ABSTRACT
Control .............................................................................. 234 8.2.3.6 Hazardous Air Pollutants (HAPs) .................................... 235 8.2.3.7 Outdoor Recreation and Scenery ..................................... 235 8.2.3.8 Groundwater Contamination ............................................ 235
8.3 Research and Development Needs in Oil Shale ......................................... 235 8.3.1 Chemical Characterization............................................................... 236 8.3.2 Correlation of Physical Properties................................................... 236 8.3.3 Mechanisms of Retorting Reactions................................................ 237 8.3.4 Heat and Mass Transfer Problems................................................... 237 8.3.5 Catalytic Upgrading of Shale Oil Crudes ....................................... 237 8.3.6 By-Product Minerals from U.S. Oil Shale ...................................... 238 8.3.7 Characterization of Inorganic Matters in Oil Shale ........................ 238
8.4 Properties of Oil Shale and Shale Oil ......................................................... 238 8.4.1 Physical and Transport Properties of Oil Shale .............................. 239
8.4.1.1 Fischer Assay.................................................................... 239 8.4.1.2 Porosity ............................................................................. 239 8.4.1.3 Permeability ...................................................................... 240 8.4.1.4 Compressive Strength ....................................................... 242 8.4.1.5 Thermal Properties ........................................................... 243
8.4.1.5.1 Thermal Conductivity..................................... 244 8.4.1.5.2 Heat Capacity of Oil Shale ............................ 248 8.4.1.5.3 Enthalpy and Heat of Retorting ..................... 249 8.4.1.5.4 Density or Specific Gravity............................ 250 8.4.1.5.5 Self-Ignition Temperature (SIT)..................... 250
8.4.2 Thermal Characteristics of Oil Shale and Its Minerals .................. 253 8.4.2.1 Thermoanalytical Properties of Oil Shale........................ 253 8.4.2.2 Thermochemical Properties of Oil Shale Minerals ......... 255
8.4.3 Electric Properties of Oil Shale....................................................... 257 8.4.3.1 Electric Resistivity............................................................ 257 8.4.3.2 Dielectric Constants.......................................................... 258
8.4.4 Molecular Characterization of Kerogen .......................................... 260 8.4.4.1 Derivation of Stoichiometric Coefficient ......................... 260 8.4.4.2 Relation between Fischer Assay and Mass Fraction
of Kerogen ........................................................................ 262 8.4.4.3 Nitrogen Compounds in Shale Oil................................... 262
8.4.5 Boiling Range Distributions of Various Shale Oils ........................ 263 8.4.5.1 Analytical Methods........................................................... 263
8.4.5.1.1 ASTM D2887 Procedure ............................... 264 8.5 Oil Shale Extraction and Retorting Processes............................................. 265
8.5.1
Ex Situ
Retorting Processes ............................................................. 267 8.5.1.1 U.S. Bureau of Mines’ Gas Combustion Retort .............. 268 8.5.1.2 The TOSCO II Oil Shale Process .................................... 269
8.5.1.2.1 Process Description ........................................ 269 8.5.1.2.2 Process Yield of TOSCO................................ 271 8.5.1.2.3 Gaseous and Crude Shale Oil Product
from TOSCO Process..................................... 271 8.5.1.2.4 TOSCO Process Units.................................... 272 8.5.1.2.5 Spent Shale Disposal...................................... 273
8.5.1.3 The Union Oil Retorting Process..................................... 274 8.5.1.4 The Lurgi-Ruhrgas Process .............................................. 276 8.5.1.5 Superior’s Multimineral Process ...................................... 277 8.5.1.6 The Paraho Gas Combustion Process .............................. 278 8.5.1.7 Petrosix Retorting Process................................................ 280 8.5.1.8 Chevron Retort System..................................................... 281 8.5.1.9 Moving Bed Retorting Process ........................................ 282 8.5.1.10 The Carbon Dioxide Retorting Process ........................... 282
8.5.2
In Situ
Retorting Processes.............................................................. 282 8.5.2.1 Sinclair Oil and Gas Company Process ........................... 285 8.5.2.2 Equity Oil Co. Process ..................................................... 285 8.5.2.3 Occidental Petroleum Process .......................................... 286 8.5.2.4 LETC Process (LERC Process) ....................................... 287 8.5.2.5 Dow Chemical Co.’s Process ........................................... 287 8.5.2.6 Talley Energy Systems Process........................................ 288 8.5.2.7 Geokinetics Process.......................................................... 289 8.5.2.8 Osborne’s
In Situ
Process................................................. 289 8.5.2.9 Shell Oil’s Thermally Conductive
In Situ
Conversion Process........................................................... 290 8.5.2.10 True
In Situ
(TIS) and Modified
In Situ
(MIS) Retorting ........................................................................... 291
8.5.3 Shale Oil Refining and Upgrading .................................................. 291 8.5.3.1 Thermal Cracking Process................................................ 292 8.5.3.2 Moving Bed Hydroprocessing Reactor ............................ 292 8.5.3.3 Fluidized Bed Hydroretort Process .................................. 293 8.5.3.4 Hydrocracking Process ..................................................... 293
References.............................................................................................................. 294
Interest in retorting oil from oil shale to produce a competitively priced synfuel had intensified since the oil embargo of the 1970s. Commercial interest, once very high in the 1970s and 1980s, substantially declined in the 1990s owing to the stable and low oil price. However, interest in oil shale as a clean liquid fuel source is being renewed in the 21st century, mainly triggered by the sky-rocketing petroleum prices as well as the shortage of oil in the global market. However, it should be noted that oil shales have been used as liquid and solid fuels in certain areas for a long time, and its research also has quite a long history.
