Investigations of Asphaltenes’ Structure and Properties of West Siberian Crude Oils

Abstract

Asphaltene molecules are solid crude oil constituents that are complex compounds with high molecular weight and varying structures that contain metal complexes. These solid molecules are homogenised as part of crude oil by resins which encapsulate them to form micelles. However, these micelles when destabilized, lead to asphaltene precipitating into their solid state and cause severe operational and transportation problems of crude oil such as catalyst deactivation. This research seeks to scrutinise the complex structure of asphaltenes contained in Western Siberian Oils and how these molecules affect the properties of the oils. Owing to the diverse structures asphaltenes possess, asphaltene structure has been modelled using different models. These models are discussed. Asphaltene molecules isolated from different sources have different structures. There are various analytical methods applied in characterization of asphaltenes however SARA analysis and infrared spectroscopy were employed in ascertaining the structure of these molecules and the relationship with the crude properties explained.