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Technologies and Equipment
Cogeneration Technologies | Generic Technologies

Refinery operations fall into five major categories that involve separation, cracking, rearrangement, and blending of hydrocarbons. How major processes are used varies considerably from refinery to refinery, as well as within an individual refinery, depending on the product slate that is desired.

Major Petroleum Refining Processes

Category Major Technologies
Topping (Separation of Crude Oil) Atmoshperic Distillation
Vacuum Distillation
Solvent Deasphalting
Thermal and Catalytic Cracking Delayed Coking
Fluid Coking/Flexicoking
Visbreaking
Catalytic Cracking
Catalytic Hydrocracking
Combination/Rearrangement of Hydrocarbons Alkylation
Catalytic Reforming
Polymerization
Isomerization
Ethers Manufacture
Treating Catalytic Hydrotreating/Hydroprocessing
Sweetening/Sulfur Removal
Gas Treatment
Specialty Product Manufacture Lube Oil
Grease
Asphalt

Source: DOE 1998

Cogeneration Technologies
Cogeneration in the petroleum industry often involves steam turbines

Generic Technologies
Almost half of petroleum establishments report using adjustable speed motors to increase efficiency



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