Removal of sulfur compounds from Iraqi crude oil using γ-Al2O3 nanoparticles

Abstract

γ-Al₂O₃ nanoparticles have been synthesized using aluminium(III) sulfate as a source of metal. Ceratonia silique leaves extract was used as a reducing agent and sodium hydroxide solution as a precipitating. XRD, BET, FE-SEM, EDX, and DLS Techniques were used to characterize the prepared alumina. The desulfurization process was applied by adsorption of sulfur compounds from Iraqi crude oil using the prepared          γ-Al₂O₃ nanoparticles. The efficiency of aluminium oxide nanoparticles as an adsorbent was studied for different factors such as adsorbent quantity, contact time, pH, and temperature. The average size of γ-Al₂O₃ nanoparticles is 12.44 nm, with a size distribution of particles from 90 nm to 900 nm. The mixture was drained at 80 ºC, and then calcined at 600 ºC, BET analysis shows a high surface area (72.03 m² g^-1) and uniform pore sizes of Al₂O₃ NPs. The FE-SEM images showed that the nanoparticles appeared smooth and cylinder-shaped within the average size of 100.53 nm. The obtained results of removal of the sulfur compounds from crude oil using γ-Al₂O₃ nanoparticles showed a high desulfurization and were achieved with adsorbent at specific conditions: 150 min, 0.5 g of adsorbent, temperature at 25 ºC and acidic medium pH = 2.

KEY WORDS: Crude oil, γ-Al₂O₃ nanoparticles, Ceratonia siliqua leaves extract

Bull. Chem. Soc. Ethiop. 2024, 38(5), 1241-1250.                                                        

DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.4314/bcse.v38i5.4