Systems and methods for producing hydrocarbon products from crude oil

Abstract

Systems and methods for producing hydrocarbon products are described. The system may include a heavy hydrocarbon processing device, a steam cracking device, and a gaseous hydrocarbon separation device connected to the crude oil processing device and the steam cracking device. The gaseous hydrocarbon separation unit can separate naphtha, C4 hydrocarbons, and C2-C3 hydrocarbons from a gaseous hydrocarbon composition having a boiling point of less than 200 DEG C produced by the heavy hydrocarbon processing unit. Naphtha and C4 hydrocarbons can be stored. C2-C3 hydrocarbons can be processed in a steam cracking device to produce petroleum hydrocarbon products. The steam cracking device can be indirectly connected with an alkylation device, a methyl tert-butyl ether production device and / or a butylene hydrogenation device.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] none. Background of the Invention A. Field of the Invention

[0002] The present invention generally relates to the production of hydrocarbon products from crude oil, waste pyrolysis oil or mixtures thereof. The system may include a heavy hydrocarbon processing unit, a steam cracking unit, and a gaseous hydrocarbon separation unit connected to the crude oil processing unit and the steam cracking unit. In the gaseous hydrocarbon separation unit, naphtha, C4 hydrocarbons and gaseous hydrocarbons may be separated. Naphtha and / or C4 hydrocarbons may be stored. Gaseous hydrocarbons may be processed in the steam cracking unit. The steam cracking unit may be indirectly connected to an alkylation unit, a methyl tertiary butyl ether production unit and / or a butene hydrogenation unit. B. Background Technology

[0003] Systems and methods for producing hydrocarbon products have been described. For example, U.S. Patent No. 11,180,706 to Al-Sayed et al. describes an olefin production configuration. The process progressively separates crude oil into light and heavy fractions, which can then be upgraded using a fixed bed hydroconverter, a fluidized catalytic converter, or a residue hydrocracking unit. The upgraded stream can be fed to a steam cracker to produce olefins. The performance of this process is poor, which increases the capital cost of the overall process and reduces profitability.

[0004] In general, while the technologies to produce olefins exist, they are energy inefficient and expensive. Summary of the invention

[0005] A discovery can provide a solution to at least one problem associated with the production of hydrocarbon products. In one aspect, the discovery can include a system that provides a gas separation device connected to a steam cracker and a hydrocarbon processing device, the hydrocarbon processing device including an integrated separation device and a hot hydrogen stripper. The integrated separation device can process crude oil, waste pyrolysis oil in the cracker (pyoil) feed stream, or a mixture thereof into petroleum products. This configuration has the following advantages: 1) the cracking temperature of the steam cracker is lower; 2) the ethylene selectivity is higher. Without being bound by theory, it is believed that limiting the amount of naphtha and C4 hydrocarbons in the steam cracker can reduce the vapor pressure in the device, thereby allowing C4+ hydrocarbons to be converted to ethylene with higher conversion and selectivity. Any C4 hydrocarbons produced by the steam cracker can be further processed to produce methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) and / or alkylate. 2-Butene produced during the production of MTBE can be isomerized to 1-butene and residual olefins. The residual olefins can be hydrogenated to produce C4 hydrocarbons, which can then be provided to the steam cracker to continue the process. The systems and methods of the present invention may provide a less costly and / or more energy efficient method of producing petroleum products.

[0006] In one aspect of the present invention, a system and method for producing hydrocarbon products are described. A system may include a heavy hydrocarbon processing unit, a gaseous hydrocarbon separation unit, a steam cracking unit, and at least one storage unit. The heavy hydrocarbon processing unit is capable of producing gaseous hydrocarbons, including hydrocarbons with a boiling point below 200°C, preferably below 180°C, gas oil, and residual oil from a hydrocarbon composition, which may include crude oil, waste hot oil, or a mixture thereof. The crude oil processing unit may include at least one integrated separation unit (IDS) and a hot hydrogen stripper (HHS). The gaseous hydrocarbon separation unit is capable of receiving gaseous hydrocarbons produced from the crude oil processing unit and is capable of producing a naphtha stream, a gaseous stream containing C4 hydrocarbons, and a C2-C3 hydrocarbon stream. The steam cracking unit is capable of receiving a C2-C3 hydrocarbon unit and cracking the C2-C3 hydrocarbon stream to produce ethylene and propylene. A butane storage unit for storing a C4 hydrocarbon unit produced by the gaseous hydrocarbon separation and / or a naphtha storage unit for storing naphtha produced by the gaseous hydrocarbon separation unit. The system may also include an MTBE production unit connected to the steam cracking unit. The MTBE production unit can receive C4 hydrocarbons from the cracking unit and produce 2-butene and MTBE. 2-butene can be isomerized in a butene isomerization unit to produce a composition rich in 1-butene and residual butenes containing 2-butene. The butene hydrogenation unit can be connected to a steam cracking unit and a butene isomerization unit. The butene hydrogenation unit can produce butanes from butenes and provide butanes to the steam cracking unit. In some aspects, the system includes an alkylation unit (for example, a selective hydrogenation unit can be located downstream of the steam cracking unit and upstream of the alkylation unit) coupled indirectly to the steam cracking unit. The alkylation unit can produce alkylates from C4 hydrocarbons produced by the steam cracking unit and / or the selective hydrogenation unit. In some aspects, the system may include a residual oil hydrocracking unit, which can receive a heavy stream and is configured to produce naphtha from a heavy hydrocarbon stream. Naphtha can be transported to the steam cracking unit by a naphtha pipeline. In some aspects, the system includes a hydrocracking unit that can receive gas oil and is configured to produce naphtha and unconverted oil (UCO) from gas oil. The produced naphtha can be supplied to the steam cracker through a second naphtha pipeline. UCO differs from the hydrocracking feedstock in that it has been converted by hydrotreating and contains saturated hydrocarbons.

[0007] The present invention also describes a method for producing hydrocarbon products using the system of the present invention. In one aspect, the method for producing hydrocarbons may include: (a) subjecting a hydrocarbon feed including crude oil, pyrolysis oil or a mixture thereof to conditions sufficient to produce a gaseous hydrocarbon stream, which may include hydrocarbons with a boiling point below 200°C, preferably 180°C, a gas oil stream and a heavy hydrocarbon stream. The conditions in step (a) may include a temperature of 200°C to 490°C. In step (b), the gaseous hydrocarbons may be separated into C2-C3 hydrocarbons, C4 hydrocarbons and naphtha in a gaseous hydrocarbon separation unit. The sulfur content of the gaseous hydrocarbons of step (a) may be less than 500ppm, preferably less than 300ppm. In some aspects, the gaseous hydrocarbons have a sulfur content of less than 500ppm before entering the gaseous hydrocarbon separation unit. C4 hydrocarbons (e.g., butane) may be stored in a storage device. Naphtha may also be stored in a storage device. In step (c), the C2-C3 hydrocarbons may be subjected to steam cracking conditions sufficient to produce ethylene. On the one hand, the method may include subjecting the gas oil to conditions sufficient to produce a second naphtha composition and UCO. The second naphtha composition, UCO or a mixture thereof may be provided to the steam cracking unit of step (c) to continue the method. In some aspects, the heavy hydrocarbons in step (a) may be subjected to conditions sufficient to produce a third naphtha stream and asphalt. The third naphtha stream may be provided to the steam cracking unit of step (c) to further carry out the method for producing hydrocarbon products. In the steam cracking unit, the second and third naphtha streams, UCO streams or a combination thereof may be subjected to conditions sufficient to produce a second C4 hydrocarbon composition and ethylene. In some aspects, a portion of the second C4 hydrocarbon composition may be processed to produce MTBE. The MTBE method may produce a mixture of 1-butene and 2-butene, which may be subjected to conditions suitable for isomerizing 2-butene to form a stream rich in 1-butene and residual butene containing unreacted 2-butene. Unreacted 2-butene may be hydrogenated to form butane, which may be recycled to the steam cracking unit in step (c) to further carry out the method. In some aspects, a portion of the second C4 hydrocarbon composition can be used to produce alkylate.The second and third naphtha streams, the UCO stream, or a combination thereof can be subjected to conditions in a steam cracker sufficient to continue the process.

[0008] In another aspect, a method for producing a hydrocarbon product may include: (a) subjecting a C4 hydrocarbon composition comprising olefins obtained from a steam cracker to conditions suitable for producing methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) and olefins comprising 2-butene. In step (b), the olefins in step (a) may be subjected to suitable isomerization conditions to produce 1-butene from 2-butene and residual butenes, and the 1-butene is subjected to the process of step (a) to produce additional MTBE. In step (c), the residual butenes in step (b) may be subjected to suitable hydrogenation conditions to produce alkanes comprising butanes, and the alkanes may be recycled to the steam cracker.

[0009] In another aspect of the present invention, a method for producing a hydrocarbon product may include: (a) subjecting a C4 hydrocarbon composition obtained from a steam cracker, which may include alkynes, alkenes, or mixtures thereof, to hydrogenation conditions suitable for selectively hydrogenating alkynes and alkenes, and producing a composition comprising alkenes and alkanes. In step (b), the composition of step (a) may be subjected to suitable conditions to produce alkylates and hydrogenated C4 hydrocarbons. In step (c), at least a portion of the hydrogenated C4 hydrocarbons is recycled to the steam cracker.

[0010] The application discusses other embodiments of the present invention in full. Any embodiment discussed for one aspect of the present invention is also applicable to other aspects of the present invention, and vice versa. Each embodiment described herein should be understood as an embodiment applicable to other aspects of the present invention. It is conceivable that any embodiment or aspect discussed herein can be combined with other embodiments or aspects discussed herein and / or implemented for any method or composition of the present invention, and vice versa. In addition, the composition of the present invention can be used to realize the method of the present invention.

[0011] The following includes definitions of various terms and phrases used in this specification.

[0012] The term "C# hydrocarbons", where # is a positive integer, is intended to describe all hydrocarbons having # carbon atoms. Furthermore, the term "C#+ hydrocarbons" is intended to describe all hydrocarbon molecules having # or more carbon atoms. Thus, the term "C2+ hydrocarbons" is intended to describe a mixture of hydrocarbons having 2 or more carbon atoms. Thus, the term "C2+ alkanes" relates to alkanes having 2 or more carbon atoms.

[0013] The term "about" or "approximately" is defined as close to, as understood by one of ordinary skill in the art. In a non-limiting embodiment, the term is defined as within 10%, preferably within 5%, more preferably within 1%, and most preferably within 0.5%.

[0014] The terms "wt. %, "vol. %" or "mol. %" refer to the weight percentage of a component, the volume percentage of a component or the mole percentage of a component, respectively, based on the total weight, the total volume or the total number of moles of the material including the component. In a non-limiting example, 10 grams of a component in 100 grams of a material is 10 wt,% of the component.

[0015] The term "substantially" and variations thereof are defined to include ranges within 10%, within 5%, within 1%, or within 0.5%.

[0016] The terms "inhibit" or "reduce" or "prevent" or "avoid" or any variation of these terms when used in the claims and / or specification include any measurable reduction or complete inhibition to achieve a desired result.

[0017] The term "effective" as used in this specification and / or claims means sufficient to achieve a desired, intended, or expected result.

[0018] In the claims or description, when "a" or "an" is used in conjunction with the terms "includes," "comprising," "containing," or "having," it may mean "one," but is also consistent with the meaning of "one or more," "at least one," and "one or more."

[0019] The words "comprise" (and any form of including, such as "comprises" and "comprises"), "have" (and any form of having, such as "have" and "has"), "include" (and any form of including, such as "includes" and "include"), or "contain" (and any form of containing, such as "contains" and "contain") are inclusive or open-ended and do not exclude additional, unrecited elements or method steps.

[0020] The systems and methods of the present invention may "comprise," "consist essentially of," or "consist of" particular ingredients, components, compositions, etc. disclosed throughout the specification. With respect to the transitional phrase "consisting essentially of," in one non-limiting aspect, a fundamental and novel feature of the systems and methods of the present invention is their ability to produce petrochemical products from crude oil.

[0021] Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following drawings, detailed descriptions and examples. However, it should be understood that although the drawings, detailed descriptions and examples show specific embodiments of the present invention, they are given by way of illustration only and are not intended to be limiting. In addition, it is contemplated that from this detailed description, those skilled in the art will clearly understand the changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the present invention. In further embodiments, the features of a particular embodiment may be combined with the features of other embodiments. For example, the features of one embodiment may be combined with any one of the features in another embodiment. In further embodiments, additional features may be added to the particular embodiments described herein. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0022] Advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0023] FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a system for producing hydrocarbon products from a crude oil feedstock, the system comprising a crude oil processing unit connected to a gaseous hydrocarbon separation unit, and a steam cracking unit connected to the crude oil processing unit and the gaseous hydrocarbon separation unit.

[0024] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the system of FIG. 1 showing additional processing devices.

[0025] FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of the system of FIG. 1 , which includes a butene isomerization unit connected to a hydrogenation unit, which is connected to a steam cracking unit.

[0026] FIG. 4 illustrates an embodiment of the system of FIG. 1 , which includes an alkylation unit indirectly coupled to a steam cracking unit.

[0027] Although the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof are shown by way of example in the accompanying drawings. The drawings may not be drawn to scale. In addition, the schematic diagrams shown in Figures 1-4 may be combined with each other, for example, to create a more robust method for producing various petrochemical products from crude oil. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] A discovery has provided a solution to at least one problem associated with producing hydrocarbon products from a hydrocarbon composition comprising crude oil, cracking oil from a cracker, or a mixture thereof. In one aspect, the hydrocarbon composition can be processed in a heavy hydrocarbon processing unit to produce gaseous hydrocarbons having a boiling point below 200°C, preferably below 180°C, gaseous petroleum and heavy hydrocarbons. The gaseous petroleum can be provided to a steam cracker for further processing. By removing hydrocarbons having a boiling point below 200°C from the stream fed to the steam cracker, the cracking temperature of the steam cracker can be reduced and / or the selectivity for olefins (e.g., ethylene or propylene) can be increased. Without being bound by theory, it is believed that limiting the amount of naphtha and / or C4 hydrocarbons in the steam cracker can reduce the vapor pressure in the unit, thereby allowing the C4+ hydrocarbons to be cracked to ethylene and propylene at a lower temperature. Any C4 hydrocarbons produced in the steam cracker can be further processed in an MTBE processing unit to produce MTBE and / or further processed in an alkylation unit to produce alkylate. Providing a portion of the C4 hydrocarbons to the alkylation unit can reduce the amount of methanol purchased for the MTBE process while producing petrochemical products such as alkylates, thereby reducing the costs associated with MTBE production. The butenes generated in the MTBE process can be separated into 1-butene and 2-butene using an isomerization process. 2-Butene can be further hydrogenated to generate additional C4 hydrocarbons, which can be recycled to the steam cracking unit to continue the method of the present invention. In general, the method of the present invention can provide a more cost-effective and / or energy-efficient system for producing various petrochemical products from crude oil. These and other non-limiting aspects of the present invention will be discussed in further detail in the following sections with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0029] FIG. 1 shows a system for producing petroleum products from crude oil, waste pyrolysis oil or their mixture. Referring to FIG. 1, a system 100 for producing petroleum products is described. System 100 may include a crude oil treatment unit 102, a gaseous hydrocarbon separation unit 104 and a steam cracking unit 106. Crude oil is unrefined petroleum extracted from geological formations. The term crude oil may also include oil that has been subjected to water-oil separation and / or gas-oil separation and / or desalting and / or stabilization treatment. Non-limiting examples of crude oil include Arab heavy crude oil, Arab light crude oil, other Gulf crude oils, Brent crude oil, North Sea crude oil, North African and West African crude oils, Indonesian crude oil, Chinese crude oil, West Texas crude oil and mixtures thereof, and also include shale oil, oil sands, condensate and bio-based oil. The crude oil used as feed for the method of the present invention is preferably conventional petroleum, and its API gravity is greater than 20°API (measured according to ASTMD287 standard). On the one hand, the crude oil used in the method of the present invention is a light crude oil with an API gravity greater than 30°API. On the other hand, the crude oil used in the method of the present invention is a light crude oil with an API gravity greater than 30°API. The present invention may include Arabian light crude oil. Arabian light crude oil generally has an API gravity between 32-36° API and a sulfur content between 1.5-4.5 wt,%. Pyoil may include waste fuel oil type materials with high aromatics and other multi-carbon ring structure molecules and optionally elemental carbon.

[0030] The crude hydrocarbon stream 108 may include crude oil, waste pyrolysis oil, or a mixture thereof, and may enter the heavy hydrocarbon processing unit 102. Although only one stream is shown in FIG. 1 , it is understood that the crude oil and waste pyrolysis oil may enter the heavy hydrocarbon processing unit through separate pipelines. In the heavy hydrocarbon processing unit 102, the crude hydrocarbon stream 108 may be processed into a light hydrocarbon stream 110, a gas oil hydrocarbon stream 112, and a residual oil stream 114. The boiling temperature of the light hydrocarbon stream may be less than 200° C., preferably less than 180° C. (e.g., 200° C., 195° C., 190° C., 180° C., 175° C. or lower, or any range or value therebetween). The boiling point range of the gas oil may be about 340-560° C., more preferably about 350-550° C., more preferably 250-360° C., and most preferably about 260-350° C. The boiling point of the residual oil stream 114 may be greater than about 490° C. The heavy hydrocarbon processing unit 102 may include a flash vessel, an integrated separation unit, and a hot hydrogen stripper. Integrated separation units are known in the art, and a person skilled in the art of crude oil processing can determine the type of integrated separation unit required for the method. In the integrated separation unit, a low boiling point fraction may be initially separated based on a combination of centrifugal and cyclonic effects to separate light hydrocarbons with a boiling point below 200° C. The fraction with a boiling point below 200° C. may steam control the naphtha processed in the steam cracking unit 106, thereby increasing the conversion rate of high boiling point hydrocarbons to ethylene.

[0031] Hydrocarbons with boiling points above 200°C can be heated and pressurized with hot hydrogen to separate residual hydrocarbons to obtain a hydrocarbon stream (gas oil) of 200°C to 490°C. The hot hydrogen stripper can use hydrogen feed as a stripping medium and can be operated to provide a wide range of flexibility according to the composition of the crude hydrocarbon stream entering the heavy hydrocarbon processing unit 102. The gas oil can be cooled to recover hydrogen and further processed as described herein. After the recovered hydrogen is treated with amines (not shown), it can be sent to a downstream pressure swing adsorption (PSA) unit (not shown) to improve the purity of the hydrogen. The PSA hydrogen product can be compressed in a supplementary hydrogen compressor (not shown) to provide supplementary hydrogen for one or more hydroprocessing units. In some embodiments, the heavy hydrocarbon processing unit 102 can produce a stream other than gas oil. By adjusting the amount of hydrogen fed to the hot hydrogen stripper, as well as the operating conditions of the hot hydrogen stripper and the heater, the hydrocarbon cut point can be adjusted to produce other fractions (or UCO) fractions from the gas oil.

[0032] The light hydrocarbon stream 110 may leave the crude oil processing unit 102 and enter the gaseous hydrocarbon separation unit 104. In the gaseous hydrocarbon separation unit 104, the light hydrocarbon stream 110 may be separated into any one or any combination or all of naphtha, C4 hydrocarbons and / or C2-C3 hydrocarbons. The gaseous hydrocarbon separation unit may receive a stream from other processing units (e.g., from a fixed bed hydrocracking unit or a moving bed hydrocracking unit). The gaseous hydrocarbon separation unit may be connected to the hydrocracking unit or may be part of the hydrocracking unit. The gaseous hydrocarbon separation unit 104 may include one or more distillation units known in the art capable of separating hydrocarbons having a boiling point below 200°C. For example, a naphtha stream having a boiling point range of 20°C to 190°C, a C4 hydrocarbon stream having a boiling point range of -10°C to 0°C (preferably -5°C), and a C2 / C3 hydrocarbon stream having a boiling point range of -90°C to -40°C. In some embodiments, the gaseous hydrocarbon separation unit may include one or more devices capable of removing sulfur-containing compounds from the light hydrocarbon stream 110. The sulfur content can be reduced to or below 500 ppm, preferably below 300 ppm (e.g., 500, 450, 425, 400, 375, 350, 325, 300, 275, 250, 225, 200, 175, 150, 125, 100 ppm or less, or any range or value therebetween) using conventional methods. The light hydrocarbons can be processed (e.g., multiple distillations) to remove hydrogen and / or other impurities (e.g., CO2 / H2S) and separated into naphtha, C4 hydrocarbons, and C2-C3 gases. The naphtha stream 116 can leave the gaseous hydrocarbon separation unit 104 and enter the storage unit 118. The C4 hydrocarbon stream 120 can leave the gaseous hydrocarbon separation unit 104 and enter the storage unit 122.

[0033] The C2-C3 hydrocarbon stream 124 may leave the gaseous hydrocarbon separation unit 104 and enter the steam cracking unit 106. In the steam cracking unit 106, the C2-C3 feed may be subjected to a steam cracking temperature of 600° C. to 900° C. (e.g., 600° C., 625° C., 650° C., 675° C., 700° C., 725° C., 750° C., 775° C., 850° C., 875° C., 900° C., or any value or range therebetween) and / or a pressure of 0.2 MPa to 0.3 MPa (e.g., 0.2 MPa, 0.21 MPa, 0.22 MPa, 0.23 MPa, 0.24 MPa, 0.25 MPa, 0.26 MPa, 0.27 MPa, 0.28 MPa, 0.30 MPa, or any value or range therebetween). At such temperature and pressure, ethane C2-C3 hydrocarbons are cracked to produce ethylene and propylene. In the steam cracking process, by diluting the mixed hydrocarbon feed with steam, and heating the mixture in a furnace under anoxic conditions, saturated hydrocarbons are decomposed into smaller, normally unsaturated hydrocarbons, such as ethylene and propylene. The residence time of the steam cracking reaction can reach 50 to 1000 milliseconds. The steam cracking unit can have a fractionation unit (not shown) or a gas fractionation unit (not shown), which can separate alkanes from olefin products. Such fractionation units are well known in the art. Ethylene stream 126 can leave steam cracking unit 106, and be stored, sold or used for other processing units. Propylene stream 128 can leave steam cracking unit 106, and be stored, sold or used for other processing units.

[0034] The gas oil stream 112 may leave the crude oil processing unit 102 and enter the gas oil processing unit 130. In the gas oil processing unit 130, the gas oil stream 112 may be subjected to various distillation methods, hydrocracking methods, or a combination of the two to produce naphtha and UCO. The gas oil processing may include a single fixed bed catalytic reactor or two such reactors in series and one or more fractionation units to separate the desired products from the unconverted materials, and may also be combined with the ability to recycle the unconverted materials to one or both reactors. The gas oil processing reactor may be operated at a temperature of 200-600° C., preferably 300-400° C., a pressure of 3-35 MPa, preferably 5-20 MPa, and 5-20 wt. % of hydrogen (relative to the hydrocarbon feedstock) in the presence of a bifunctional catalyst active for hydrogenation, dehydrogenation, and ring cracking, and the hydrogen may flow in parallel with the hydrocarbon feedstock or in countercurrent with the flow direction of the hydrocarbon feedstock, wherein aromatic ring saturation and ring cracking may be performed. The catalyst used in such a process comprises one or more elements selected from palladium, rhodium, ruthenium, iridium, osmium, copper, cobalt, nickel, platinum, iron, zinc, gallium, indium, molybdenum, tungsten and vanadium, which are supported on an acidic solid (such as alumina, silica, alumina-silica and zeolite) in the form of a metal or metal sulfide. The naphtha stream 132 (second naphtha stream) and the UCO stream 134 can each leave the gas oil processing unit 130 and enter the steam cracking unit 106 to continue the process to produce petroleum products (e.g., ethylene, propylene and butane). FIG. 2 is a diagram of the system 100, depicting one aspect of the distillation, hydrocracking, and hydrotreating units that can be used in the gas oil processing unit 130.

[0035] In the steam cracking unit 106, the naphtha stream 132 and the UCO stream 134 are subjected to the aforementioned steam cracking conditions to produce ethylene, propylene and C4 hydrocarbons, pyrolysis gasoline and C7 / 8 hydrocarbons. The C4 hydrocarbons may be a mixture of butadiene, butane and butenes, such as ethyl acetylene, vinyl acetylene, 1,3-butadiene, 1,2-butadiene, isobutylene, cis-2-butene, trans-2-butene, 1-butene, isobutane and normal butane.

[0036] With reference to Fig. 3, in system 200, part or all of the C4 hydrocarbons produced by steam cracking unit 106 can be further processed to produce methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) and additional C4 hydrocarbons. In some embodiments, C4 hydrocarbons are produced by steam cracking unit 106 or different steam cracking units. C4 hydrocarbon stream 136 can leave steam cracking unit 106 and enter butadiene separation unit 138. In butadiene separation unit 138, butadiene can be separated from C4 hydrocarbons to form butadiene composition and butene / butane composition. Butadiene stream 140 can leave butadiene separation unit 138 and be stored, transported or used in other processing units. Butene / butane stream 142 can leave butadiene separation unit 138 and enter methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) production unit 140. In MTBE production unit 140, butene / butane stream 142 contacts with methanol under conditions suitable for generating MTBE, MTBE effluent and 1-butene. MTBE stream 146 can leave MTBE production unit 140 and be stored and / or transported. 1-Butene stream 148 can leave MTBE production unit 140 and be stored, used in other processing units and / or transported. MTBE effluent 150 can leave MTBE production unit 140 and enter butene isomerization unit 152. MTBE effluent can be a 2-butene-enriched stream containing 1-butene. In butene isomerization unit 152, 2-butene is contacted with a catalyst under isomerization conditions to produce a 1-butene-rich stream and a residual butene stream. The catalyst can be any known 2-butene isomerization catalyst. Isomerization conditions include reaction temperatures generally in the range of about 50° to 300°C. Reactor operating pressures can typically be in the range of about atmospheric pressure to 5MPa. The amount of catalyst in the reactor can provide about 0.5 to 100hr -1 The enriched 1-butene stream 154 may exit the butene isomerization unit 152 and enter the MTBE production unit 140. The residual olefin stream 156 may exit the butene isomerization unit and enter the C4 olefin / alkyne hydrogenation unit 158. In the C4 olefin / alkyne hydrogenation unit 158, the C4 olefins and alkynes may be contacted with a catalyst and hydrogen under conditions sufficient to produce additional C4 hydrocarbons.

[0037] Referring to FIG. 4 , in system 300 , some or all of the C4 hydrocarbons produced by steam cracking unit 106 can be further processed to produce alkylates. In some embodiments, C4 hydrocarbons are produced by steam cracking unit 106 or different steam cracking units. In system 300 , some or all of the C4 hydrocarbon stream 136 can leave steam cracking unit 106 and enter SHU (selective hydrogenation unit) 162. In SHU 162 , C4 hydrocarbons are subjected to appropriate conditions to remove alkynes, dienes and / or olefins, and produce olefin compositions and additional C4 hydrocarbons. Additional C4 hydrocarbons 164 can leave SHU 162 and enter steam cracking unit 106 to continue the process. Olefin composition stream 166 can enter alkylation unit 168. Olefin composition can include olefins and alkanes. In alkylation unit 168 , olefin composition is subjected to certain conditions to produce alkylates. Alkylation stream 170 can leave alkylation unit 168 and be stored, transported or processed in other units. Any or all of the parts in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 may be combined with any or all of the parts in FIG. 3 and / or FIG. 4 , and vice versa.

[0038] Referring again to FIG. 1 , the residue stream 114 may leave the crude oil processing unit 102 and enter the residue hydrocracking unit 144. The residue hydrocracking unit 144 is capable of converting the residue into naphtha and gas oil. The naphtha stream 146 (third naphtha stream) may leave the resident hydrocracking unit 144 and merge with the naphtha stream 132 (second naphtha stream) or enter the steam cracking unit 106 (not shown). The gas oil stream 148 may leave the residual hydrocracking unit 144 and merge with the gas oil stream 112, or enter the gas oil processing unit 130 for further processing. Any residue hydrocracking process may be used. For example, commercial hydrocracking may employ three basic reactor types, namely fixed bed (trickle bed) reactor type, ebullient bed reactor type, and slurry (fluidized bed) reactor type. The fixed bed residue hydrocracking process is capable of processing contaminated fluids such as atmospheric residue and vacuum residue to produce diesel and naphtha. The catalyst used in the fixed-bed residue hydrocracking process includes cobalt (CO), molybdenum (Mo), nickel (Ni) or a combination thereof on a refractory support (usually alumina). For feeds with a higher degree of contamination, the catalyst in the fixed-bed residue hydrocracking process can also be supplemented to a certain extent (moving bed). The process conditions may include a temperature of 350-450°C and a pressure of 2-20 MPa gauge pressure. The ebullient bed residue hydrocracking process can continuously replace the catalyst, so that highly contaminated feeds can be processed. The catalyst used in the ebullient bed residue hydrocracking process may include Co, Mo, Ni or a combination thereof on a refractory support, usually alumina. The process conditions may include a temperature of 350-450°C and a pressure of 5-25 MPa gauge pressure. The slurry residue hydrocracking process is a combination of thermal cracking and catalytic hydrogenation, which can obtain a high yield of distillable products from heavy residue feedstocks that are usually heavily contaminated. In the slurry reactor, the first liquid phase, thermal cracking and hydrocracking reactions can occur simultaneously in the bubble slurry phase, and the process conditions include a temperature of 400-500°C and a pressure of 15-25 MPa gauge pressure. The residue, hydrogen and catalyst are introduced at the bottom of the reactor to form a bubble slurry phase; its height depends on the flow rate and the required conversion rate. In these processes, the catalyst can be continuously replaced to achieve a consistent conversion level throughout the operating cycle. The catalyst can be an unsupported metal sulfide generated in situ in the reactor. The heavy fraction produced by the residue reforming can be recycled to the residue hydrocracking unit 144 until it is used up. In addition, the higher boiling point hydrocarbons (heavy pyrolysis oil (HPO) in Figure 2) stream 150 can leave the gas oil processing unit 130 and enter the residue hydrocracking unit 144 for further processing. The residue hydrocracking unit 144 can also produce an asphalt stream 152.

[0039] Although the embodiments of the present application and their advantages have been described in detail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions and modifications can be made herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the embodiments defined in the appended claims. In addition, the scope of the present application is not limited to the specific embodiments of the methods, machines, manufactures, material compositions, devices, methods and steps described in the specification. It can be easily understood by those of ordinary skill in the art from the above disclosure that existing or later developed methods, machines, manufactures, material compositions, devices, methods or steps that perform substantially the same functions as the corresponding embodiments described herein or achieve substantially the same results can be utilized. Therefore, the attached claims are intended to include these processes, machines, manufactures, material compositions, devices, methods or steps within their scope.

Claims

1. A system for producing hydrocarbon products, characterized in that: The system includes: a heavy hydrocarbon processing unit capable of receiving crude oil, waste thermal oil, or a mixture thereof and producing a gaseous hydrocarbon stream and a gas oil stream comprising hydrocarbons having a boiling point below 200°C; a gaseous hydrocarbon unit capable of receiving a gaseous hydrocarbon stream comprising hydrocarbons having a boiling point below 200° C. produced by a crude oil processing unit and capable of producing a naphtha stream, a gaseous stream comprising C4 hydrocarbons, and a C2-C3 hydrocarbon stream; a steam cracking unit capable of receiving a C2-C3 hydrocarbon stream and cracking the C2-C3 hydrocarbon stream to produce ethylene and propylene; a storage unit connected to the gaseous hydrocarbon unit and capable of receiving a gaseous stream comprising C4 hydrocarbons; and a storage device connected to the gaseous hydrocarbon device and capable of receiving the naphtha.

2. The system according to any one of claim 1, characterized in that The crude oil processing unit includes an integrated separation unit and a thermal hydrogen separation unit.

3. The system according to any one of claims 1 to 2, characterized in that Further including: Butene hydrogenation unit; and a C4 pipeline connected to the steam cracking unit and the butene hydrogenation unit, wherein the C4 pipeline can provide C4 hydrocarbons from the butene hydrogenation unit to the steam cracking unit.

4. The system according to claim 3, characterized in that It also includes a 2-butene isomerization unit connected to the butene hydrogenation unit and capable of isomerizing 2-butene into 1-butene; and a second C4 pipeline connected to the 2-butene isomerization unit and the butene hydrogenation unit, and the C4 pipeline can provide residual C4 olefins from the 2-butene isomerization unit to the butene hydrogenation unit.

5. The system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that The method further comprises an alkylation unit located downstream of the steam cracking unit, the alkylation unit being capable of receiving a stream containing C4 olefins and / or C4 alkanes and producing alkylates, and optionally, a selective hydrogenation unit located downstream of the steam cracking unit and upstream of the alkylation unit, the selective hydrogenation unit being capable of hydrogenating the C4 olefins and recycling the C4 olefins and / or C4 alkanes to the steam cracking unit, and / or It also includes: a residue hydrocracking unit, which is capable of receiving a residue stream produced by a heavy hydrocarbon processing unit and is configured to produce naphtha from the residue stream; and a naphtha pipeline connected to the residue hydrocracking unit and the steam cracking unit, which is capable of providing naphtha from the residue hydrocracking unit to the steam cracking unit, and / or also includes: a hydrocracking unit capable of receiving gas oil and configured to produce naphtha and unconverted oil (UC) from the gas oil; and a second naphtha pipeline connected to the hydrocracking unit and the steam cracking unit, which is capable of providing naphtha from the residue hydrocracking unit to the steam cracking unit.

6. A method for producing hydrocarbons, characterized in that: The method includes: (a) subjecting a hydrocarbon composition comprising a crude oil feed, waste thermal oil or a mixture thereof to conditions sufficient to produce gaseous hydrocarbons, including hydrocarbons having a boiling point below 200° C., preferably 180° C., gas oils and heavy hydrocarbons; (b) separating the gaseous hydrocarbons into C2-C3 hydrocarbons, C4 hydrocarbons and naphtha in a gaseous hydrocarbon unit; (c) subjecting the C2-C3 hydrocarbons to conditions sufficient to produce ethylene, C4 hydrocarbons, and optionally propylene in a steam cracking unit; and (d) storing the C4 hydrocarbons and naphtha produced in step (b).

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that wherein the conditions in step (a) include a temperature of 200°C to 490°C, and / or further include subjecting the gas oil of step (a) to conditions sufficient to produce a second naphtha composition and unconverted oil (UCO), and / or further include providing the second naphtha composition to the steam cracking unit of step (c), and / or further include providing UCO to the steam cracking unit of step (c).

8. The method according to any one of claims 6 or 7, characterized in that Also included is subjecting the heavy hydrocarbons to conditions sufficient to produce a third naphtha composition.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that Also included is providing the third naphtha composition to the steam cracking unit of step (c).

10. The method according to any one of claims 7 to 9, characterized in that Also included is subjecting the second and third naphtha compositions, UCO, or a combination thereof in the steam cracker to conditions sufficient to produce ethylene and a C4 hydrocarbon composition comprising olefins.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that In a methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) production unit, a C4 hydrocarbon composition is subjected to conditions suitable for producing MTBE and olefins including 2-butene.

12. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that The olefins are subjected to suitable isomerization conditions to produce 1-butene from 2-butene and residual butenes, and the 1-butene is provided to the MTBE production unit.

13. The method according to any one of claims 11 or 12, characterized in that wherein the residual butenes are subjected to hydrogenation conditions suitable for producing alkanes comprising butanes, and said alkanes are provided to the steam cracking unit of step (c).

14. The method according to any one of claims 8 to 18, characterized in that The sulfur content of the gaseous hydrocarbon is less than 500 ppm, preferably less than 300 ppm.

15. The method according to any one of claims 6 to 13, characterized in that The C4 hydrocarbons produced in step (c) are hydrogenated and then provided to the alkylation process, and optionally at least a portion of the hydrogenated C4 hydrocarbons are recycled to the steam cracking unit.

16. A method for producing a hydrocarbon product, characterized in that: The method includes: (a) subjecting a C4 hydrocarbon composition comprising olefins obtained from a steam cracker to conditions suitable for producing methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) and olefins comprising 2-butene; (b) subjecting the olefins of step (a) to appropriate isomerization conditions to produce 1-butene from 2-butene and residual butenes, and subjecting the 1-butene to the process of step (a) to produce additional MTBE; and (c) subjecting the residual butenes of step (b) to hydrogenation conditions suitable for producing alkanes comprising butanes and providing the alkanes to a steam cracking unit.

17. A method for producing a hydrocarbon product, characterized in that: The method includes: (a) subjecting a C4 hydrocarbon composition comprising alkynes obtained from a steam cracker to hydrogenation conditions suitable for selectively hydrogenating the alkynes and producing a composition comprising olefins; (b) subjecting the olefin to suitable conditions to produce alkylates and hydrogenate C4 hydrocarbons; and (c) recycling at least a portion of the hydrogenated C4 hydrocarbons to the steam cracking unit.

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