Oil Shale, Vol.11, No.1, 37-44, 1994
PRODUCTION OF SYNTHETIC LIQUID FUEL FROM RUN-OF-MINE OIL SHALES, BROWN COALS AND WASTE OF PETROCHEMICAL AND CHEMICAL-INDUSTRY
Modem and perspective technologies have been developed for processing run-of-mine oil shales into liquid products foreseen for producing motor fuels and chemical feedstock. Baltic run-of-mine oil shales, high-sulfur oil shales of the Volga basin, brown coals of Kansk-Atchinsk basin, as well as heavy crude oils and oil-bearing sands, solid waste of petrochemical and chemical industry may be processed. The proposed high-efficiency technology enables to produce high yields of naphtha (gasoline fraction) and diesel fuel fraction, feedstock for catalytic and hydrocracking processes, electrode coke, different adhesive materials, refractories, anodic mass, phenols, individual hydrocarbons, Ni- and V-concentrates (see the Figure and Tables 1-4). The process proposed is carried out using oil shales. Their organic matter has unique hydrogen donor properties which enable them to activate the thermal conversion of brown coals, high-boiling waste of petrochemical industry etc. This complex technology is based on the thermochemical conversion process of oil shales in the hydrocarbonic solvent at 333-440-degrees-C, under the pressure of 3-5 MPa, and volumetric rate 3-6 h-1. A paste-forming substance boiling between 200-340-degrees-C is used as the medium. The process runs with a deficiency (up to 30 %) of regenerated paste-forming substance and therefore respective measures have been worked out to intensify the process. It enabled to close the process with respect to regenerated paste-forming substance and to design new routes for thermochemical processing of oil shales. These procedures have the following essential advantages: 1. There is no need for previous separation of asphaltenes and metals (Ni, V) from heavy petrochemical feedstock as they precipitate on the mineral part of oil shales and are discharged together with liquid products of the process. 2. Thermal cracking is carried out without molecular hydrogen and thermal hydrocracking -without catalysts. 3. Raw material is considerably desulfurized.