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What Is the Distillation of Oil?

Oil or petroleum is extracted from under the earth's crust in its crude form, which is a viscous mixture of many different hydrocarbons. Hydrocarbons are compounds composed of hydrogen and carbon in different ratios. This ratio determines the properties of the fuel namely boiling point, which is important in a process known as fractional distillation of oil. In its crude form, oil is of not much use. The goal of distillation is to segregate crude oil into useful fractions.

  1. Distillation of Oil

    • The process of distillation requires a fractional distillation tower, which gets its supply of superheated oil from an adjoining heater. This tower consists of different compartments placed one upon the other. Small openings that open only in the upward direction under gaseous pressure connect all compartments with one another. As the oil vapors move through the tower, they cool down and condense in the compartments and hence get separated.

    Principle of Fractional Distillation

    • The difference in boiling point of various constituents of crude oil forms the basic principle for fractional distillation. The lower the molecular weight of the constituent, the higher up it is captured. Therefore, components get separated from the mixture in decreasing order of their boiling points and form different fractions in the distillation tower. Each of the fractions obtained from distillation of oil have great importance as fuels in various industries.

    Different Fractions Obtained from Distillation of Oil

    • Asphalt forms the lowest rung and is the part that remains non-vaporized. This is removed out of the tower by a runoff continuously. Lubricating oil is the next compartment that condenses at temperatures below 370 degrees Celsius. Heating Oil condenses at 300 degrees Celsius. Kerosene condenses at nearly 250 degrees Celsius. Gasoline is the most commonly used fraction. This fraction holds the highest worth and condenses at 200 degrees Celsius. The remaining components of crude oil, like petroleum gas, have such low boiling points that they escape the tower in their gaseous forms. These are later separated in a different process.

    Use of Various Fractions

    • Petrol, diesel and kerosene are the widely known fractions obtained from the distillation tower. These fractions alone constitute the highest volume among all. However, the quantity of various components obtained by fractional distillation depends heavily upon the place of extraction of crude oil. Crude oil deposits all over the world differ in their composition. The worth of a deposit is determined by the percentage of these fractions. The heavier fractions of the distillation tower are passed through some other device that breaks them down into gasoline constituents. This process is called cracking.

    Developments in Oil Distillation

    • Distillation of oil is a very important process that involves breaking it down into useful contents, then through the further process of cracking, converting these contents into gasoline for commercial use. The process is a very old one, which has not changed at all over the years. Only the instruments and devices involved in the distillation of oil have gotten a technological boost.

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