Upgrading of heavy crude oil by thermal and catalytic cracking in the presence of NiCr/WC catalyst

The heavy crude oil of the Mordovo-Karmal deposit was cracked in the presence of NiCr/WC catalyst. The catalytic upgrading heavy crude oil was carried out in the batch reactor at 450 degrees C, catalyst content in the range of 0.01-0.20 wt%, and 100 min of residence time. It is shown that the cracking in the presence of a catalyst results in the formation of a light 'synthetic' oil. The viscosity of the liquid products of catalytic cracking decreases by an order of magnitude. The content of the fractions boiling up to 360 degrees C increases to 78 wt%, while the content of resins, asphaltenes, and sulfur decreases. (C) 2020 Taiwan Institute of Chemical Engineers. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.