licensing MERCAWAY process technology
Chevron's Technology Marketing invites you to contact our New Business Development group to learn about licensing our MERCAWAY℠ process technology as well as MERCAWAY technical services provided to our licensees.
mercury in crude oil and condensate can be effectively reduced by up to 98%
MERCAWAY process technology is a straightforward process for reducing mercury (Hg) content in crude oil and condensate using easily understood chemistry and well-proven unit operations.
There are four key steps in the MERCAWAY processing system as follows:
- Desanding to remove sand and other particles
- Reaction to convert elemental mercury to particulate HgS
- Automated filtration to separate HgS particles from treated crude/condensate stream
- Polishing to adsorb most of the remaining mercury after the filtration step
desanding step
The Desanding Step is accomplished using a hydrocyclone to achieve removal of sand and other particulates. The Desanding Step reduces the filtration load and improves cycle length. Depending on the nature of the produced crude/condensate stream, this step may be omitted.
reaction step
The Reaction Step is conducted by introducing a treat chemical bearing at least one Hg reactive sulfur (S). The treat chemical dosage required can be readily determined using laboratory test methods for the crude or condensate to be treated. The reaction takes place in a stirred reactor at modest temperature and pressure.
The key reaction is
Hg° + S donating compound → HgS
filtration step
The Filtration Step uses a pressurized precoat filtration system with operating cycle expected to range from 12–48 hours depending on feed and other filtration variables. In the current application, diatomaceous earth (DE) is added first as a filter precoat and later a finer grain DE is added to the feed to achieve filtration to 0.7μ. DE addition rate is determined during the laboratory testing phase. Filtration has proven to provide 98% removal of HgS. The Hg containing filter cake is discharged at the end of every cycle for environmentally acceptable disposal.
polishing step
The Polishing Step is conducted in a fixed absorbent bed for further reduction of Hg content of the crude. This step may be unnecessary if acceptable levels of Hg removal are achieved after the Filtration Step.
