DELAYED COKING

EKB4303 PETROLEUM REFINERY ENGINEERING

 Type of thermal cracking

Heat is required- supplied by furnace
Takes place in drums operating continuously
Carbon rejection process
Minimizes residence time in furnace, while sufficient time allowed in drums where
coking takes place
Coke is rejected in the drums, increasing H/C ratio in rest of the products (unstable
& unsaturated) requires hydrogenation
Feed to coker: Vacuum reside (high on asphaltenes, resins, aromatics, Sulphur,
metals)
Deposited coke contains asphaltenes, Sulphur, metals present in feed and
products are unsaturated gases (olefins) and highly aromatic liquids

ROLE OF DELAYED COKER

Feed: any undesirable heavy stream containing high metal content
Common feed: Vacuum residue
Other feeds: Fluid catalytic cracking slurry & visbreaking tar (residues)
Products from coker: unsaturated gases, olefins, isobutane
Olefins: very desirable feedstocks to petrochemical industry
Coker: Only unit in the refinery to produce coke
Overall refining yield of light products increases as a result of coke
removal
*Role of delayed coker: Handles very heavy undesirable stream and
produce desirable refinery products

DELAYED COKER

PROCESS DESCRIPTION

Delayed Coker Feed & Furnace

Vacuum residue enters bottom of flash zone in distillation

column (below gas oil tray)

Total feed (fresh feed + recycle) to coker drums are heated

>482C(900F)

Outlet temperature: 925F (endothermic reactions)

Cracking starts: about 800F

Fractions lighter than heavy gas oil flashed off

Remaining oil fed to coking furnace

Steam injected to prevent premature coking

Reduce oil partial pressure &

increase vaporization
Maintain high fluid velocities

Delayed Coker Coke Drum

Filling drum

Liquid-vapour mixture passes to

one of the coking drum- coke
deposited for 24 hour

Cutting drum: decoking & cleaning

Flow up from bottom

Vapours (gas, naphtha, gas oils) out top of drum to fractionator

Number of coke drums

Even numbers: typically 2/4

Operates as pairs: 1 filling, 1
decoked

Delayed Coker Fractionator

Above fresh feed entry, 2-3 trays below gas oil drawoff tray:

Reflux with partially cooled gas oil providing fine

trim control of gas oil end point
Minimize entrainment of any fresh feed/recycle
liquid into gas oil product

Gas oil side draw, a conventional configuration using a 6-to-8-tray stripper with steam
under the bottom tray for vaporization of light ends to control initial boiling point (IBP)
of gas oil

Steam & vaporized light ends returned from top of gas oil stripper to fractionator, 1 or
2 trays above draw tray

Pump around reflux system at the draw tray provided:

Recover heat at a high temperature level

Minimize low temperature level heat (cannot be
recovered by heat exchange & rejected to
atmosphere thru cooling water tower) removed
by overhead condenser

8-10 trays used between gas oil draw and naphtha draw or column top. Additional trays
required above naphtha draw tray if naphtha side draw is employed.

Vapors (Fuels Gas & LPG) compressed & sent

to gas plant

Naphtha condensed & sent to other refinery

unit for gasoline production

Gas oils (Light & Heavy) are side streams

draws sent for hydrotreating into diesel &
other products

Flash Zone Gas internally recycled to coke

drums/recovered as additional liquid

Delayed Coking Variables

Temperature controls quality of coke produced:

High temperature

Process
Variables

Feedstock
Variables

Engineering
Variables

Cycle time

Characterizati Mode of
on factor
operation

Temperature Conradson
carbon
Pressure

Sulphur
content

removes more volatile materials

coke yield decreases
coke formation in furnace

Low temperature
Incomplete coking if low inlet furnace
Short cycle time increase capacity but lower amount of
liquid products & shortens drum lifetime

Increase coke formation

Increases gas yield

Capacity

Recycle ratio Metal content, Equipment

characterizati used for coke
on
removal &
handling

High Pressure

New units: 1 bar gauge (15psig)

Current units: 2.4 bar gauge (35psig)
Needle coke production: 150psig

Recycle ratio (3%): controls the endpoint of the coker gas oil

Feedstock variables:

Characterization factor & Conradson carbon- affect yield

production
Sulphur & metal content- retained in coke production

Engineering variables: affect process performance

Types of Coke
Type of
coke

Operating condition

Feed
characterizatio
n

Coke property

End use as
calcinated coke

Sponge

Reflux ratio >35%

Operating pressure: 24bar

Low metal
Low S
Tar residue
FCC heavy dist
Low to moderate
asphaltene

M< 200
S < 2.5%
High density >780
HGI a~ 100

Anodes for
aluminum
industry

Shot

Low pressure
Low reflux ratio
Large drums

High S
High metal
Low asphaltene

High S and metal

Low HGI<50
Low surface area

Fuel (green)

Needle

Pressure >4bar
Reflux ratio: 60-100%
to max. coke yield
High temperature to
reduce volatile

High aromatics
content
Tars, FCC decant
Low S <0.5wt%
Low ash <0.1wt

Crystalline
structure
Small needles of
high conductivity

Graphite
electrodes

 Sponge Coke
Sponge-like appearance
Produced from feeds with low to moderate
asphaltene content

Needle coke
Needle-like structure
Made from feed: no asphaltene contents
(decent oils from FCC)
Used to make expensive graphite electrodessteel industry

Shot cake
Undesirable product
Produced when feedstock asphaltene content is
high/when drum temperature is too high
Discrete mini balls
Methods to eliminate:
Adding aromatic feed (FCC decant oil)
Decreasing temperature
Increasing pressure & recycle ratio

Coking and Decoking Operation

Coke formation takes the channel branching theory

Allows further gas flow while coke is formed progressively

Decoking:
Each coke drum has a drilling rig that raises & lowers a rotating
cutting head
High pressure (4,000psig) water

Drilling a vertical hole in coke after cooling using a mechanical

boring tool (Figure 6.5A)
Further coke removal: Hydraulic cutting tool requires a great
amount of jet of water which has to be treated (Figure 6.5B)
Switching the drums, cooling by steam, draining in the coke,
warming up the drum & leaving spare time for contingency

Time cycle of Delayed

Coking

Decoking to
rail car

Decoking to pit

Decoking

 Drum cooled & displaced with water to remove volatiles

Pilot hole is drilled thru coke to bottom head
Pilot drill bit replaced with a much larger high-pressure water bit
Cut-direction- predominantly top to bottom
Bottom up cutting risks stuck drill if bed collapses

The coke falls coke drum into a collection system

REFERENCES
1. Fahim, M. A. Fundamentals Of Petroleum Refining. Amsterdam:
Elsevier Science, 2010. Print.
2. Adams, Jack. Coking 101 An Introduction To Delayed Coking. 1st
ed. Process Engineering Associates, LLC, 2015. Web. 2015.
http://www.processengr.com/ppt_presentations/coking_101.pdf

3. Jechura, John.Delayed Coking Chapter 5. 1st ed. Colorado:

Colorado School of Mines, 2013. Web.
http://inside.mines.edu/~jjechura/Refining/06_Delayed_Coking.pdf

THANK YOU
Prepared by,
SASWINY SANGGARI A/P RICHARD RAVI