Pressure Effect on the Stabilization Column in the Petroleum Refinery

The objective of this work is to test the pressure effect at the top of gasoline stabilization column, for getting a better use of energy and reduced costs of operation. The calculation of the stabilization column was performed by using Soave-Redlich-Kong (SRK) thermodynamic model with the help of PRO II software. The simulation results were compared to experimental data obtained from functioning crude oil distillation column of petroleum refinery. This comparison shows the accuracy of the models to correctly reproduce the industrial process. Using this model, a technical feasibility study was followed to run the stabilization column with an optimum pressure at the top of this column. The results allowed us to highlight the effect of pressure on the separation of products, recommending the optimal pressure to reduce the operating energy consumption about 24 % and operating cost of stabilization column of 14 %.