New trend for the pour point depression of a waxy petroleum fraction with in-situ desulphurization using (O2H & OH) radicals coupled with nanoparticles of titanium compounds

The depression of pour point of a petroleum fraction with high wax content is commonly based on either getting the long chain paraffins dispersed within the fraction structure using some dispersive materials or via the cracking of these paraffins into short chains. In line with this, in order to develop an energy-efficient desulphurization process a radical approach not limited to the conventional technologies is required. Several processes have been lately employed, including selective adsorption on suitable materials and catalytic oxidation. Herein, the current research study introduces new techniques for the cracking of the n-paraffin in a petroleum fraction with execution of an in-situ desulphurization. Two different techniques are used during this work. The first is based on coupling both nanoparticles with an oxidizing agent while the other provides a combination of the photo-catalysis route with oxidative radicals. In both techniques, the same nanoparticles of titanium compounds were used however based on the different chemistries that were provided by these nanoparticles, and different mechanisms had been undertaken through the designed application. Both techniques also provide new advances in the oxidation process via utilizing oxygen radicals, generated from the hydrogen peroxide, instead of using air or oxygen gas. At the end of these techniques, promising results were obtained in both the reduction of pour point, by minimizing the percentages of the long chain n-paraffin, and the removal of 80% of the sulphur compound content of the feedstock. The ultimate sulphur removal at the final product was attained via a subsequent solvent extraction process. The total removal of the sulphur content has reached 95.5% by using N-Methyl Pyrrolidone (NMP) at the room temperature, and was approximately 30 °C.32