Naphtha

What is Naphtha?

Naphtha is a general term for refined, partially refined or unrefined petroleum compounds that are distilled at less than 240 ° C. This cut is considered a volatile component of oil, which is used as a solvent or in the production of gasoline and aromatic compounds, and is similar to gasoline in terms of boiling range and number of carbon atoms. In another definition, naphtha is an atmospheric distillation of crude oil located between gas and kerosene slices.

This section contains molecules with a number of carbon atoms between 5 and 12, which generally include paraffins, olefins, naphthenes and aromatics. There are also compounds such as sulfur, nitrogen, oxygen, water, salt and a number of metal compounds such as vanadium, nickel and sodium. Naphtha can be divided into light and heavy based on the available compounds and the number of carbon atoms in their structure.

Light naphtha is used as a rubber solvent and lacquer thinner, while heavy naphtha is used as a varnish solvent (polish), in dyeing, and as a cleaner.

Light: Generally, contains molecules with 5-6 carbon atoms that boil at 30-145 ° C.

Heavy: They are mainly composed of molecules with 7-12 carbon atoms and have boiling points between 140 and 205 degrees Celsius.

Properties

Odor: In general, paraffin compounds have the lowest and aromatic compounds have the strongest odor. The smell of naphtha, which is a mixture of various compounds, depends on the amount of each of these substances.

Color: Naphtha is generally colorless, but may appear pale yellow in the presence of high levels of aromatic compounds.

Usage

The range of compounds available, from basic paraffins to aromatics, makes this cutting composition have different properties. Volatility, high solubility, purity and specific odor are other properties that make it suitable for use in certain applications. It was used in warfare for fire and its use as a light source dates back to 1200 BC.

• production of gasoline
• production of aromatic compounds
• car fuel
• engine fuel
• solvents
• jet fuel

Naphtha solvents can be divided into 3 categories with different boiling ranges: 30-150 (boiling sprites), 150-210 (white sprites) and 160-325 (high boiling oil fraction).

The main application of this category of oil cuts is the production of solvent, diluent or raw material for the production of gasoline, which its main application is gasoline production, in fact, petrochemical and cracking units are the main buyers of these materials.

The applications of this category of compounds are very wide, the most important of which are:

• Raw materials for plastics and synthetic fibers
• Raw materials All kinds of paints and thinner
• Production of industrial alcohol
• Production of fuel for heating and domestic use such as liquefied petroleum gas and kerosene
• Gasoline production
• the most important application of naphtha is its use to produce gasoline.