Group-type characterization of crude oil and bitumen. Part I: Enhanced separation and quantification of saturates, aromatics, resins and asphaltenes (SARA)

CATEGORY: CRUDE OIL CHARACTERIZATION
Group-type characterization of crude oil and bitumen. Part I: Enhanced separation and quantification of saturates, aromatics, resins and asphaltenes (SARA)

Type	Journal Article
Author	K. K. (Adry) Bissada
Author	Jingqiang Tan
URL	http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0146638016000358
Volume	95
Pages	21-28
Publication	Organic Geochemistry
Date	May 2016
Abstract	Compositional analysis of crude oils is important along the entire value chain of the oil industry, from upstream to midstream and downstream operations. An important step of the analysis is to separate crude oil into fractions of saturate hydrocarbon (saturates), aromatic hydrocarbon (aromatics), resins, and asphaltenes (SARA). While various methods have been developed for SARA separation, conventional methods involve significant drawbacks that include inconsistent results among labs and methods, extensive cross-contamination, and poor analytical precision. Authors report an innovative automated multi-dimensional high performance liquid chromatography (AMD-HPLC) approach to enhance group-type characterization of crude oil or bitumen.