Oil Refinery Waste Research Articles

Valorization of oil refinery by-products: production of sophorolipids utilizing fatty acid distillates and their potential antibacterial, anti-biofilm, and antifungal activities.

Starmerella bombicola is a native yeast strain producing sophorolipids as secondary metabolites. This study explores the production, characterization, and biological activities of sophorolipids and investigates the antimicrobial, anti-biofilm, and antifungal properties of sophorolipids produced from oil refinery wastes by the yeast Starmerella bombicola. The present work demonstrated that S. bombicola MTCC 1910 when grown in oil refinery wastes namely palm fatty acid distillates and soy fatty acid distillates enhanced the rate of sophorolipids production drastically in comparison to vegetable oil, sunflower oil used as hydrophobic feedstock. Sophorolipid yields were 18.14, 37.21, and 46.1g/L with sunflower oil, palm, and soy fatty acid distillates respectively. The crude biosurfactants were characterized using TLC, FTIR, and HPLC revealing to be acetylated sophorolipids containing both the acidic and lactonic isomeric forms. The surface lowering and emulsifying properties of the sophorolipids from refinery wastes were significantly higher than the sunflower oil-derived sophorolipids. Also, all the sophorolipids exhibited strong antibacterial properties (minimum inhibitory concentrations were between 50 and 200µgmL-1) against Salmonella typhimurium, Bacillus cereus, and Staphylococcus epidermidis and were validated with morphological analysis by Scanning electron microscopy. All the sophorolipids were potent biofilm inhibitors and eradicators (minimum biofilm inhibitory and eradication concentrations were between12.5to1000µgmL-1) for all the tested organisms. Furthermore, antifungal activities were also found to exhibit about 16-56% inhibition at 1mgmL-1 for fungal mycelial growth. Therefore, this endeavour of sophorolipids production using palm and soy fatty acid distillates not only opens up a window for the bioconversion of industrial wastes into productive biosurfactants but also concludes that sophorolipids from oil refinery wastes are potent antimicrobial, anti-biofilm, and antifungal agents, highlighting their potential in biotechnological and medical applications.

Alternative Production of Hydrocarbons from Natural Gas (Methane) via Synthesis Gas and Methanol

Abstract As a result of research, it has been found that DME from natural gas (methane), oil production and oil refinery wastes and low molecular weight olefins based on it are studied. Therefore, methanol and DME, along with synthesis gas, are relevant for the improvement of the production technology of environmentally friendly motor fuels. The most active and selective catalysts for the dehydration of methanol in DME have a texture that allows the resulting DME to desorb from the surface without steric hindrance. Such “open surface” catalysts of acidic nature include mesoporous γ - Al2O3 and large-pore zeolite HU, whose promotion with H3PO4 achieves 100 % selectivity for DME formation at 88-90 % conversion of methanol. Experiments were performed by varying the amount of methanol in the CH3OH : (CO + H2) reaction mixture from 25 to 100 % by volume. In the main experiments with CO : H2 = 1:1 ratio, the linear speed of the reaction gas flow was kept constant at 3.8 ÷ 0.2 cm3 min−1, that is, the contact time was kept constant for 15.5-16 s. The reaction products were analyzed by gas chromatography.

Circular Economy Approaches in the Palm Oil Industry: Enhancing Profitability through Waste Reduction and Product Diversification

Today, facing difficult environmental and sustainability questions, the palm oil industry is an important force in global trade and development. As a transformative solution to these problems, this review assesses the implementation of circular economy (CE) strategies. CE principles promote the transformation of waste into value through recycling, upcycling and other low-carbon innovation applications. This review estimates the capability of palm-based biomass, including palm oil mill effluent (POME) and refinery wastes. It evaluates how different technologies such as gasification are used to change these fuel sources into energy fuels and value-added products for industry. It also involves incorporating Industry 4.0 to boost efficiency and waste value creation into the operation. Although the potential of CE in creating an eco-friendly, profitable palm oil industry is apparent, nevertheless it must overcome all kinds and levels of barriers – from economic to technological to social. This review points out for collaborative efforts, technological advancement, and supportive policies to navigate these challenges, advocating for a unified shift towards sustainability and efficiency in the palm oil sector.

Plasma-chemical waste processing: numerical analysis and experiment. Part 4. Ash-and-slag waste and oil refinery wastes

Plasma-chemical waste processing: numerical analysis and experiment. Part 4. Ash-and-slag waste and oil refinery wastes

Integrated approach for efficient crude oil bioremediation: Bacterial consortium development, mathematical modelling and scalable bioprocess design

Crude oil pollution has a significant impact on the surrounding ecosystem, making its remediation an urgent necessity due to the waste discharge and seepage from petroleum industries. To address this issue, we developed an efficient bacterial consortium from strains isolated from petroleum refinery waste. These strains were identified as genera Pseudomonas, Ochrobactrum, Alcaligenes, and Bacillus, specifically chosen for their ability to biodegrade crude oil. Through the optimization of process parameters, we enhanced the biodegradation efficiency of the bacterial consortium. Furthermore, the scalability of the biodegradation process was established in 6L batch bioreactor, which featured a total TPH removal of 80.10 %. The independently obtained substrate inhibition data and bioreactor batch kinetics data were utilized to develop a batch mathematical-model. The mathematical model accurately simulated batch bioreactor kinetics and was further extrapolated to design a fed-batch nutrient feeding strategy. Implementing this strategy, based on the model, led to a higher TPH removal rate of 86.86 % in a constant feed batch-fed-batch approach, as validated through experimental implementation. Validation of the biodegradation process was confirmed through Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC–MS) analysis of degraded samples, which confirmed the biodegradation of petroleum hydrocarbons. The increased rates of oil biodegradation achieved through our developed consortium and advanced bioprocess offer a promising solution for the effective clean-up of oily pollutants present in petroleum wastewater and oil spillage scenarios.

Performance and life cycle of ultra-high performance concrete mixes containing oil refinery waste catalyst and steel fibre recovered from scrap tyre

An economic solution to recycle spent equilibrium catalyst (Ecat) disposed of by petrochemical manufacturers and steel fibre recovered from scrap tyre would be their use in the production of structural concrete. In this study, the performance and life cycle of ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) mixes containing these waste materials was examined. They were made using a total binder content of 1160 kg/m3 and also contained fly ash and silica fume in addition to Ecat and cement. Their average compressive strength at the end of 28 days was found to be above 150 MPa. The replacement of cement with Ecat reduced the CO2 emission and material cost of recycled steel fibre (RSF) reinforced UHPC samples by 15% and 6%, but there is no significant change in their compressive, flexural and split tensile strengths at the end of 28 days. Only 2% of the elastic modulus of these samples increased as a result of the addition of Ecat by weight of the binder. Ecat, an aluminosilicate material, is generally classified as a pozzolanic material, but its addition together with fly ash and silica fume in the UHPC mixture did not affect the strength gain properties. Based on our experimental findings, the use of waste materials including Ecat and RSF in the preparation of precast UHPC elements for explosion and earthquake resistant structures is recommended.

The Grease Formulation Using Waste Substances from Palm Oil Refinery and Other Industrial Wastes: A Review

Many applications use Spent Bleaching Earth (SBE) despite being considered hazardous waste from the palm oil refinery process. Its production increases yearly, similar to waste cooking oil (WCO). The SBE is known as a thickener in grease formulation. The same goes for red gypsum, waste motor oil, stearic acid, and lithium hydroxide monohydrate. They are all considered thickeners but have different durability in protecting base oil in grease. Then, previous studies revealed their performances with side effects detection against the environment and human bodies. Cooking oil is a heat transfer medium for serving foods with higher amounts of unsaturated fatty acids. The number of fatty acids might change after cooking oil consumption and become highly demanded due to the chemical properties of density, viscosity and fatty acids. Nowadays, people lack awareness of the importance of recycling palm oil waste. They intend to dispose of it instead of recycling it for sustainable energy resources. Therefore, this paper will discuss the grease formulation, contaminant available in WCO, its treatment, issues regarding different thickener consumption, treatment against Spent Bleaching Earth (SBE), and propose the safe thickener and additives for future intakes. This study found that adding Fume Silica (F.S.) as a thickener and Molybdenum Disulfide (MoS2) enhanced the grease stability. Further treatment against SBE (remove residue oil) and WCO (metal elements, undesired impurities and water content) is necessary for providing good quality formulated grease.

Integration and Optimisation of Palm Oil Sector with Multiple-Industries to Achieve Circular Economy

A typical palm oil sector includes oil palm plantations, palm oil mills, and palm oil refineries. The sector generates a huge amount of biomass by-products, effluent, and refinery wastes. These are usually disposed of at landfills causing inefficient waste management and sustainability issues. As reported in many previoius works, palm-based biomass, palm oil mill effluent (POME) and refinery wastes can be reused or recycled within the palm oil sector. However, there are still large amounts of these which are unprocessed and disposed to landfills. To address this issue, a circular economy approach that integrates the palm oil sector with other industries is needed. This work proposes a mathematical optimisation model to determine the optimal pathway for the circularity of palm-based biomass, POME, and refinery wastes with other sectors. Paper, polymer, and furniture industries are considered to evaluate the potential of a palm-based circular economy. Besides, various biorefineries are also considered, thereby providing multiple pathways for the conversion of palm-based biomass and refinery wastes to value-added products and energy generation. The optimisation is performed under four scenarios – maximise economic potential, minimise net emissions, minimise landfill wastes, and fuzzy multi-objective. The multi-objective results show economic potential of USD 151.36 million, net emissions of −804,946.60 tCO2 and landfill waste reduction by 80.17 %. The results indicate that the polymer industry has better potential to integrate with the palm oil sector. The fuzzy optimisation has allowed to determine trade-off between landfill disposal and resource circularity to maximise the economic value and minimise carbon emissions.

Pelletisation of peat moss using binder from palm oil refinery waste (spent bleaching earth) and binder from grey oyster mushroom plantation waste (spent mushroom substrate)

Spent bleaching earth (SBE); a solid waste generated from refining palm oil process and spent mushroom substrate (SMS); a waste generated from grey mushroom plantation were explored as potential binding agents. The experimental work of pelletisation using a pelleting machine was carried out by varying the ratio of peat moss (PMS) to spent bleaching earth (SBE) and spent mushroom substrate (SMS) at 90:10, 80:20 and 70:30 (by weight %). Several analyses were conducted to determine the physical and thermal degradation characteristics of the peat moss pellet at different level of binders. Density and hardness tests were performed for physical analysis. Results from durability test shows that pellet from the tested ratios achieved pellet durability index (PDI) value of more than 97.5%. In terms of pellet hardness, pellet mixed with SBE was found to decrease its hardness when the amount of SBE in the mixture increases. On the contrary, for peat soil pellet mixed with SMS, when the amount of SMS in the mixture increases, the pellet hardness also increases. In terms of water resistance, peat soil pellet mixed with SBE showed high resistance towards moisture whereas peat soil pellet mixed with SMS was found to break during the test when the amount of SMS binder increased. The pelletisation of peat soil aimed to increase the density and strength of the material and consequently provide better thermal degradation characteristics It can be concluded that the most ideal formula among the tested ratios to produce biosolid fuel pellet with SBE as binding agent was 90:10 PMS:SBE whereas for pellet with SMS as binding agent was 70:30 PMS:SMS. This study thus brings opportunity for spent bleaching earth and spent mushroom substrate as potential binding agents to aid pelletisation of raw/biomass material.

Flotation response of coal washery reject fines: Characteristics, process optimization, and oxidation

AbstractThe present paper outlines the characterization, electrokinetic behaviour, and flotation response of rejected coking coal fines with 32.5% ash generated in a coal washery in Eastern India. The response methodology and central composite rotatable design (RSM‐CCRD) were used for the process modelling and optimization of the flotation process using diesel, methyl isobutyl carbinol (MIBC), and sodium hexametaphosphate as a collector, frother, and depressant to maximize ash reduction, yield, and combustible recovery. At optimum condition, a 9.7% clean ash coal was achieved with a 63% yield at collector, frother, and depressant dosages of 0.78, 0.31, and 0.80 kg/ton, respectively. The model prediction and experimental data corroborated sufficiently. Subsequently, within 1 year, the fines oxidized and did not float with the collector. Fourier‐transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) confirmed surface oxidation on oxidized coal. The oxidized coal responded favourably to acid oil, a vegetable oil refinery waste. With acid oil as a collector, the oxidized coal can upgrade to 12% clean ash coal with a 60% yield; the combustible recovered is 80%. The work indicates successful upgradation of fresh and oxidized coal using the froth flotation process.

Remediation of Petroleum Refinery Waste Contaminated Soil at Alesa-Eleme, River State

Remediation of Petroleum Refinery Waste Contaminated Soil at Alesa-Eleme, River State

ECOLOGICAL TECHNOLOGIES: A REVIEW OF MAIN FIELDS OF OIL REFINERY WASTES AS SECONDARY RAW MATERIALS USAGE

The article shows the results of an analysis of fields of oil refinery wastes as secondary raw materials usage. The main areas of oil refinery fields appliance are highway engineering, construction material manufacturing, fuel industry, and oil and gas industry. The article suggests the classification of these fields on the basis of origin, an oil refinery waste content, and its weight fraction in a product. In highway engineering, oil waste plays a role as a binder in the production of bituminous, aerated concrete, concrete-alime and oil-soil coatings, bases and layers. In the construction materials manufacturing, it acts as a protective material against moisture when using waterproofing compounds and coatings, as a filler and softening agent in the rubber industry, as a combustible addition in the production of expanded clay and bricks. In the fuel industry, oil waste is used as a binder in the production of pressed fuel. It is stated that the main criterion for the suitability of oil waste for various industries as production-induced raw materials is the composition of the waste, due to their origin. The considered directions of utilization can be arranged in a hierarchical series in order of increasing the organic part in the composition of oil refinery waste: highway engineering → bitumen production →construction materials (expanded clay, brick, fillers, rubber) → waterproofing materials → fuel industry. A systematization of these areas is shown depending on the origin, composition of oil waste and its weight fraction in the product.

Short Review on the Feasibility Assessment of the Recycling of Oil Refinery Wastes in Cementitious Composites

Short Review on the Feasibility Assessment of the Recycling of Oil Refinery Wastes in Cementitious Composites

Sustainability of Environmental Resources with Pleurotus Ostreatus to Promote the Growth by Degradation of Refinery Oils Waste

Acquaintance of environmental issues and their increased risks, Industrial development, rehabilitation and restoration work creating a big Ecological imbalance. Pleurotus Ostreatus play a very vital role for the sustainable resource development maintaining the ecosystem by scavenging oil refinery waste that pollute the soil, air & water too .oils pollutants forming upper most close layer prevent to growing new species. Bioremediation is becoming booming due to its ecological approach. Their scavenging ability suggests their usefulness with their enzymatic activity to break down oily substances or growth on it remove pollutants. Pleurotus Ostreatus have the potential to break down oil & toxins at maximum extent.Studies includes the estimation of nutrients in oily Compound suck by pleutrotus Ostreatus cultivated on three agricultural & oil refinery waste product were carried by using Cup plate method on Soyabean oil, Coconut oil & Mustard Oils in different oil refinery& extraction shops.Result were obtained from the given oil compound at different concentrations10μl, 20μl,30μl,40μl Which also comprised the control & combined effect of oil assessed . Soyabean oil shows maximum zone of exhibition, growth area than Coconut oil then mustard oil in the triplicates Pleurotus Ostreatus show Miraculously growth on oil as activator ,Growth on waste materials decomposition as a bioremideator [22] suggesting a link between Symbiosis and environmental cleanup. Keyword : Pleurotus Ostreatus, Zone of exhibition, Bioremediation, Cup plate method

Emissions from the combustion of high-potential slurry fuels.

Slurry fuels based on wood and coal processing and petroleum refinery waste are an environmentally friendly and economically feasible alternative to the conventional solid fuel-coal. As part of this experimental research, we compared a set of fuels (coal and coal-water slurries with and without petrochemicals) by normalizing and calculating the specific concentrations of pollutants from their combustion. The pollutant concentrations were normalized with respect to the mass of burnt fuel, the thermal energy released by combustion, specific mass emissions per unit time, specific maximum mass emissions, and specific mass emissions per 1kg of fuel equivalent or 1MJ of thermal energy. The key objective of this research was to develop a method for comparing composite fuels in terms of their relative environmental friendliness. As part of the research, coal combustion was notable for the peak emissions of gaseous pollutants irrespective of the fuel mass and combustion chamber temperature. When slurries were burnt, CO2, SO2, and NOx concentrations were 12-90% lower as compared to coal. The research findings established that the most promising fuel of all the slurries under study is the one based on coal slime and sawdust due to its high environmental indicators.

Fabrication, characterisation and application of Poly Allyl Amine Hydrochloride / Poly Styrene Sulphonate/Zinc Oxide (PAH/(PSS/ZnO)n bilayers in the removal of pollutants from oil refinery waste water

ABSTRACT The application of nanomaterials in the oil and gas industry has been widely studied in the past few years, and polymeric nano thin films have become an area of interest among researchers. In this work, multilayer nano thin films were fabricated using poly(ally lamine hydrochloride) (PAH), zinc oxide (ZnO) and poly(styrene sulphonate sodium salt) (PSS) on glass template by Layer-by-Layer (L-b-L) technique and its potential application for the photo degradation of oil refinery wastewater have been reported. The L-b-L fabrication of the thin film was carried out at an assembly pH of 8.0. The morphological characterisation and elemental composition of the fabricated thin films were studied using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and Energy Dispersive X-Ray Analysis (SEM – EDX). Chemical bond and surface functional groups were identified using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR). SEM characterisation depicted the uniform deposition of ZnO particles in the polyelectrolyte matrix. The outcome of the FTIR analysis is justified by the presence of strong C=C bonds favouring the strength of bilayer deposition. A comparative study on the degradation efficiency was carried out using oil refinery effluents for the photo degradation of ZnO/PSS/PAH thin films and suspension form of ZnO by varying the process parameters such as number of bilayers and contact time. The ZnO/Polyelectrolyte multilayer thin films performed extremely well in reducing the chemical oxygen demand (COD) and Total Organic carbon (TOC) to the standards. A maximum COD removal efficiency of 80.1% was obtained at conditions where PAH/(PSS, ZnO)5 bilayers were used at pH 7.2 with a contact time of 120 minutes. The total organic carbon removal was around 55% under optimum conditions of pH 7.2 and PAH/(PSS, ZnO)5 at 120 minutes. This study illustrates that immobilised zinc oxide nanoparticles can effectively remove pollutants from oily wastewater and the process seems to be attractive in the environmental applications.

Assessing genotoxic potential of petroleum refinery wastewater using biomarkers of laboratory exposed and field captured fishes

Petroleum refinery wastes contain mixtures of toxic compounds including Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH) which may pose genotoxic threats to the biota. The objective of the present study was to assess the genotoxic potential of wastewaters of the petroleum refinery at Sapugaskanda, Sri Lanka using erythrocytic micronuclei and nuclear abnormalities as genotoxic biomarkers in the fish Oreochromis niloticus exposed to the refinery wastewater under controlled laboratory conditions and in the field captured fishes from the canals close to the refinery. Erythrocytic micronuclei and nuclear abnormalities in the peripheral blood were evaluated using cytogenetic tests. Patterns of fluorescent aromatic compounds in the fish bile were also examined using fixed fluorescence spectrometry to assess potential PAH exposure. Erythrocytic micronuclei, nuclear buds and notched nuclei in the peripheral blood were highly induced (P < 0.05) in O. niloticus exposed to the wastewater for 7 days under laboratory conditions in comparison to the control fish. The field-captured fishes, Trichogaster pectoralis and Dawkinsia singhala inhabiting water canals near the petroleum refinery also demonstrated significant induction (P <0.05) of erythrocytic micronuclei and other nuclear abnormalities. PAH exposure indicative bile fluorescence patterns (naphthalene, phenanthrene, pyrene, and benzo(a)pyrene types) were detected in the fish exposed to the wastewater under laboratory conditions and in the field captured fishes. The results revealed that the wastewater of petroleum refinery contains genotoxic chemicals including PAHs. Hence, incorporation of genotoxicity tests as bioanalytical tools for regulating the discharge of final refinery wastewater to the aquatic ecosystems would be prudent in consideration of sustainable development goals focusing on the ecosystem and human safety.

Anaerobic co-digestion of oil refinery waste activated sludge and food waste

ABSTRACT The technology of anaerobic co-digestion to treat the excess biological sludge discharged from activated sludge systems in oil refineries was evaluated in bench scale experiments. Mixing food waste rich in fruits and vegetables with this sludge increased the reduction of volatile solids and biogas yield. An experimental design indicated that the best co-digestion condition was the use of waste activated sludge without previous dewatering (3.5% total solids) and food waste in an 80:20 ratio (% v/v), without the addition of inoculum. After 45 days at 35 °C, this condition resulted in volatile solid (VS) removal of 52% and biogas yield of 80.7 mL biogas/g VSadded, against only 19% and 38.5 mL biogas/g VSadded in mono-digestion of sludge alone. Anaerobic co-digestion demonstrates promising results and the potential for a simple and effective treatment method for excess biological sludge generated at refineries.

Feasibility Study of Microwave‐Assisted Biodiesel Production from Vegetable Oil Refinery Waste

AbstractVegetable oil refinery waste containing acid oil is used as an inexpensive feedstock for producing biodiesel by microwave‐assisted esterification (MAE) method. Effects of some main variables such as free fatty acid:methanol molar ratio (1:1, 1:5, and 1:10), reaction time (5, 30, and 60 min), and catalyst concentration (1%, 2%, and 3%) on physicochemical properties of produced biodiesel are investigated. Optimum reaction conditions of MAE are free fatty acid:methanol molar ratio of 1:10, reaction time of 60 min, and a catalyst concentration of 3%, while having 95.79% conversion yield. By increasing the conversion yield of the biodiesel, density and color brightness increase, while viscosity and refractive index decrease. There are no significant differences between physicochemical and heating properties of biodiesel produced by MAE and magnetic stirrer esterification (MSE) methods. Meanwhile, energy consumption of MAE method is almost four times lower than that of MSE. MAE as a promising alternative to the conventional esterification method can be considered as an energy‐efficient method for producing biodiesel from inexpensive vegetable oil refinery waste.Practical applications: Acid oil is an inexpensive by‐product of alkali refining in vegetable oil plants that would pollute the environment if not rendered safely. In this study, MAE is used to convert acid oil to biodiesel as a practical process for bringing alkali refining waste into production cycle. Acid oil can provide a reduction in the cost of biodiesel production. In addition, application of energy‐efficient MAE method can facilitate the economical production of biodiesel.

Progress in Shale Oil Refinery Waste Water Treatment Technology

Shale oil refinery waste water was a kind of high-concentration organic waste water with many types of pollutants and complex components. It contained environmental pollutants such as petroleum, volatile phenols, organic nitrogen, naphthenic acid compounds and fused ring aromatic hydrocarbons. If it is discharged directly without treatment, it will cause serious harm to the environment, and it must be treated before it can be discharged. At present, the treatment methods of shale oil refinery waste water mainly include physical treatment, chemical treatment, physical and chemical treatment and biological treatment. This paper studied the treatment technology of shale oil refinery waste water.