by a mixture of propionic anhydride and hydrogen peroxide without and with a catalyst. Elemental analysis and infrared spectroscopy results indicated the occurrence of oxygen addition, condensation, and side chain cleavage reactions in the oxidation process. Oxidation products were divided into methanol solubles and methanol insolubles. The H/C and O/C atomic ratios of the MeOHS in the oxidation products without a catalyst were higher than those of the Luntai asphaltene. MeOHS had fewer aromatic rings than Luntai asphaltene. Compared with the oxidative reaction without a catalyst, the total mass of oxidation products and the proportion of MeOHS in oxidation products both increased after catalytic oxidation. This low-temperature oxidation technology can be used to upgrade asphaltenes, and thus can promote the exploitation and processing of heavy oil.
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