The United States Environmental Protection Agency(U.S. EPA), in cooperation with the American PetroleumInstitute (API) and the National Petrochemical and RefinersAssociation (NPRA), has initiated a project to determine themercury content of crude oil processed in the United States.The focus of the project is to determine the meanconcentration and range of concentrations of mercury (total) incrude oil in a statistical fashion. Data generated in the courseof the project will be used to estimate an upper limit to thecontribution of mercury in crude oil to anthropogenic mercuryemissions in the United States. Portions of the project areexamining analytical issues, determining concentrationvariance in crude oil streams and building a database on totalmercury concentrations in crude oils processed in theUnited States.Limited data are reported that compare threeanalytical methods used to measure total mercury content incrude oils. The data demonstrate expected analytical methodvariance, detection limits and mercury species sensitivities.Aspects of the work in progress address questions concerningsampling methods, sample stability and mercury concentrationvariability in crude oils having a generic market identity. Theplan for statistical sampling of crude oils processed in the U.S.is described in general terms.In addition to the environmental issues, mercury incrude oil has an impact on its market quality (price).Measuring mercury concentrations in crude oil is nowbecoming more important as mercury’s impact on productionand processing systems becomes better understood. TheEPA/API/NPRA project should assist development ofsampling and analysis methods for crude oil and also willassist researchers to study the distribution of mercury inproduced fluids throughout production andprocessing systems.
展开▼
