Development of a Novel Terpolymer as a Green and Efficient Decalcifying Agent for Crude Petroleum

Abstract

A novel environmental decalcifying agent was prepared with allylpolyethoxy amino carboxylate (APEAA), hydroxyethyl acrylate (HEA), and maleic anhydride (MA) by means of free-radical polymerization in an aqueous solution. The morphology and structure of the samples were characterized through scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectrometry, and 1 H nuclear magnetic resonance ( 1 H NMR) spectra. The molecular-weight distribution of APEAA–HEA–MA was determined by the gel permeation chromatography method. APEAA–HEA–MA was used as a green decalcifying agent to remove calcium from crude petroleum, and the impact of factors such as monomer ratio, copolymerization time, dosages, and desalination temperature was analyzed. It is found that the decalcification rate of APEAA–HEA–MA could reach to its maximum, and the calcium removal efficiency was approximately 97.88% when the monomer molar ratio of APEAA–HEA–MA was 1:2:5, the reaction time of copolymerization was 2 h, the dosage was 100 ppm, and the desalination temperature was 100 °C. This research work can promote the exploration on facile synthesis of a novel terpolymer and its potential application in refinery desalting processes.

Comprehensive demetallization of crude oil using spherical polyelectrolyte brushes with submicron polybutadiene latex as a core

“…1,2 The content of metals in heavy crude oil, such as calcium, iron and nickel, 3 are generally higher than before. 4 If the metals are not effectively removed, they will cause serious problems, such as the deactivation of the catalyst during the processing of crude oil, 5 the corrosion of the oil refining equipment, 6 and the deterioration of middle and downstream product quality. 6,7 Among them, calcium and iron are mostly present in crude oil in the form of oil-soluble organic salts, 8 which can be stably chelated with the aromatic hydrocarbon system in crude oil 9 through the π-π chemical bond and are difficult to be removed.…”