STUDY OF THE TEMPERATURE AND ENTHALPY OF WAX CRYSTALLIZATION FROM MIDDLE DISTILLATE BY DSC

The temperature and enthalpy of the wax crystallization as well as of melting have been studied in the middle distillate (boiling range: 250-375°C) obtained from the indigenous Bombay-High (Off-Shore) crude oil by using a differential scanning calorimeter (DSC). In order to have better understanding of the gel formation processes the broad distillate fraction was fractionated into five narrow fractions of 25°C interval each. From these narrow subfractions the saturates were separated from aromatics by column chromatography, and from saturates the n-paraffins were separated from iso-and cyclo-paraffins by urea adduction, to obtain the n-paraffins concentrates (urea adductables)--the wax- and the saturated solvent portion--the UNA. The thermal behaviour of narrow subfractions alongwith their urea adductables and the solvent portions have been studied and the wax appearance temperature (WAT) thus measured has been compared with those obtained by optical microscopy and with the ASTM cloud point, wherever possible. To obtain a clearer picture of the solidification process, further study has been done by preparing synthetic blends of urea adductables in different concentrations in the respective aromatic and iso- and cyclo-paraffinic solvents (UNA) and studying the thermal behaviour of each blend. It is found that the variation in WAT with wax concentration as measured by DSC is identical with that measured by optical microscopy and the ASTM cloud point. However, DSC values are lower than microscopic values and higher than ASTM cloud point. The enthalpy of the blends with the same amount of wax in the aromatic and iso- and cyclo-parffinic solvents indicated that it is higher in the saturated solvent in comparison to aromatic solvent. This confirms the fact that in an aromatic solvent the solubility of the wax is greater, and hence a comparatively lower WAT. The results are further discussed.