Radiation-thermal conversion of paraffinic oil

Radiation-thermal cracking (RTC) in the high-paraffinic oil from the Kumkol field (Western Kazakhstan) is experimentally studied. It is shown that the high polymerization rate and low olefin contents in products of radiation processing together with relatively low yields of light fractions at low irradiation dose rates and the low level of their isomerization are characteristic for RTC in oil with high contents of heavy paraffins. These observations are attributed to the behavior of heavy alkyl radicals that initiate polymerization and isomerization in heavy paraffin fractions. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.