Single-step conversion of crude to olefins and aromatics The direct catalytic conversion of crude oil into petrochemicals in a single unit eliminates the need for energy-intensive fractionation and hydroprocessing steps
Somanath Kukade, Arun P Asokan, Pramod Kumar, and S Sriram HP Green R&D Centre, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited
P etrochemical feedstocks, such as ethylene, propylene, butylenes, and benzene, toluene, and xylenes (BTX), are produced as byproducts of the petroleum refining industry. The demand for these chemicals is increasing worldwide, while fuel demand is projected to remain stagnant or decline in the long term. Many refiners are considering shifting away from refining crude into fuels to produce chemicals. Further, the energy transition will reduce demand for fuels and increase opportunities for the growing demand for petrochemicals. The well-established route for the production of light olefins is the steam cracking of ethane or naphtha. The application of the steam cracking process to whole crude oil is severely limited due to rapid coking and fouling. Catalytic cracking provides a more flexible alternative to the steam cracking route, with the possibility of widening the feedstock choice and altering the product slate. Petrochemicals are used to manufacture a wide range of products such as plastics, synthetic fibres, cosmetics, furniture, and electronic appliances. Major petrochemical monomers, including light olefins like ethylene,
propylene, and butylenes, are primarily produced through steam cracking and fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) processes. The demand for petrochemicals is expected to triple by 2040 and reach a value of $1 trillion. The growth projection for this sector is around 8% in India. As a result, there exists an opportunity for refiners to meet this demand. The existing refining technologies in India are not sufficient to produce petrochemicals feedstocks cost-effectively, as multiple units are involved, and energy consumption is quite high. Because of this, there is a need for a dedicated technology to produce petrochemicals feedstocks in higher yield and cost-effectively. The main objective of a refinery is to produce transportation fuels, such as gasoline and diesel, while petrochemicals, like light olefins, have been considered byproducts. However, there are various configurations within refineries that enable the production of more petrochemicals (see Table 1 ). The integration method faces challenges such as restricted conversion to petrochemicals Petrochemical production Refinery integration
Integration of refinery units and yields
Refinery configurations
Yield
Typical refinery
CDU-VDU, FCC unit, hydroprocessing CDU-VDU, steam cracker, reformer
5-10%
Refinery and petrochemical
15-25% 40-45% 40-50%
Example 1 Example 2
CDU-VDU, reformer, hydrocracker, resid upgradation
CDU-VDU, steam cracker, reformer, hydrocracker, resid upgradation
Table 1
Refining India
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