Analysis of factors affecting the efficiency of Jatropha curcas oil as an asphaltene stabiliser

Abstract

The effect of temperature and applied dose on the efficiency of Jatropha curcas seed oil as an asphaltene stabiliser was studied. Two crude oil samples (light and medium) were used. J. curcas oil was subjected to heating at 100, 150 and 170 °C for 24 h with an unheated sample (25 °C) and applied at doses of 2, 4, 6, and 8 μL in 10 ml of sample. The asphaltene instability index (AII) was determined as the ratio between the amount in ml of n-heptane to flocculate the asphaltenes and the amount in ml of xylene to disperse the flocs. The experimental design was Taguchi factorial with a response surface for one response variable (AII) and two experimental factors (the applied dose and heating temperature). For light crude oil, the optimum conditions were 8 μL and T = 127 °C with an 85.3 % efficiency and for medium crude oil, 2 μL and T = 25 °C with a 94.3 % efficiency. The efficiency of J. curcas oil and the influence of the type of crude oil on the results obtained were demonstrated.