Unveiling the Potential of Cavitation Erosion-Induced Heavy Crude Oil Upgrading

Abstract

The application of ultrasonic waves in the processing of hydrocarbons is a new promising technology that has developed rapidly in recent years. However, the acoustic-induced cavitation erosion phenomenon is poorly studied. In this paper, a comparison study of cavitation erosion was carried out in water and oils with different viscosities produced from Ashal’cha and North Komsomol using an ultrasonic reactor operating at an industrial frequency of 20 kHz. The acoustic spectra obtained from hydrophones during the ultrasonic treatment of fluids can be characterized by using subharmonics of the main frequency and a continuous white noise level. Moreover, the cavitation erosion of aluminum foil under various ultrasound irradiation times and power levels was thoroughly investigated. It has been found that the process of ultrasonic cavitation has a less erosive impact on metal foil in oil due to its high viscosity. In addition, the formation of microflows in the oil phase, which also intensify the erosion process, is hindered. Cavitation erosion in the Ashal’cha oil sample exhibited a higher intensity compared to that in the North Komsomol oil sample. It was found that upon increasing ultrasound intensity in the case of the viscous (Ashal’cha) oil sample, cavitation stability was disrupted. In turn, this led to a reduction in the collapse energy of the cavitation bubbles. The results we obtained enable the assessment of cavitation erosion in crude oil and could be used to improve methodologies for monitoring and optimizing cavitation processes in crude oil.