Technology for

High-Quality
Lubricants Production
Dr. Girish Chitnis
Dr. Simon Hacker
Dr. Tim Hilbert

7TH INTERNATIONAL
SYMPOSIUM ON FUELS AND
LUBRICANTS - ISFL-2010
March 9-12, 2010

Research and Engineering

Lube Activity Focused on Group II and Group III

Production
Group II and Group III Base Oils are the high growth areas

Lube Product,( kbpd)

Demand for improved fuel economy and lower emissions mean lower
viscosity/volatility engine oils
Demand for increased equipment reliability
Extended service intervals/fill for life for engines requires both performance
and stability
Group II/III plants have Opex advantages versus Group I plants

Hydroisomerization Capacity (kbpd)

250
200

Others

ExxonMobil
Technologies

150
100
50
0
1993 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007

ISFL 2010

Performance Requirements Pushes Quality

Improved fuel economy

Lower Viscosity

Lower Emissions

Lower Volatility

Longer Life

Higher Saturates

Better low temperature

performance

Lower Pour, Lower CCS

High temperature performance

Viscometrics
Thermal stability

Higher VI
Higher Saturates

Higher Saturates

Soot handling (diesels)

ISFL 2010

Volatility a Driver for Increased VI

Group I / Group II 95 VI

Noack Volatility, Mass%

19

Group II+

17

API SM Max

15

Mid Tier Group III

13

Top Tier Group III

11
9
7
5

GM
Proposed
Global
Spec.

Group IV / PAOs

3
3.5

4.5

5.5

6.5

7.5

8.5

Viscosity @ 100C, cSt

API SM 5W30

ISFL 2010

Common Routes for Base Oil Production

Solvent
Extraction

Solvent
Dewaxing

Hydrofinishing

Group II

Distillate/DAO

RHCTM

RHCTM

Fuels
Hydrocracker

Gasoline
& Diesel

HC Bottoms

Lube
Hydrocracker

Group I

Catalytic
Dewax

Hydrofinishing

Vacuum
Distillation

Solvent
Dewax

Catalytic
Dewax

Vacuum
Distillation

Group II /III

Catalytic
Dewax

Hydrofinishing

Group II / III

Group II /III

Group II

Process Choice: Blocked or Broadcut?

Blocked: Lube Grades processed individually
Pro:
Smaller catalytic equipment
Production to optimum specification for each product
Clear target response to feed change
Con:
Intermediate tankage required between units
More complex operation

Broadcut: Unfractionated Fuels H/C bottoms or VGO to

Lube H/C
Pro:
Single operation, no stock switchsimpler control
Minimal/no intermediate tankage
Con:
Larger catalytic vessels
One grade dictates operating severitypossible overtreating of others

ISFL 2010

Integrated Group I Facilities

Deasphalting

Remove
Asphaltic
Material and
Adjust
Viscosity

Hydroprocessing
(RHT/RHC
(RHT/RHC)
Vacuum
Gas Oil

Solvent
Dewaxing

Group I
Facilities

Catalytic
Dewaxing (MSDW
(MSDW )

Improve VI,
Reduce Sulfur
& Nitrogen,
Saturate or
Extract
Aromatics,
Reduce CCR,
Remove
Metals

Improve
Cold Flow
Properties
Convert wax
to High VI
Lube

Hydrofinishing
(MAXSAT
(MAXSAT)

Group II
Group III
Group II
Group III

DAO

Resid

Vacuum
Distillation
Vacuum

Atmospheric Resid

Adjust
Viscosity

Improve
Color and
Stability,
Saturate
Polynuclear
Aromatics

Extract

Converting
Converting Vacuum
Vacuum Gas
Gas Oil
Oil and
and DAO
DAO to
to High
High
Quality
Quality Lube
Lube Base
Base Stocks
Stocks is
is aa multi-step
multi-step Process
Process

ISFL 2010

Integrated Route to Base Oils

Group I Integrated into Group II & Group III Lube Plant
Group
GroupII
Solvent
SolventPlant
Plant

Hydroprocessing
Hydroprocessing
(HDT/RHC)
(HDT/RHC)

Hydrofinishing
Hydrofinishing
(MAXSAT)
(MAXSAT)

Catalytic
Catalytic
Dewaxing
Dewaxing(MSDW)
(MSDW)

Existing
Existing
Solvent
SolventDewaxing
Dewaxing

Group III

Group III

8 RHC/RHT units in
operation or in design

Group I solvent operation

improves VI with a yield
loss to aromatic extracts

Removal of 3-4 ring

aromatic compounds and
complex sulfur and
nitrogen compounds
allows reduction in
hydroprocessing severity,
hydrogen consumption
and associated yield loss

VI Increase

60
50
40

Group II

Group II

30
20
10
0
Base

Aromatic Extract
Conversion to 360-O C Fuels

Group II

80
70

Group II
Group III

ISFL 2010

Raffinate Hydroconversion (RHC) or

Hydrotreating (RHT) Add Flexibility
Lower investment than grass roots
Maintains use of solvent-based lube facilities and
Debottlenecks solvent extraction
Produces high quality Group II & II+ base stocks; also
Group III capable
Higher VI, higher saturates, lower volatility, lower sulfur
Improved color and stability

Easily processes full range of viscosity grades

Preserves wax production with solvent dewaxing, or
May use Catalytic Dewaxing (MSDW) to eliminate solvent
dewaxing

ISFL 2010

Maximize Use of Existing Group I Equipment

DW: 70-85% Base Oil Yield

RHC
or
HDT

Solvent Dewaxing

Solvent Extraction

Lube Vacuum
Distillation

50-70% Yield with 1535 VI Uplift

Fuels
Light Neutral

Medium Neutral

Heavy Neutral
80-98% yield with 3-30 VI Uplift
and H2 use of 300-600 scf/B

Aromatic Extract

High-quality wax
with upstream
Hydroprocessing

ISFL 2010

Case Studies Overview

Solvent Extraction Unit (SEU) and Solvent Dewaxing Unit
(SDW) exist to process a full range of lubes (can include
Bright Stock)
Flexibility required to produce Group II / II+ lubes
Options:
CASE 1: SEU, RHC and SDW keep Neutral grades wax production with
improved slack wax quality
CASE 2: SEU, RHT and catalytic dewaxing (MSDW) maximum production,
but no wax product

All products produced to 110VI with addition of RHC/RHT

Solvent dewaxing and Catalytic Dewaxing (MSDW)
considered

ISFL 2010

Case Studies Overview (2)

Three products100N/325N/600N
Base production of 100VI/95VI/95VI
SEU solvent ratio decreased to increase overall production.
SEU Raffinate produced at 85 VI (DWO basis)
Two crudes considered:
Arab Light high quality crude source example
Urals low quality crude source example

ISFL 2010

Case Studies Results

Total production maintained with both Solvent dewaxing and
Catalytic Dewaxing (MSDW) 110VI products by
balancing process steps
Large increase in extraction capacity with reduction in
severity; substantial product rate increase possible
VDU sidestreams viscosity increased to meet constant
product viscosity
Hydroprocessing viscosity impact differs from solvent processing

Wax production increase is possible when SDW can support

Effects are Crude Independentrelative changes consistent
for AL and Urals

ISFL 2010

Study Case 1 Summary of Effects

Impact of RHC Addition with Optimization
To Existing Basic SEU/SDW
100N/325N/600Nproducts
GroupIBaseCase 100/95/95VIProducts
GroupII110VIProducts ConstantSEU
FeedRateandSeverity
GroupII110VIProducts ReduceSEU
Severityto85VI
GroupII110VIProductsMaxSEUFeedto
SolventLimit+Waxproductionbasedon
SDW

Production
Change
Base

Opstoday

RaiseVI

+/

Firststeprecover
capacity

Increaseraffinate
toraisebaseoil&
waxproduction

Study Case 2 Summary of Effects

Impact of RHT Addition with Optimization
To Existing SEU
Replace SDW with Catalytic Dewaxing (MSDW)
100N/325N/600Nproducts
GroupIBaseCase 100/95/95VIProducts
GroupII110VIProducts ConstantSEU
FeedRateandSeverity
GroupII110VIProducts ReduceSEU
Severityto85VI
GroupII110VIProducts MaxSEUFeedto
SolventLimit

Production
Change
Base

Opstoday

RaiseVI

+/

Firststeprecover
capacity

Increaseraffinate
toraisebaseoil
production

RHC is Commercially Proven . . .

First unit streamed in 1999 ten years of consistent
performance
Commercial sequence of SEU/RHC/SDW (Ketone)
Very Low catalyst ageing
EHCTM Group II+ products show excellent performance in
formulations
Multiple units designed and operating/in-construction
Excellent flexibility for complete slate of viscosity grades
including Bright Stock
Group III capable

ISFL 2010

First RHC Unit Streamed in 1999

Group II+ Production

EHC 45

EHC 60

SUS @ 40C

150

200

Pour point, C

-18

-18

VI

116

114

NOACK Volatility, wt%

14

Saturates by Clay Gel, wt%

96

95

ISFL 2010

MSDW Leading Selective Dewaxing

Catalyst System
Integrates with RHC/RHT, and lubes or fuels
hydrocracking
Waxes selectively isomerized to high VI lube
Highest lube product yield and low fuels/gas production
Two reactor cascade system
Reactor 1: Zeolite Catalyst for dewaxing
Others

ExxonMobil
Technologies

Reactor 2: Noble Metal Hydrofinishing Catalyst

Low Hydrogen consumption
Processes full range of base stocks
MSDW-2 life demonstrated >7 years in Jurong and > 9
years with Licensee
MSDW licensed in 23 units with 20 units starting up from
2002 to 2011
New MSDW Catalyst commercialized in more than 6
units since 2005

ISFL 2010

MSDW: Leads by . . .
Feed flexibility from light neutral to bright stock...excellent
viscosity retention
Product flexibility for Group II and Group III
High lube product yields with minimum fuels byproducts
Excellent low temperature properties of products
Latest MSDW shows higher activity than prior generations, yet
maintains exceptional yield selectivity, robust operation when
faced with feed contamination, and superb feed rate
maintenance
No MSDW load ever replaced for reaching end-of-cycle
condition, or because of feed contamination upset
Fully recovers activity after feed contamination upset including hydroprocessed coker gas oil
High tolerance for contaminants in feed: S, N, PNAs
ISFL 2010

MSDW: Proven Catalyst Stability

ISFL 2010

MSDW Will Continue to Improve by . . .

Continuous development work to further improve flexibility
and operation. New generations in development today
to
Expand already wide range of LHSV operation
Enhance already high tolerance to feed contaminants of S and N
Expand present exceptional operating stability and flexibility for very
low pour point products (<-40C)

ISFL 2010

Catalytic Lube Application of ExxonMobil

Technologies ... Since 2000

Operating or in Design/Construction
Lube Hydrocrackers

RCH/RHT

MSDW

23

MAXSAT

18

ISFL 2010

In Conclusion . . .
Adding RHC to existing solvent-based lube facility raises
lube quality from a wide range of crude sources
SEU/RHC/SDW will produce Group II/II+ lubes and is
capable for Group III lubes (all viscosity grades)
Adding RHC to existing solvent-based plant retains (and
may increase) wax production; improves wax appearance
quality
MSDW for dewaxing step may increase production further,
but eliminates wax product
Join our satisfied clients and let EMRE's lube experience
work for you

ISFL 2010

THANK YOU !

ISFL 2010