VIET NAM OIL AND GAS GROUP

PETROVIETNAM UNIVERSITY

LUBRICANT OIL PROCESSING

SOLVENT DEWAXING
AND WAX DEOILING PROCESS

Group 6:
1. Le Thai Hien
2. Tran Trung Duc
3. Nguyen Quang Vinh
 A. Introduction

B. Solvent Dewaxing Processes

C. Wax Fraction Processes

CONTENTS D. Process Variables

E. Solvent Recovery

F. Conclusion
A Introduction
1. Purpose and Effects of Solvent Dewaxing and Wax
Fractionation
2. Block diagram of dewaxing process
3. Dewaxing methods
4. Feedstocks and Products
1. Purpose and Effects of Solvent Dewaxing and Wax Fractionation:

Fig 1.1. Flow diagram of lube oil processing

1. Purpose and Effects of Solvent Dewaxing and Wax Fractionation:

Table 1.1: API Base oil classifications

1. Purpose and Effects of Solvent Dewaxing and Wax Fractionation:

Fig 1.2. Some of the lube

oil production process
options
1. Purpose and Effects of Solvent Dewaxing and Wax Fractionation:

Table 1.2: Purpose and Effects of Solvent Dewaxing and Wax Fractionation

SOLVENT DEWAXING WAX FRACTIONATION

Remove oil and low melting
Remove wax from lube feedstocks;
point waxes to permit
Purpose Improve low temperature properties of
lubricating oil base stocks manufacture of low oil content
waxes with high melting points
A decrease in wax content, pour point,
Decrease the oil content of wax
API gravity and viscosity index
Effects
An increase in aromatic, nitrogen and Increase the melting point of
sulfur content and viscosity the wax
2. Block diagram of dewaxing process:

Oil
distillation
Filtrate the wax from the
solution of dewaxed oil Dewaxed oil
The dilution and chilling of and solvent
the feedstock with solvent
Raffinate
Crystallization Filtration Wax
distillation

Recover solvent from the wax Wax

cake and filtrate for recycle
by flash distillation and Recycle solvent
stripping
3. Dewaxing methods:

Solvent Dewaxing Process Membrane separators

Crystallization, filtration, Using in the future
solvent recovery refineries

Cold Press Process Catalytic Dewaxing Process Microwave technology

Used for high viscosity Using for the production of The wax interacts with the
paraffinic oils low pour point oils electromagnetic energy
which is growing in
industrial process
4. Feedstocks and Products
Table 1.3: Feedstocks and Products Table 1.4: Solvent dewaxing
Dewaxing feedstocks Dewaxing products by-products
Solvent extracted distillates Solvent neutral oils Oil content, wt
Name
Solvent extracted DA oils Bright stocks %
Deasphalted (DA) residua Cylinder oils Slack wax 5 to 50
Hydrocracked distillates Solvent neutral oils Scale wax 1 to 5
Hydrocracked DA residua Bright stocks and neutrals Hard wax, < 0.5
distillate
Unrefined distillates Paraffin pale oils
Hard wax, < 0.5 to 1.0
Wax deoiling feedstocks Deoiling products petrolatum
Dewaxing feedstocks Dewaxing products Soft wax (By product from
Slack waxes hard wax manufacture)
Hard wax & soft wax
Waxy distillates
B SLOVENT DEWAXING PROCESSES
1. Introduction
2. Ketone Dewaxing Processes
2.1. The Texaco Solvent Dewaxing Process
2.2. The Exxon DILCHILL™ Dewaxing Process
3. The Di/Me Dewaxing Process
4. The Propane Dewaxing Process
1. Introduction:

Ketone Di/Me Propane

Dewaxing Dewaxing Dewaxing

1 2 3

The Texaco The Exxon

Solvent Dewaxing DILCHILL™
Process Dewaxing Process

a b
2. Ketone Dewaxing Processes:

Dewaxing the the improvements

entire range of of Acetone-Benzol
lube stocks process
THE
SUITABLE BASED TODAY MOST
FOR ON WIDELY
UESED

Texaco Solvent
A mixture of MEK and
Dewaxing Process and
Toluene
Exxon DILCHILL™
Process
2.1. The Texaco Solvent Dewaxing Process:

This process commonly called the MEK

or Ketone dewaxing process

This process is the most widely used

dewaxing process in the petroleum
industry with more than 120 licensed in
20 different countries

Toluene as a single component is

02 capable of dissolving both wax and oil,
01 whereas MEK is a poor solvent for the

04 03
wax

At filtration temperature, the oil is still

soluble in the solvent mixture although
the wax is not.
2.1. The Texaco Solvent Dewaxing Process:

Dewaxing Process

Deoiling Process

Fig 2.1. Simplified flow diagram of a

dewaxing unit with in line deoiling
2.1. The Texaco Solvent Dewaxing Process:

Fig 2.2. PFD of the Texaco Solvent Dewaxing Process

2.1. The Texaco Solvent Dewaxing Process:

Video: Operation principals of rotary vacuum filters

2.2. The Exxon DILCHILL™ Dewaxing Process:

As of 1999, eleven units

totaling 120,000 BPD had
been licensed
Announced by
ExxonMobil in 1972

Located upstream of
scraped surface chillers
This process is a modification of
the ketone dewaxing process by
improving the crystallization step
2.2. The Exxon DILCHILL™ Dewaxing Process:

Fig 2.4. Schematic of DILCHILL™

Fig 2.3. DILCHILL™ Dewaxing Process crystallizer unit
2.2. The Exxon DILCHILL™ Dewaxing Process:

Increase filter Lower oil in wax

01 02
rates

Reduced 04 03
Higher dewaxed
maintenance oil yields
Advantages
3. The Di/Me Dewaxing Process:
- Using a mixture of Dichloroethane (Di) and Methylene dichloride (Me), developed by
Edeleanu Gellschaft mbH.
- Used by a few refineries in Europe.
- The warm waxy feed is dissolved in the Di/Me solvent and cooled to the initial wax
crystallization temperature with water in shell and tube heat exchangers and with cold
filtrate in scraped - surface double – pipe exchangers wherein about 60% of cooling is
conducted.
- The 40% remain is cooled in scraped - surface double – pipe chillers using ammonia or
propane refrigeration.
3. The Di/Me Dewaxing Process:

Fig 2.5. PFD of the Di/Me Dewaxing Process

4. The Propane Dewaxing Process :
Table 2.1. Advantages and Disadvantages of Propane Solvent
Advantages Disadvantages
Cheap and readily available in most refineries. The dewaxing differential is considerably
higher than that of the ketone dewaxing of
Di/Me dewaxing process.

Use of evaporative chilling greatly reduces the Control of batch chilling is difficult because the
adhesion of wax to the crystallizer walls and compressors are under utilized during initial
eliminate the need for expensive crystallizers phase of the process

Wax cloud point of propane dewaxed bright Dewaxing aids are required obtain good
stock usually lower than as compare to ketone filtration rates
dewaxed stock
4. The Propane Dewaxing Process :

Fig 2.6. PFD of the Propane Dewaxing Process

C WAX FRACTION PROCESSES
1. Introduction
2. The commercial wax fractionation processes
1. Introduction:

The Wax Sweating The Warm-up

Process Deoiling Processes
02

01 03

The Spray Deoiling 04 The Wax Recrystallization

Process Processes
2. The commercial wax fractionation processes:
Table 3.1. Main characteristics of the commercial wax fractionation processes

Processes Main characteristics

- The oldest process.

The Wax Sweating
Process - The molten wax is solidified by chilling in large pans contained in large
ovens.
- The wax is slowly heated in these ovens

- Used in parallel with ketone dewaxing in the late 1940s and early 1950
- The slack wax from solvent dewaxing is diluted and mixed with warm
The Warm-up solvent and filtered at a temperature which provides a hard wax of the
Deoiling Processes desired melting point;
- The solvent recovered from the low oil content hard wax, soft wax and
dewaxed oil by distillation is recycled in the process
2. The commercial wax fractionation processes:
Table 3.1. Main characteristics of the commercial wax fractionation processes
Processes Main characteristics

- Licensed by Texaco and Unocal, used for all types waxes

The Wax - The filtration of the wax in the third stage is conducted at a higher
Recrystallization temperature than that used in the first or second dewaxing and repulp
Processes filtrations
- The temperature used is selected to adjust wax melting point and
penetration

The Spray Deoiling - A development of Edeleanu used to deoil macrocrystalline wax

Process
containing up to 15 %wt oil.
D PROCESS VARIABLE
1.
2.
Influence of the Type of Feed
Influence of Solvent Composition
3. Influence of Solvent Ratio
4. Influence of Cooling Rate
5. Influence of Dewaxing aids
1. Influence of the Type of Feed:

- The type of feed is of critical

importance for dewaxing
results.
- The results of the filtration step
are directly to the type of wax
crystals formed.
- The more viscous the feed, the
more microcrystalline the
crystals, thereby making
filtration more difficult.

Fig 4.1. Variation in filtration rate with feed viscosity

1. Influence of the Type of Feed:
Table 4.1. Operating conditions used in dewaxing various cuts

Light distillates Heavy distillates Bright Stock

Feed flow rate (m3/day) 1,000 850 600
Solvent ratio 3.3 3.9 5.5
Filtration temp (0C) -20 -12 -16
% MEK 70 65 55
% Toluene 29.5 34.5 44.7

DEWAXED OIL Light distillates Heavy distillates Bright Stock

Viscosity at 1000C (mm2/s) 5.3 9.8 33
VI 101 100 95
Pour point (0C) -15 -6 -6
2. Influence of Solvent Composition:
Table 4.2. Influence of Dewaxing Solvent Composition on process operating conditions
Cut with a viscosity of 30 mm2/s at 400C
% volume MEK 40 75
% volume Toluene 60 25
Final dewaxing temp (0C) -17 -12
Filtration rate (l/(m2.h)) 80 172
Oil content of wax (%wt) 6.1 9.0
Temp differential (0C) 10 5
Pour point (0C) -7 -7
3. Influence of the Solvent ration:

Fig 4.2. Effect of solvent ratio on filtration rate

4. Influence of Cooling rate:

- A slow cooling rate usually promotes the growth of crystals.

- A fast cooling rate will promote the formation of smaller crystals, but with a tendency
to form along an axis giving “needle” type of crystals liable to clog filter cloths rapidly
and consequently reduce filtration rate.
- The optimum gradient ranges between 3 and 50 C
5. Influence of Dewaxing Aids:

- There are products on the market to promote crystal growth, thereby improving
dewaxing operation performance. The results are:
+ An increase in dewaxed oil yield.
+ A higher unit filtration rate.
- Dewaxing aids are beneficial in the Propane Dewaxing Process, less beneficial
Ketone Dewaxing Processes (from lab studies and commercial experiences).
5. Influence of Dewaxing Aids:
Table 4.3. Solvent Dewaxing Aids
TYPES OF SOLVENT DEWAXING AIDS
N – alkylated naphthalene polymers Microcrystalline waxes
N – alkyl polymethacrylates Proprietary polymers
N – alkyl polyaromatic Aromatic extracts
Asphaltenes Vacuum residua

COMMENTS
Not always effective Feedstock sensitive
A process variable Sometimes harmful
Quantity sensitive Type sensitive
E SOLVENT RECOVERY
1.
2.
Introduction
The effect of the number of stages on multistage evaporation
3. Benefits from Use of Inert Gas Stripping
1. Introduction:
Solvent
Recovery

Multiple Effect Inert Gas

Evaporation Stripping

The number of stages used for Using inert gas in place of steam
evaporation of the solvent has a for stripping the last traces of
significant effect on the energy solvent from the dewaxed oil
costs for these processes and waxes.
2. The effect of the number of stages on multistage evaporation:

Table 5.1. The effect of the number of stages on multistage evaporation

SIMPLE EFFECT TRIPLE EFFECT
1. Solvent is vaporized at one pressure level. 1. Solvent is vaporized at three pressure
2. Energy is wasted in condensation; it is not levels.
recovered. 2. One-third of the solvent is removed at
each pressure level.
DOUBLE EFFECT
1. Solvent is vaporized at two pressure levels. 3. Condensing vapors are used to operate the
first two stages.
2. One-half of the solvent is vaporized at each pressure
level. 4. Energy requirements are reduced by an
additional 30-33 percent.
3. Condensing vapors are used to operate the first
evaporator. 5. Energy requirements are 30 to 33 percent
of single effect.
4. Energy requirements are reduced by 45 to 50
percent.
3. Benefits from Use of Inert Gas Stripping:

Table 5.2. Benefits from Use of Inert Gas Stripping

Energy requirements reduced Dilution ratios reduced

Dewaxed oil yield increased Solvent losses reduced

Dewaxing differential decrease Maintenance costs reduced

F CONCLUSION
Conclusion:

Solvent Dewaxing Wax Fraction

01 02
Processes Processes

Process Variables 03 04 Solvent Recovery

THANK
YOU