Process for combustion of heavy oil residue

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10240101-B2
Application number	US-201615336867-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 28, 2016
Priority date	Mar 15, 2013
Publication date	Mar 26, 2019
Grant date	Mar 26, 2019

Abstract

The processes and systems herein described enable the use of CO 2 to handle heavy oil fractions. A significant reduction in the requisite energy to maintain such a fuel in fluid form is attained. The energy reduction from herein described residue handling systems facilitate increased combustion plant efficiency and reduced CO 2 emissions. The residue handling system is useful in refineries, power generation plants and other processes utilizing heavy oil residues as a feed.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method of improving efficiency of a combustion system utilizing a high viscosity heavy oil residue fuel, the method comprising:
a. providing a source of CO 2 or a CO 2 -rich gaseous mixture;
b. bringing the CO 2 or CO 2 -rich gaseous mixture into intimate contact with the heavy oil residue under predetermined conditions of temperature and a pressure below about 73 bar, to maintain CO 2 below supercritical pressure conditions;
c. maintaining the contact of the CO 2 or CO 2 -rich mixture with the heavy oil residue below about 73 bar until a predetermined concentration of dissolved CO 2 is attained and the viscosity of the heavy oil residue is reduced;
d. pumping and atomizing the reduced-viscosity heavy oil residue for combustion in a combustion chamber.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising, after step (c), transporting the reduced-viscosity heavy oil residue via a pipeline to the combustion system.

3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising introducing the reduced-viscosity heavy oil residue with dissolved CO 2 into a pressurized heated storage vessel under predetermined conditions of temperature and pressure to maintain the viscosity of the heavy oil residue within a prescribed viscosity range, and passing the reduced-viscosity heavy oil residue from the storage vessel and atomizing it for combustion in a combustion chamber.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the CO 2 or CO 2 -rich mixture and heavy oil residue are contacted in an agitated mixing vessel under an atmosphere of pressurized gaseous CO 2 .

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the CO 2 or CO 2 -rich mixture is introduced into a moving stream of the heavy oil residue and passed through a static or dynamic in-line mixing device to dissolve the CO 2 in the heavy oil residue.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the atomization of the reduced-viscosity heavy oil residue is accomplished by an atomizing media including steam and/or CO 2 .

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the atomization of the reduced-viscosity heavy oil residue is accomplished by one or more mechanical atomization injectors.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the source of CO 2 or a CO 2 -rich gaseous mixture is provided from an integrated CO 2 capture and processing unit.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the source of CO 2 or a CO 2 -rich gaseous mixture is provided from at least a two-stage CO 2 capture and processing unit, each stage delivering CO 2 or a CO 2 -rich gaseous mixture at different pressures.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein combustion occurs in the presence of air, oxygen or oxygen-enriched air.

11. The method of claim 1 , further comprising
e. passing flue gases from the combustion chamber to one or more flue gas treatment units;
f. passing effluent flue gases from the one or more flue gas treatment units to a CO 2 capture unit; and
g. passing at least a portion of CO 2 from the CO 2 capture unit to step (b).

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the mixture of CO 2 (or CO 2 -rich mixture) and heavy oil is maintained in a storage tank prior to pumping to the combustion chamber.

Assignees

• Saudi Arabian Oil Co

Inventors

• Niass Tidjani
• Younes Mourad Victor

Classifications

• F23K5/08

  Preparation of fuel · CPC title

• F23K5/04 Primary

  Feeding or distributing systems using pumps (from a central source to a plurality of burners F23K5/06) · CPC title

• C10G2300/302

  Viscosity · CPC title

• F23K2300/103

  Mixing with other fluids · CPC title

• C10L2200/0286

  Carbon dioxide · CPC title