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Petroleum
Products
Petroleum products comprise refinery gas, ethane,
LPG, aviation gasoline, motor gasoline, jet fuels, kerosene, gas/diesel
oil, heavy fuel oil, naphtha, white spirit, lubricants, bitumen,
paraffin waxes, petroleum coke and other petroleum products. Petroleum
products are any oil-based products which can be obtained by distillation
and are normally used outside the refining industry. The exception
to this are those finished products which are classified as refinery
feedstocks above. Production of the petroleum products shows gross
refinery output for each product. Refinery fuel (row petroleum refineries,
under energy sector) represents consumption of petroleum products,
both intermediate and finished, within refineries, e.g. for heating,
lighting, traction, etc.
Aviation Gasoline
Gas/Diesel Oil (Distilled Fuel Oil)
Heavy Fuel Oil Residual
Kerosene
Jet Fuel
Liquefied Petroleum Gases (LPG) and Ethane
Motor Gasoline
Naphtha
Other Petroleum Products
Petroleum Coke
Refinery Gas (not liquefied)
Aviation Gasoline
Aviation gasoline is motor spirit prepared especially for aviation
piston engines, with an octane number suited to the engine, a freezing
point of -60 C, and a distillation range usually within the limits
of 30 C and 180 C.
Gas Diesel Oil/(Distillate
Fuel Oil)
Gas/diesel oil includes heavy gas oils. Gas oils are obtained from
the lowest fraction from atmospheric distillation of crude oil,
while heavy gas oils are obtained by vacuum redistillation of the
residual from atmospheric distillation. Gas/diesel oil distills
between
180 C and 380 C. Several grades are available depending on uses:
diesel oil for diesel compression ignition (cars, trucks, marine,
etc.), light heating oil for industrial and commercial uses, and
other gas oil including heavy gas oils which distil between 380
C and 540 C and which are used as petrochemical feedstocks.
Heavy Fuel Oil Residual
This heading defines oils that make up the distillation residue.
It comprises all residual fuel oils (including those obtained by
blending). Its kinematic viscosity is above 10 cST at 80 C. The
flash point is always above 50 C and the density is always more
than 900 kg/l.
Kerosene
Kerosene comprises refined petroleum distillate intermediate in
volatility between gasoline and gas/diesel oil. It is a medium oil
distilling between 150 C and 300 C.
Jet Fuel
This category comprises both gasoline and kerosene type jet fuels
meeting specifications for use in aviation turbine power units.
Gasoline type jet fuel -This includes all light hydrocarbon
oils for use in aviation turbine power units. They distill between
100 C and 250 C. It is obtained by blending kerosenes and gasoline
or naphthas in such a way that the aromatic content does not exceed
25 per cent in volume, and the vapour pressure is between 13.7 kPa
and 20.6 kPa. Additives can be included to improve fuel stability
and combustibility.
Kerosene type jet fuel- This is medium distillate used for
aviation turbine power units. It has the same distillation characteristics
and flash point as kerosene (between 150 C and 300 C but not generally
above 250 C). In addition, it has particular specifications (such
as freezing point) which are established by the International Air
Transport Association (IATA).
LPG
These are the light hydrocarbons fraction of the paraffin series,
derived from refinery processes, crude oil stabilisation plants
and natural gas processing plants comprising propane (C3H8) and
butane (C4H10) or a combination of the two. They are normally liquefied
under pressure for transportation and storage. Ethane is a naturally
gaseous straight-chain hydrocarbon (C2H6). It is a colourless paraffinic
gas which is extracted from natural gas and refinery gas streams.
Motor Gasoline
This is light hydrocarbon oil for use in internal combustion engines
such as motor vehicles, excluding aircraft. Motor gasoline is distilled
between 35 C and 215 C and is used as a fuel for land based spark
ignition engines. Motor gasoline may include additives (such as
ethanol), oxygenates and octane enhancers, including lead compounds
such as TEL (Tetraethyl lead) and TML (tetramethyl lead).
Naphtha
Naphtha is a feedstock destined for the petrochemical industry (e.g.
ethylene manufacture or aromatics production). Naphtha comprises
material in the 30oC and 210oC distillation range or part of this
range.
Other Petroleum Products
White Spirit and SBP: White spirit and SBP are refined distillate
intermediates with a distillation in the naphtha/kerosene range.
They are sub-divided as:
Industrial Spirit (SBP): Light oils distilling between 30 C
and 200 C, with a temperature difference between 5 per cent volume
and 90 per cent volume distillation points, including losses, of not
more than 60 C. In other words, SBP is a light oil of narrower cut
than motor spirit. There are 7 or 8 grades of industrial spirit, depending
on the position of the cut in the distillation range defined above.
White Spirit: Industrial spirit with a flash point above 30
C. The distillation range of white spirit is 135 C to 200 C.
Lubricants: Lubricants are hydrocarbons produced from distillate or
residue; they are mainly used to reduce friction between bearing surfaces.
This category includes all finished grades of lubricating oil, from
spindle oil to cylinder oil, and those used in greases, including
motor oils and all grades of lubricating oil base stocks.
Bitumen: Solid, semi-solid or viscous hydrocarbon with a colloidal
structure, being brown to black in colour, obtained as a residue
in
the distillation of crude oil, vacuum distillation of oil residues
from atmospheric distillation. Bitumen is often referred to as asphalt
and is primarily used for surfacing of roads and for roofing material.
This category includes fluidised and cut back bitumen.
Paraffin Waxes: Saturated aliphatic hydrocarbons (with the general
formula CnH2n+2). These waxes are residues extracted when dewaxing
lubricant oils and they have a crystalline structure with carbon number
greater than 12. Their main characteristics are as follows: they are
colourless, odourless and translucent, with a melting point above
45 C.
Others: Includes the petroleum products not classified above, for
example: tar, sulphur, and grease. This category also includes aromatics
(e.g. BTX or benzene, toluene and xylene) and olefins (e.g. propylene)
produced within refineries.
Petroleum Coke
Petroleum coke is defined as a black solid residue, obtained
mainly by cracking and carbonising of residue feedstocks, tar and
pitches in processes such as delayed coking or fluid coking. It
consists mainly of carbon (90 to 95 per cent) and has a low ash
content. It is used as a feedstock in coke ovens for the steel industry,
for heating purposes, for electrode manufacture and for production
of chemicals. The two most important qualities are "green coke"
and "calcinated coke". This category also includes "catalyst coke"
deposited on the catalyst during refining processes: this coke is
not recoverable and is usually burned as refinery fuel.
Refinery Gas
Refinery gas is defined as non-condensible gas obtained during distillation
of crude oil or treatment of oil products (e.g. cracking) in refineries.
It consists mainly of hydrogen, methane, ethane and olefins. It
also includes gases which are returned from the petrochemical industry.
Refinery gas production refers to gross production. Own consumption
is shown separately under petroleum refineries in the energy sector.
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