Paper Title
Bio-Waste Materials as a Potential Adsorbent for Non-Conventional Sulfur Recovery Process of Heavy Fuel Oil
Abstract
Bio-waste materials were used as a potential adsorbent for non-conventional techniques for sulfur recovery from
heavy fuel oil (HFO). Different forms of date palm kernel powder (DPKP) are used as potential adsorbents. Five forms were
used: DPKP without any treatment, carbonized DPKP (CDPKP), acid activated CDPKP (AACDPKP), ZnCl2 activated
DPKP (ZnCl2 DPKP), and ZnCl2 activated carbonized DPKP (ZnCl2 CDPKP). The extractive-adsorptive desulfurization
technique was applied with different solvents at different operating conditions of temperatures and solvent to oil ratios. This
work was achieved to optimize the best operating conditions for the highest sulfur recovery and proper physical properties of
the resulting product. It was found that the carbonized DPKP activated by ZnCl2 had the highest performance in reducing
sulfur content from HFO using methyl ethyl ketone (MEK) with 3:1 solvent to oil ratio over two hours of contact time.
Sulfur recovery was increased to 45.85% when the adsorption operating temperature was increased to 50oC. This process
was able to improve the carbon residue, ash content, asphaltene content, and heavy metals removal. This improvement has a
positive significant environmental impact on the emission of harmful materials to the atmosphere and improves the
performance of the engines and machinery.
Keywords - Non-Conventional Adsorption Desulfurization, Heavy Fuel Oil, Date Palm Kernel Powder, Activation Process