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Upgrading and refining facilities, which process a variety of petroleum feeds, face many challenges. In thermal or catalytic cracking processes, hydrocarbon-based feeds can exhibit diverse phase behaviours leading to the uncontrolled formation of coke or sediments. Fouling in processing units and transport lines cause a loss of throughput, a reduction in heat-transfer efficiency, and can potentially lead to overall blockage. Shutdown, maintenance, and turnaround of such process units and transport lines are expensive.

Coanda has the ability to investigate the relationship between oil phase behaviour and its reactivity – thanks to a variety of lab-scale reactors and supporting analytical capabilities. A Parr 4572 reactor, 2-litres rated to 5000psi at 500°C, allows for batch thermal or catalytic cracking experiments with subsample collection. Alternatively, if smaller sample volumes are desired for screening studies, a 20-millilitre microbatch reactors can be utilized. In addition, Coanda has access to a custom-built hydroprocessing pilot designed for continuous operation of oil feeds. Lastly, micro-reactors can be built with a sapphire window to allow for the visualization of phase separation in-situ.

Fouling can be evaluated ex-situ using microscopy techniques and testing for solvent insolubles, with the ability to test for various solubility classes. Relationship with conversion can be established by analyzing samples with high-temperature simulated distillation. As cracked hydrocarbon products can be unstable, the ability to support these analyses internally can be critical.