Vol. 327 No. 3 (2016)
Effect of nitrogen compounds in oil on formation of asphaltene aggregates
The work is relevant due to the need to obtain information on the role of molecular components, occurring in oil, in particular nitrogen compounds, in formation of supramolecular structures of high-molecular components for better understanding the structure and function of such complex compounds as asphaltenes. Nitrogen-containing compounds in oil are prone to form such structures due to the aromatic system in their structure and the presence of the heteroatom, which can act as a coordinating centre in formation of associates in oil dispersed systems due to a lone-electron pair. The aim of the research is to study the effect of low- and high-molecular nitrogen compounds on structuring the asphaltene components in the oil dispersed system. Methods: elemental analysis, cryoscopy in benzene, complexing with gaseous hydrogen chloride, acid extraction, IR-Fourier and 1 H NMR spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, microscopy in transmission, carbon-group analysis. Results. It was ascertained that introduction of high- and low-molecular nitrogen compounds and their mixture into oil dispersed system increases significantly the yield of the asphaltene components. The greatest effect was observed in the oil enriched with high-molecular nitrogen compounds due to their structural similarity with the structures of the initial asphaltenes. Using a complex of up-to-date physicochemical methods of analysis it was shown that the newly formed asphaltene components differ considerably from the initial asphaltenes in elemental composition, molecular weight, degree of aromaticity of average molecules and relative content of average and large particles in their structure. The change in the way of molecule aggregation in asphaltene substances, originally contained in oil, at the excess of nitrogenous compounds is related to structural features and functional properties of the high-molecular nitrogen compounds. The phase state of the newly formed asphaltenes remains.
Keywords:
oil dispersed system, nitrogen compounds, initial and newly formed asphaltenes, composition, carbon-group analysis, distribution


