Effect of reaction time on the process of upgrading heavy oils in the presence and in the absence of oil soluble catalysts at 250 ° C

This work presents the possibility of improving the quality of heavy oil during in-situ upgrading using oil-soluble catalysts based on copper (copper oleate) at 250 ° C under high pressure for 12, 24, 48 and 72 hours using a 300 ml stainless steel batch reactor. Different technique analyzes for heavy oil befor and after upgrading were carried out: Analysis of the evolved gas components by gas chromatography, determination of the group composition of oil (SARA analysis), measurement of viscosity, gas chromatographic analysis of saturated hydrocarbons. The results showed that with an increase in the time of experiments and the use of oil-soluble catalysts, the content of saturated fractions increases due to a decrease in the content of resins and asphaltenes, which leads to a decrease in viscosity of heavy oil from 2073.7 to 1290.5 mPa.s. According to the obtained results, it can be said that reaction time and the use of an oil-soluble catalyst increase the efficiency of the in-situ upgrading.