Abstract

BALDRICH FERRER, Carlos-A  and  NOVOA MANTILLA, Luz-Ángela. INFRARED SPECTROPHOTOMETRY, A RAPID AND EFFECTIVE TOOL FOR CHARACTERIZATION OF DIRECT DISTILLATION NAPHTHAS. C.T.F Cienc. Tecnol. Futuro [online]. 2005, vol.3, n.1, pp.25-33. ISSN 0122-5383.

The characterization of naphtha obtained by direct distillation of medium and heavy crude oils is often limited by the low yield of these fractions. Gas chromatography is a technique that allows a complete determination of the chemical composition of these fraction. However, the prediction of properties such as octane rating and RVP from chromatographic data is a difficult task because there are not adequate models to predict the interaction of the different components, and particularly in the case of heavier fractions, there are some problems for the complete separation of components under the gas chromatographic conditions. The IR technology constitutes a rapid and effective tool to predict several properties of naphtha from the correlation of the spectrum in the infrared area and the properties. In this study, prediction models were developed in a Petrospec Cetane 2000 analyzer, in order to predict in a fast and simple way, the density, the antiknock index and the aromatic content of straight run naphtha obtained in a standard crude oil distillation unit. The equipment used was designed in the factory for the exclusive characterization of medium distillation and not for lighter fractions therefore this work constitutes an innovation given the extensive applications of this type of analyzers.

Keywords : chemometrics; infrared spectrophotometry; infrared analyzer; petroleum naphthas; octane rating of naphthas.

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