Influence of particle size, grade and pyrolysis temperature on the oil yield from Jordanian oil shales

The effect of changes in some of the experimental parameters on the oil yie ld has been determined in a laboratory scale reactor heated by an external electrical heater: Five categories of particle sites of oil shalt samples f rom two deposits in Jordan were pyrolysed by employing a fixed bed retortin g system. The reactor and the oil shale sample were heated at a constant ra te, and nitrogen gas was used to purge the sample, continuously,, in order to remove the pyrolysis products from the reactor as well as to reduce seco ndary reactions. The liquid products were condensed and collected in a seri es of cold glass-traps and the off-gases analysed for their hydrocarbon and non-hydrocarbon species. Subsequent experiments were carried out employing a thermogravimetric ic analyser using only the four smallest particle site s under similar conditions as applied to the fixed bed retort The activatio n energy was determined using the integral method. The pyrolysis of the inv estigated shales was found to comply with first-order kinetics within the l imits of experimental error Increasing the particle site resulted in a slig ht rise in the liquid oil yield, but simultaneously the total gaseous produ ction was decreased The highest oil yield was obtained at a temperature of 480 (+/-30) degrees C. Results obtained from this slurry agree with those f or other grades of oil shales extracted from various deposits world-wide.