Industrial Chemistry and Refining

The course deals with the industrial production of fuels and chemicals from fossil and renewable feedstocks. Topics include: Norwegian oil and gas production, energy from fossil fuels. Oil refining, oil products, refinery design and selected processes (catalytic reforming and isomerization, hydrotreating and hydrocracking, catalytic cracking, treatment of heavy oils, environmental concerns, new fuels). Examples of basic, intermediate and end products from petrochemistry. Natural gas and LPG as feedstock, synthesis gas production, preparation and use of hydrogen, methanol synthesis, Fischer-Tropsch, ammonia synthesis. Production of light olefins by steam-cracking, dehydrogenation and other routes, use of light olefins. Introduction to biomass as the feedstock for biofuels and chemicals, and carbon capture and utilization (CCU) and routes to e-fuels (electrofuels).

At the end of the course the students should be able to: - Describe basic chemistry, thermodynamics, kinetics, catalysis, reactor technology and process design and layout for key processes in oil refining, gas conversion and petrochemistry. - Describe the value chains from typical raw materials to key intermediates. - Be aware of issues linked with sustainability of processes and products. - Know about biomass and CO2 combined with renewable energy as alternative feedstocks. - Describe and justify the links between the basic chemical issues (the chemical reactions, heat of reaction, kinetics, catalysis) and the process and reactor design (handling of reactants and products, heat of reaction, equilibrium limitations, recirculation). - Find and understand and reproduce information of products and processes.

The course is given as a combination of self-study, lectures, and exercises in the form of project reports including student presentations.