A critical review on the application of differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) to petroleum fluid characterization: Characterization and phase behavior

摘要

Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) has contributed to the research and development in petroleum industry in many different themes. Rapid data collection, the ability to produce different kinds of thermodynamic, kinetic and chemical structural information, and the potential for being coupled with other techniques have made DSC a favourable method for oil research. The application of DSC to oil field includes but not limited to characterization and phase behavior of crude oils and their fractions, glass transition study of petroleum and petroleum products, developing structural and morphological fingerprint of oil and its products, wax crystallization study of crudes and other petroleum fluids, and kinetic study of oil pyrolysis, combustion and oxidation. Recent advances and developments of DSC equipment, either in equipment design, thermal scanning programming or combination of both thereof, have led to new application themes for DSC. Also, the limitation borders of DSC to liquid oil samples have been substantially reduced. In an integrative approach, an over view of the application of DSC to crude characterization and phase behavior of recent contributing researches is presented in this paper. Also, concluding remarks and future prospects are provided to shed lights for further developing the ever-growing application of DSC to liquid fuels.