HU 121 History of Engineering and Technology

Prof. Dr. Abdelsamie Moet

Fall 2012/13

Pharos University in AlexandriaFaculty of Engineering

Distillation Engineering: Alembic to Petroleum Refinery

Lect3

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Crude Oil• Crude oil consists of a complex mixture of

hydrocarbons of various molecular weights.

• Each of the hydrocarbon compounds in crude oil has its own individual boiling point.

• To make use of these hydrocarbons, they have to be separated first.

• Subsequently, they may be mixed or reacted to the desired composition to be used as “petrochemicals”

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• The crude oil is heated. • The smaller molecules

have a lower boiling point, so they go to the top of the column and condense out onto the trays.

• The larger molecules have higher boiling points, so condense further down the column.

• This process is known as Fractional Distillation• Fractions are then removed for further

processing.

Fractional Distillation

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9th Century

20th Century

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alembic• Distillation, the means of separating liquids through differences in their boiling points, was invented around the year 800 by Islam's foremost scientist, Jabir ibn Hayyan,

.

• Jabir invented many of the basic processes and apparatus still in use today: liquefaction, crystallization, distillation, purification, oxidation, evaporation and filtration.

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Evolution of Crude Refining• In the 9th century, the Abbasid caliph in Baghdad had appointed

(wali al-naft) in every major producing district. • The famous physician Muhammad al-Razi (Rhazes, 864-930) has

mentioned in Kitab al- Asrar (Book of secrets) that kerosene lamps were in common use for heating and lighting.

• Al-Razi gives two methods for making kerosene:

– one using clay as an absorbent and – another using sal ammoniac (ammonium chloride).– The distillation is to be repeated until the distillate is perfectly clear and

"safe to light," meaning that the volatile hydrocarbon fractions had been substantially removed.

• The kerosene lamps were in use in the Muslim world more than a thousand years before they became known in the West.

http://www.cyberistan.org/islamic/islmoil1.html

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Evolution of Crude Refining

• The original requirement was to produce kerosene as a cheaper and better source of light than whale oil.

• The development of the internal combustion engine led to the production of gasoline and diesel fuels.

• The evolution of the airplane created an initial need for high-octane aviation gasoline and then for jet fuel.

• Present-day refineries produce a variety of products including many required as feedstock for the petrochemical industry.

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Drivers for Advances in Crude Refining

• Currently 35% of this consumed energy comes from crude oil.

• Crude oil is also the main source for many products such as plastics, paints, medicines, lubricants, etc…

• Therefore, advances in crude oil refining has been driven by the growth in petrochemical industries.

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Carbon Fiber Composites

• Stealth Fighter (F117 & B2)

• The Puffin

3.7-meter-long, 4.1-meter-wingspan craft, is designed with carbon-fiber composites to weigh in at 135 kilograms,

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=nasa-one-man-stealth-plane

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