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GlobeCore Diesel Fuel Desulfurization Unit

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Diesel Fuel Desulfurization. Sulfur is a common component in crude oil, where it can be present both in elementary form and in the form hydrogen sulfide and organic substances, such as disulfides, mercaptan etc. Generally, the influence of sulfur and its compounds on oil products is negative, due to its corrosive properties. That is why it is recommended to eliminate sulfur and hydrogen sulfide and limit the content of mercaptan. The content of other sulfur compounds is regulated by such parameter as “sulfur content by weight”.

The strict the requirements on sulfur content in fuel, the deeper the purification and the cost of the process. This is the reason that this chemical element is present in practically all fuels in the market.

Nevertheless, the weight part of sulfur in oil products is limited by regulations for environmental reasons. Sulfur compounds increase toxicity of exhaust gases and are under close scrutiny of environmental protection agencies.

Desulfurization begins at the stage of crude oil refining. This is achieved in the processes of catalytic hydrotreatment, biodesulfurization, oxidation of sulfur compounds by hydroperoxides etc. The content of sulfur in finished product is also one of the criteria of grading it. Euro-2 diesel fuel contains no more than 500 mg/kg of sulfur compounds, Euro-3 – 350 mg/kg, Euro-4 – 50 mg/kg and Euro-5 -10 mg/kg.

Waste Oil Recycling Methods. Oil refining plant GlobeCore

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Annually tens of thousands of tons of waste synthetic and mineral oils are accumulated on the territories of each industrialized country.  They are highly toxic, they have low level of biodegradability (10-30%) and by accumulating in the environment they disturb an ecological balance.  Existing regulations require mandatory collecting and recycling of waste oils and in some cases even their destruction.  At the same time the EEC Directive proposes to consider waste oils  not destructed, but  reused.

To neutralize wastes effectively it is necessary to apply environmentally safe and economical technologies.  With existing waste oil so diverse in chemical composition, a one universal method of transformer oil recycling is simply impossible.  Therefore the existing technologies of oil refinery  and their reuse should be improved.

Oil reclamation is the best solution in recovery of waste oil properties with the purpose to reuse it. This approach has a  perspective – with a developing trend in ecology – to prevent pollution, reduce toxicity in manufacturing processes and make them more effective.  Oil reclamation of oils is an ecological approach. It  prevents contamination. Because most lubricants are oil based.  And their wastes are a significant source of contamination.

In general, the methods of waste oils recycling without refining may be divided into mechanical and technical (disposal in the natural environment and incineration in special furnaces as an additive to boiler fuel).  Such technologies are relatively simple, but not environmentally safe.

Transformer oil recycling methods on the basis of refining are divided into:

  • physicochemical;
  • thermochemical;
  • biological.

Physicochemical method is widely used in practice.  It includes filtration, coagulation, extraction and separation.  This method regenerates oil, but has a medium level of environmental safety.

Thermochemical method is a thermal and chemical splitting into components.  It is more environmentally friendly, but at the same time it is difficult to implement technically.

Biological method involves a cultivation of microbial biomass from oil wastes, which then becomes organic carbon.  A microbial biomass as  a final product, can be used for different purposes.

Today the level of environmental safety is the most important criteria in choosing the method of recycling of waste oil.  The higher is the level of environmental safety; the lower is its degree of impact on the environment.

GlobeCore adheres to the concept of clean production.  This concept is in its product design and consumption.  The main essence of clean production is renewable energy, recycled waste materials and minimum amount of resources used.

A method of waste oil purification is chosen according  to environmental requirements:

  • Degree of purity of the final product;
  • Low-waste technology;
  • Possibility of recycling waste;
  • Easy waste disposal;
  • Waste toxicity;
  • Use of environmentally safe chemicals.

These factors are considered  in designing and manufacturing of GlobeCore UVR oil reclamation unit.  This equipment reclaim and purifies various types of oil: transformer, turbine, industrial oil as well as lightening fuel, dark heating oil, gas condensate, gasoline and kerosene.

GlobeCore UVR oil filtering units for oil reclamation fully conform to the concept of clean production and preserve ecological balance and make profit reusing waste oils.

Desulfurization as a Method of Oil Decoloration

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Harmful emissions that are discharged into the atmosphere are increased when burning high sulfur content diesel fuel.  It is therefore, why great efforts are focused on removing this chemical element from Diesel fuels.  Additionally, the desulfurization of Diesel fuel allows indsutries to:

(1) prevent sulfuric acid corrosion of boiler equipment;

(2) re-direct sulphur so that it may be used in the production of other sulfur-containing products; and

(3) to restore fuel to a marketable condition.

As a component of solid fuel, sulfur may be in the nature of a “sulphate”or a “sulphide.”  It can also be found as a component of other organic compounds.  For example, coal constitutes a small amount of sulfates.

The main problem, with regards to fuel, consists in the removing of pyritic or organic sulfur from the fuel before being used for power the internal combustion engine.  The physical methods (e.g. gravity separation) are mostly used to remove sulphur as a sulphide product.  The method is quite effective, but only if there are large pieces of sulphides in the fuel.

From a technical point of view, it is difficult to desulfurize organic compounds therefore, such processes are mainly carried out only to meet the needs of scientific research.  Desulfurization of liquid fuel is performed at oil refineries.

When reading and/or researching scientific literature, you will find two main ways of removing sulfur from liquid oil products.  One way, known as the  indirect way is that a part of the heavy oil residues are processed by vacuum distillation or selective extraction.  This process results in light fractions that are processed by hydrogen (hydrogenization).  The indirect way of removing sulfur is carried out under specific conditions that include:

(1)  A temperature of between 375º-500ºС / 707-932 ºF and pressure of 1.4 mPa; and

(2) the presence of catalyst agent.

The sulfur content in the liquid fuel is reduced by approximately 80% to 95%.  It is worth noting that the desulfurization of low-boiling fractions is more effective than that of high-boiling fractions.

The other way of removing sulfur is known as the direct way of desulfurization and consists of processing all amounts of the oil with the exception that the light fraction stage is excluded.  From a technical point of view, this process is carried out by catalytic hydrogenation at high temperatures.

It is clear that the direct method is much more difficult than the indirect one.  The first difficulty is that the oil contains heavy metals such as iron, nickel and vanadium.  These heavy metals settle on the surface of the catalyst agent.  It is therefore, the catalyst agent that often needs to be changed.  The second difficulty is that there are a lot of heavy particles in the oil fraction that are difficult to hydrogenate.  As the temperature increases, the particles turn into coke on the catalyst surface thereby reducing their activity substantially.  Operators should monitor if there is hydrogen in the reactor and maintain high pressure in order to prevent such consequences.

Decoloration of Black Oil

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The state of today’s environment has become greatly affected by the amount of emissions and harmful substances coming from internal combustion engines.  Such engines are used in the transportation industry as well as at stationary power plants. The progress in the field of engine building has recently served to reduce the amount of harmful discharges into the air.  Despite the progrees, there is still large amounts of emissions and there is no complete solution to this problem.

In general, the amount of harmful discharges is determined by a wide range of factors such as:

(1) type of engine and its features;

(2) nature of the engine’s operation and proper tuning for efficiency; and

(3) the quality of fuel.

When examining the list of substances that are emitted from the typical internal combustion engine, we learn that most of the subsances, except nitrogen, originally came from the fuel itself.  In addition to the fuel as a source of emssion substances, a great amount of discharges are caused by solid foreign particles in oil products as well as high-molecular or sulfur-containig compounds that are in the colloidal state.   When the amount of such substances exceeds normal limits, the oil will become dark.

The decoloration of black oil is a desirable way to reduce the amount of harmful discharges.

Filtration is often used to purify and decolorate oil products. The effectiveness of such processes largely depends on the material that is being filtered.  The pore size must be sufficient to reduce pollution and contribute to the normal flow of the fuel.  Due to the nature of the black oil, it has been difficult to find the optimal filter to perform such a difficult filtering task.  For example, the filter paper brand BFM, has an average degree of filtration of 12 microns of fineness.  It is therefore, unable to hold small solid particles and colloid impurities.  On the other hand,  filters made of such paper do not prevent the normal flow of fuel.

The FOB brand of filtration paper however, has a higher degree of filtration, but creates larger resistance to the flow of fluid.

Since there is no perfect way to completely and properly filter fuel as it flows to the engine’s fuel delivery system, it is better to clean and purify the fuel before it gets to the engine’s fuel tank.  Filters can be used for the purification process, but they possess the same disadvantages listed above.  It is therefore, more desirable to purify and decolor fuel by using special equipment such as the GlobeCore branded UVR line of purification equipment.  The GlobeCore UVR line of units are used to remove mechanical impurities, as well as to regenerate and decolor not only the fuels, but also transformer oil, industrial oil, and turbine oils.

The equipment in the UVR line contributes to the reduction of harmful discharges into the atmosphere as well as helping to reinstate the fuel product to a marketable condition.  The mobile design of the GlobeCore brand of UVR units allows the user to process fuels, fluids, and oils not only in storage locations, but also at remote operating sites.

Methods of oil/fuel analysis

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Oil/fuel analysis is a series of laboratory tests used to evaluate the condition of lubricants and equipment components. By studying the results of the oil analysis tests, a determination of equipment/component condition can be made.
The inspection or analysis of lubricating oil has been used to check and evaluate the internal condition of oil-lubricated equipment since the beginning of the industrial age. Today, oil analysis programs use modern technology and laboratory instruments to determine equipment condition and lubricant serviceability. Oil analysis uses state of the art equipment and techniques to provide the user with invaluable information leading to greater equipment reliability.
If you understand all aspects of oil analysis you should reap the benefits that many companies get from a well-engineered, reliability-focused oil analysis program.

oil analysis by GlobeCore

There exist a lot of different methods to analyze fuels and oils. For example, there is ASTM in North America or IEC TC10 in worldwide and Europe.

Standard oil analyses include four tests:
Spectral exam:
In the spectral exam, you need take a portion of your oil sample and run it through a machine called a spectrometer. The spectrometer analyzes the oil and tells you the levels of the various metals and additives that are present in the oil. This gives you a gauge of how much your engine is wearing.

Insolubles test:
The insolubles test measures the amount of abrasive solids that are present in the oil. The solids are formed by oil oxidation (when the oil breaks down due to the presence of oxygen, accelerated by heat) and blow-by past the rings. This test tells you how good a job the oil filter is doing, and to what extent the oil has oxidized.

Viscosity test:
The viscosity measures the grade, or thickness, of the oil. Whether it’s supposed to be a 5W/30, 15W/40, or some other grade, we will know (within a range) what the viscosity should be. If your viscosity falls outside that range, there’s probably a reason: the oil could have been overheated or contaminated with fuel, moisture, or coolant.

Flash Point test:
The Flash Point test measures the temperature at which vapors from the oil ignite. For any specific grade of oil, we know what temperature the oil should flash at. If it flashes at or above that level, the oil is not contaminated. If the oil flashes off lower than it should, then it’s probably been contaminated with something. Fuel is the most common contaminant in oil.
Analysis of insulation liquid requires an array of physical and chemical test parameters.

Physical tests Chemical tests Electric tests
interfacial tension,
settling temperature,
viscosity,
color etc.		 water content,
acidity,
oxidation of inhibitor and PCB content		 dielectric breakdown voltage test,
power factor

Other tests (the most important) also include the following:

DGA gas chromatography test – used for analysis of transformer oil, which helps to diagnose electric equipment condition. The DGA is now a standard in service industry worldwide, and is thought to be the most important test of insulation liquids in electrical equipment. This test is in accordance to ASTM D3612 or IEC 60567.

FID flame ionization detector – used for determine gas concentration, and thermal conductivity detector (TCD). Most of these systems also use methanizer, which transforms any carbon oxide or dioxide into methane and then detects the gas by a very sensitive FID.

Vapor phase method (ASTM D3612C) is a new method, approved about a year ago. This method has been used for dissolved gas analysis for almost a decade. However, the technology has become a standard only several years ago, when Jocelyn Jalbert of Hydro-Quebec improved the vapor phase method using Hewlett Packard instruments (now Agilent Technologies).

The second method involves injection of a certain volume of gas into a clean sealed vacuum vessel. The sample is then sealed and agitated until equilibrium between vapor and gas is reached. After a certain period of time, an automatic sampler removes a part of the gas from the test vessel and injects it into the GC (gas chromatographer). The advantage of the method is that it can be automated, reducing the risk of operator error while handling the sample in the process of preparation and injection.

Liquid chromatography is one of the most dynamically developing analytical methods today. It is used to determine the content of furan derivatives and additives in transformer oil, increasing diagnostic accuracy. Derivatives of the pentatomic heterocyclic compound furan, are selective products of thermochemical destruction and aging of cellulose, which is a component of the oil impregnated paper insulation. The content, dynamic of formation and ratio are the criteria of insulation condition. If more than 15 mg of furan compounds are detected in the oil of operating equipment, regular and extensive monitoring of insulation degradation is required. Furfurol content can also be determined by express analysis, based on color reaction of furfurol with acetic anhydride.

IR-spectrometry (content of Ionol additive) – allows obtaining information on additives, aromatic and acidic compounds content, and can indicate the oil’s type if required. Using IR-spectrometry in combination with high efficiency liquid chromatography facilitates solution of nearly all analytical problems, related to the need of identifying various chemicals in the oil. This can be very important when diagnosing electrical equipment.

Thin-layer chromatography can detect the content of ionol additive. The TLC method is simple and inexpensive in terms of required equipment.

The above shows that modern methods of oil quality control combined with traditional diagnostic methods can significantly increase accuracy and efficiency of complex electric equipment tests.