Supercritical water processing of extra heavy crude in a slurry-phase up-flow reactor system
View Patent ↗A method of mixing a catalyst with a heavy oil to create a heavy oil/catalyst mixture. This is followed by combining the heavy oil/catalyst mixture with supercritical water to form light hydrocarbon products and heavy hydrocarbon products. By doing so the light hydrocarbon products can be separated into a gaseous top product, an upgraded liquid hydrocarbon product and a water phase.
1. A method comprising:
a) mixing a catalyst with a heavy oil to create a heavy oil/catalyst mixture; and
b) combining the heavy oil/catalyst mixture with supercritical water to form light hydrocarbon products and heavy hydrocarbon products;
wherein the light hydrocarbon products can be separated into a gaseous top product, an upgraded liquid hydrocarbon product and a water phase;
wherein the catalyst is zirconium oxide that is promoted with an alkali salt that is present in an amount of about 1% of the zirconium oxide.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the heavy oil has an API less than 10.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the upgraded liquid hydrocarbon product has an API greater than 19.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the heavy oil has a viscosity greater than half million cSt at 60° F.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the upgraded liquid hydrocarbon product has a viscosity lower than 350 cSt at 60° F.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the upgraded liquid hydrocarbon has a nitrogen content less than 100 ppm.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the gaseous top product contains C1-C4, H 2 S, CO, CO 2 and H 2 .
8. The method of claim 1 , wherein a portion of the supercritical water comprises from recycling the water phase.
9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the supercritical water contains added CO.