Quality Improvement of an Acid Treated Fuel Oil

Abstract

The work on the quality improvement of fuel oil using acid treatment was carried out. The improvement of the fuel oil was done using sulphuric acid to remove contaminants. Sulphuric acid at different concentrations were mixed with the oil and kept at 45°C for four hours in the agitator vessel to allow reaction to take place. Acidic sludge was then drained off from the agitator and the oil was neutralized with sodium hydroxide. Centrifugation operation was used to extract the sulphonate dispersed in the oil. The treated and untreated oils were characterized for various properties and the results showed that the viscosity, total sulphur of fuel oil decreased from 6.0 to before 5.0 cst after acid treatment and 2.57 to 1.2225% w/w respectively while the flash point increased from 248 to 264°F. The water and sediment content increased from trace before to 0.6 after treatment. In addition, the calorific value increased from initial value of 44,368 to 44,805 and 44,715 kJ/kg at 50% and 75% conc. H2SO4 while decreasing with 85% and 90% conc. H2SO4. However, both carbon residue and ash content decreases with an increase in acid concentration.