Unser Geschäftsmodell: Alle Guten Dinge sind 3

Schon seit jeher, so hat man den Eindruck, hat die Menschheit der Zahl 3 eine besondere Bedeutung in unserem Zusammenleben zugeschrieben. Als symbolträchtige Zahl begleitet Sie uns von Kindesbeinen an, in der Religion, in Romanen und Geschichten, in der Naturwissenschaft und Technik.

Innerhalb unserer Firmenphilosophie reflektiert es unseren Wunsch und unseren Anspruch, das fehlende Bindeglied zwischen der Geschäftswelt der Mineralölindustrie, der Raffination von Rückständen und Bitumen und den Bitumenkunden zu sein – die aktive Verbindung zwischen Produzenten und Konsumenten, Produkt und Kunden, Problem und Lösung.

Lassen Sie uns der Partner an Ihrer Seite sein, der mit zusammen mit Ihnen mehr aus Ihren Raffinerierückständen und Ihrem Bitumen macht.

Mit unserer Erfahrung, unseren Produkten und unseren Technologien kreieren wir einen Mehrwert für Raffinerierückstände, verbessern Bitumen und Asphalt und machen Straßen langlebiger und umweltfreundlicher.

-AB HIER FEHLT DIE ÜBERSETZUNG-

What we do

We provide services, trade products apply processes in order to upgrade refining residues and to engineer better bitumen to make better asphalt and longer lasting roads.

Doing business across borders successfully requires understanding of cultural and technical issues involved. Different specifications and performance criteria are often used in the country of destination and in the country of origin of a product. It is, therefore, important to understand and consider the specifications used to produce bituminous binders in one country, and the specifications that are used in another country to define project requirements and acceptance criteria.

ASC provides technical assistance and for each market to meet the conditions of the specific project, region, bitumen, asphalt and pavement.

Who we are

We are the mavericks of the industry who scrutinise the entire supply chain of bitumen and refining residues looking for answers, preferably new answers and innovative answers in order to make better bitumens, better asphalt and better pavements.

We are continiously looking for answers, as the answers need to change as the (business) environment changes. We are constantly on the hunt of a moving target.

We are Bitumen Designers.

Services

Consultancy / Third Party Business Development

• Ugrading concepts for residues
• Bitumen Production Concepts
• Bitumen Design
• Selection & sourcing of additives and chemicals
• Machinery & equipment for bitumen production & modification facilities, terminals, refineries, laboratories

Price Hedging & Risk Management

• Fixed price term contracts
• Development of proxy hedges for non-listed products

Bitumen properties made to measure

We design and engineer a bitumen binder for you, fit for purpose, according to your performance criteria.

to Bitumen Products

To engineer a bitumen fit for purpose, made to measure we recommend a Technix Multistage Bitumen Reactor.  

Further Information

to Middle Destillates

The need for upgrading refining residues has become an economic necessity for refiners. If the targeted group of products is middle distillates, we favor the patented Genoil Upgrading fixed bed reactor technology because of its outstanding price/performance ratio:

Further Information

In technical literature 13 potential shortcomings of bitumen have been identified. We engineer your bitumen to mitigate these shortcomings for you.

The following list shows 13 identified possible bitumen shortcomings. Except the HSSE related ones 8. and 9. all others can be fixed

1. Adhesion
2. Cohesion
3. Too hard
4. Too soft
5. Unpleasant odour
6. Ductility too low
7. Ages too quickly
8. HSSE issues with regard to Mutagenicity index (not solvable)
9. HSSE issues with regard to PAH’s (not solvable)
10. PI too high / too low
11. Useful Temperature Interval too small
12. Polymer compatibility
13. Emulsion compatibility

If you need support in engineering bitumen to overcome these shortcomings.

If you are interested in the techniques of engineering bitumen, we recommend reading our article about processing. If you want to find out more about particular products, visit our products page.

Risk management

In general terms Risk management is the identification, assessment, and prioritization of risks followed by coordinated and economical application of resources to minimize, monitor, and control the probability and/or impact of unfortunate events.

With regard to bitumen for instance our proposed concept of “Engineering Bitumen” with the help of products and processes is clearly a part risk management within the supply chain.

But in this section we are expressively referring to the mitigation of price risks related to the products bitumen, diesel and heating oil as they are affected by high volatility and therefore subject to substantial risk of price changes, that are driven by supply & demand and influenced by geopolitical factors.

A professional risk management allows long-term budgeting of price targets and profits and offers the chance to generate savings in volatile markets.

We do this for bitumen, fuel oil and diesel.

Hedging

As a bitumen consumer or producer, in addition to the operational process, one of the key challenges to plan and budget ahead is the volatile bitumen prices.

We can assist you in securing your budget on bitumen by offering fixed financial prices for bitumen ahead. By separating the financial price and physical delivery you will obtain maximum flexibility and price security.

Bitumen hedging is not about making extra money, it’s about avoiding losing money and making sure your budget is kept.
Bitumen hedging from a consumer's point of view

If your company is exposed to bitumen price fluctuations, bitumen hedging is a tool that can help eliminate the risk of your fuel budget getting out of control. Here is a few examples of why to hedge:

• If the price of bitumen has increased since you entered a fixed price; Global will send you a financial compensation to offset the increase in your physical bitumen price.
• If the price of bitumen has decreased since you entered a fixed price; you will send a financial compensation to Global but at the same time benefit from your lower physical bitumen purchase.

By the end of the day you will have obtained the fixed price and are now in control of your bitumen budgets.

In construction the practical world rarely behave as budgeted. Environmental issues, strikes, legal changes during a PPP-project or a long winter like in 2012/2013, can throw all the best planned projects off its feet and reshuffle physical bitumen consumption. We have the necessary expertise to allow you to reshuffle the financial bitumen fixed price to fit you actual consumption. If the project is delayed 2 months – we simply help you move the fixed price 2 months. If weather conditions allow you to speed the project – we will help you bring forward the fixed price.

If you have won a PPP project and know you approximate bitumen use during the project lifetime, it depends…
… if the bitumen use on the concrete (no pun intended) project is not a major part of a particular years use, then budget hedging is likely the best course of action.
… if it is a major part, then we generally recommend to secure close to or 100 %.

We are ready to assist you in finding the best tailor made solution. Feel free to contact us for a discussion on your fixed price opportunities in bitumen – no strings attached.

You enter (buy) a fixed price and can continue to buy at your current suppliers. ASC is not involved in any physical delivery.

What is Instant Bitumen?

Instant Bitumen consists of two separate components, being Asphaltenes (a dry solid powder) and Maltenes (a liquid at room temperatures), the two building blocks of the colloidal system bitumen, which are mixed in situ, at the scene to make bitumen:

• Easy transport, handling and logistics
• At ambient temperatures, no heating required
• Energy efficient

What is the idea behind Instant Bitumen?

We had two major drivers for developing Instant Bitumen:

• 1. In general, with only a few exceptions, traditional bitumen is a dispensable byproduct of the mineral oil refining industry. For bitumen consumers though it is a vital ingredient of their supply chain. This imbalance sparked the idea to reverse engineer bitumen: let’s make bitumen the targeted product instead of being a residual product.

• 2. Climate change obliges every industry to contribute to cleaner ways of working. This is why we have been deliberately looking for Instant Bitumen ingredients outside the mineral oil industry as the refining sector is one of biggest emitters of greenhouse gases. We wanted to make bitumen easier, greener and safer.

Do I need special equipment to blend it?

Instant Bitumen can be blended using conventional bitumen blending equipment. All you need is a possibility to feed the dry solid powder asphaltenes into the liquid maltene oil at temperatures at around 180 degree Celsius and a stirring device. After mixing it behaves like a standard bitumen and can be blended with standard bitumen as well.

Another possibility is to mix the two components directly within a hot mix plant. The asphaltenes can be supplied into the drum onto the hot aggregate using the filler feed. The maltene oil can be supplied through the bitumen scale. The mixing time needs to be extended by 15 seconds. The asphaltenes and maltenes mix to bitumen and with the sand, the filler and the aggregate to asphalt.

Is Instant Bitumen safe?

As long as you keep the asphaltenes and the maltenes separate it is safer than conventional bitumen, because the two components are handled stored at room temperature and are environmentally friendly. This is increasing the work safety significantly as most of bitumen related accidents are occurring during transport and handling because of the high temperatures involved. After mixing the two components to bitumen the same safety measures apply as if using normal bitumen is used as from now on you are operating at elavated and bitumen typical temperatures of around 180 degree Celsius.

How can I store Instant Bitumen?

The logistics involved are very easy and straight forward. As long as the two components are separate you can store them in a dry place at ambient temperatures. After mixing them to bitumen the same storage conditions apply as for conventional bitumen.

Can Instant Bitumen be used for asphalt applications only?

Instant Bitumen can be used for any bitumen application:

• Hot Mix Asphalt
• Roofing Membranes
• Building and waterproofing chemistry
• Bio Cutback Bitumen

How do I determine the bitumen grade?

The bitumen grade is simply determined by the blending ratio between the asphaltenes and the maltenes. The higher the percentage of asphaltenes the harder the bitumen, the more maltenes the softer the bitumen.

Does Instant Bitumen work with high RAP content?

High RAP content asphalt applications are ideal for Instant Bitumen. If you are producing an asphalt with a RAP content of > 60% you only need approx. 1,5% of additional virginal binder. Ideally the penetration of the new bitumen compliments the residual binder on the aggregate that way that the combination of the two results in the targeted penetration of the total mix. This usually requires a smaller penetration range than the EN 12591 specification allows and high load to load fluctuations of the new binder is to be avoided at the same time. Using Instant Bitumen does allow you to exactly pinpoint the desired the quality and quantity through the blending ratio you are using.

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To engineer a bitumen fit for purpose, made to measure we recommend a Technix Multistage Bitumen Reactor.

The Technix multistage bitumen reactors can be used for modifying bitumens, manufacturing multigrade bitumens, producing bitumen from refinery distillation residues (vacuum bottoms) or for producing bitumen from refinery solvent precipitated ‘asphalts’.

With this process it is possible to produce for instance a 90/95 penetration bitumen within the 70/100 specification. This illustrates how precise the process is.

AIR BLOWING PROCESS

Bitumen manufactured in oil refineries is commonly produced and categorised in terms of its major physical properties, viscosity and penetration, using oxidation with air. Blowing processes using air for the source of oxygen are well known and they may be batch or continuous. A variety of chemical reactions takes place in bitumen blowing and the key products should enable the viscosity and penetration of the bitumen to be suitable for a variety of end uses. For the blowing reactions to take place effectively the oxygen must be transferred from the gas phase to the reaction sites and then the necessary chemical reactions must occur at an appropriate temperature.

It is possible that the traditional blowing process is interface mass transfer restricted as relatively low conversions occur, and high oxygen concentrations occur in the exit gas. At the relatively high temperatures involved, the reaction kinetics are likely to be rapid and hence the reactions should not be limiting. Unfortunately the traditional blowing process involves relatively benign fluid dynamics with respect to the bitumen phase and possibly laminar flow. This does not assist the mass transfer process which must occur before the reactions can take place. The Technix Reactors production process as described in the patents and as designed and built, centers around a recycle (loop) reactor with a high recycle ratio. The reactor tube is of a relatively low diameter and the high flow rates generated by having a large recycle stream produce highly turbulent flow with Reynolds number approaching 160,000 or more. In addition the tubular reactor includes specially designed static mixers which break up the flow and generate an extremely high degree of mixing which significantly reduces the mass transfer resistance of the blowing operation.

The reactor is a stable, high performing continuous process and modifying or producing bitumen within the required specifications. The overall plant is relatively easy to operate, and can be operated safely. The hydrocarbon generation is relatively very small and the exit gases are low in oxygen concentration, demonstrating a high oxygen consumption. Air entering the reactor with an oxygen content of 21% typically exits the reactor with oxygen concentrations (depending on the feedstock and product being produced) of between 3 % and 6 %.

Air supply from the compressors is in the order of a relatively modest 5 m³/minute to each of the reactors – significantly less than traditional blowing columns which typically operate with large blowers and air volumes at up to 10 times this rate.

To further increase the rate of reaction the reactors work with column pressures of up to 6 bar as against ambient pressures for traditional blowing columns.

However, the degassers operate at atmosphere pressure.

HEAT EXCHANGE PROCESS

The reactors require a controlled feed stock from a supply tank at or above 170 °C and lower than 230 °C. An oil or gas fired heater is used for heating thermal oil which is then used in heat tracing pipes and jackets for preheating the reactor heat exchangers, pumps, related pipework, and the feedstock pipeline and the bitumen delivery pipeline. The thermal oil is also used in the heat exchanger, to heat the product coming from the heat recovery heat exchanger to c. 230 °C for supply to the reactors. The modification reaction is exothermic and bitumen temperatures increase in the reactors by 5 °C to 10 °C.

Heat energy is recovered very efficiently through cleanable plate heat exchangers where the bitumen coming from the reactor at around 230 °C – 240 °C is used to heat the c. 170 °C feedstock. The bitumen is delivered to the receiving tank at around 180 °C.          

UNDERSTANDING BITUMENS CHEMICAL COMPOSITION

Bitumen is a construction material comprising highly complex compounds of over 100,000 different hydrocarbons with a small proportion of sulphur, nitrogen, oxygen and traces of metals.

Bitumen is commonly regarded as a colloidal system of various substances and it is therefore fundamentally insufficient to define the quality of bitumen by its physical properties only.

Bitumen can be subdivided in four different substance groups which are described by the acronym SARA.

SARA stands for the three (n-heptane) soluble groups of bitumen, being the saturates, aromatics and resins (also known as maltenes) based on molecular mass and polarity, and the asphaltenes, higher molecular weight micelles, defined as the (n-heptane) insoluble group.

The Gaestel Index is a ratio of asphaltenes and saturates percentage to aromatics and resin percentage ie it is an indication of the chemical make-up of bitumen. It can be used to determine the colloidal stability of bitumen.

Bitumen that is within the Gaestel Index ranges is more resistant to rutting, heaving, shoving, has lower temperature susceptibility, and less brittleness at low temperatures. You can expect the bitumen to have a much better and longer life.

The chemical composition of bitumen can be indicated through fractionation based on polarity. This can be achieved by firstly separating bitumen into asphaltenes and maltenes through precipitation of the asphaltenes using the solvent n-heptane. The maltenes are chemically fractionated further using an iatroscan device. The iatroscan works by a chromatographic technique that involves separation of bitumen molecules according to the strength of their attraction to an activated substrate. Usually the substrate is made up of a thin layer of silica powder which is fused onto a quartz rod (chromarod). The separated fractions are detected in the iatroscan by passing the chromarod through a hydrogen flame. The conductivity of the flame, which is measured by a Flame Ionisation Detector (FID), changes with the quantity of material burnt off the rod (number of ions present). By this means the mass of each fraction can be determined.

The selection of crude is an important aspect of bitumen manufacture, as not all crudes can be used to make bitumen. Few of the, on a global basis, nearly 1,500 available crude oils are suitable to manufacture a good quality bitumen. In an oil refinery the crude oil initially undergoes an atmospheric distillation process, followed by a vacuum distillation process. The vacuum distillation further yields the so called vacuum distillates and leaves a non-volatile, fairly high viscosity residue, called short residue or vacuum residue or vacuum bottoms.

In a few cases, depending on the crude origin, this vacuum residue may be directly used as bitumen without further processing, providing it fulfils a bitumen specification. For most vacuum residues though, additional processing such as air blowing and subsequent physical blending is required to meet the various bitumen specifications. Sometimes bitumen is produced by blending vacuum residue with other side streams of a refinery, for instance solvent (e.g. propane) precipitated asphalt (bitumen), which is derived from the production of lubricating oils. Sometimes bitumen is produced by blending vacuum residue and, or, solvent asphalt with lighter flux oils. Both latter processes are targeting the physical properties of bitumen only and can produce bitumen to fit in a bitumen specification, but disregard the importance of the chemical composition of bitumen for its performance in the field and it tends to produce rather weak and inferior construction materials.

The Technix Reactor can address these issues.

All the above mentioned compositions have in common that they make a good feedstock for Technix Reactors. Using the Technix Reactors on the basis of a prior SARA analysis, and on occasions reagents and, or, fluxes, allows the production of a whole range of specification conforming bitumens from a single feedstock and to also engineer the chemical composition for better bitumens at the same time. Through molecular re-arrangements by the air rectification process with Technix Reactors asphaltenes are created and for the system precious resins are preserved, thereby improving the overall bitumen composition.

 
EMISSIONS

The Technix Reactors plant, with its multiple static mixes in the reactor columns, provides very vigorous and intimate mixing of the oxygen contained in the air, with the bitumen and reagents, and any other products, as they move through the reactor columns. During this process there are extraordinarily high oxygen, and bitumen reaction sites interchanges. As a consequence, relatively low volumes of air are required for the production process – considerably less than standard bitumen blowing plants.

The Technix Reactors plant process is highly efficient. As a consequence, very high conversion efficiencies are obtained and minimal feedstocks are expected to be lost in the process – less than 0.1 % for bitumen modification compared to typically 2 % to 5 % in traditional blowing columns and less than 1 % for distillation column residues (vacuum bottoms) or less than 2 % for solvent precipitated ‘asphalts’. Accordingly very low levels of emissions are produced by the plant.

A minor amount of entrained gases in the reactors are transported with the bitumen to the bitumen receiving tank. If the client proposes to install, or has a vapour recovery system, Technix suggests that system could handle the emissions from the bitumen receiving tank. Alternatively emissions can be removed from the bitumen receiving tank by an extraction fan and fed into the Technix Reactors incinerator system. A suitable liquids knockout vessel and flash back preventer will be required for this option.

At the Technix Pacific Limited plant in Fiji the liquids retained in the knockout unit are principally water and a minor amount of volatiles – the amount recovered is approximately 0.5 litres per tonne of bitumen production with approximately 90 % water and 10 % volatiles.

The liquids retained in the knockout vessel are pumped into the incinerator, and together with the remaining emissions are incinerated in the LPG, or natural gas, fired 45 kw incinerator.

The emissions gases are of a low oxygen content (typically 3 % – 6 %) and low pressure within the system. There are no odours other than those that one experiences in a bitumen refinery. The exhaust gases from the emissions afterburner contain no unburnt hydrocarbons, are appropriately vented and are not toxic.

Noise emissions emanating from the bitumen plant are minimal – such sounds relate to the compressors and rotating equipment.

Download Technix Presentation (PDF-File, 2.7 MB)

Saturates

or in other words saturated hydrocarbons or alkanes or paraffins are present with 5–15 weight-%. Examples: Ethane, Butane, Propane

Aromates

or aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) are presentwith up to 30–45 %.Example: Benzene and multipe combinations hereof

Resin

or hydrocarbon resins as they are used in varnishes and adhesives are present with 30–45 % and function as stabiliser for the asphaltenes. Examples: Polyurethane und other resins

Asphaltenes

Asphaltenes again are a very complex moleculare structure by itself of Carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, sulphur, vanadium and nickel. Through their structural network they serve as a kind of reinforcement  and strongly influence the viscosity.  They are present with 5–20 %.

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For our company it reflects our desire to represent the missing link in our modern business world of oil refining, refining residues and bitumen – the link between producer and consumer, product and consumer, problem and solution.

Black Liquid by Dmitry Zakharov

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foRMLos – Objects from Bitumen

View the online exhibition

The need for upgrading refining residues has become an economic necessity for refiners. If the targeted group of products is middle distillates, we favor the patented Genoil Upgrading fixed bed reactor technology because of its outstanding price/performance ratio:

• High Liquid Yields – more than 85 wt % of Feed
• Self Sufficient (if desired) for H2, Power, Steam, Fuel Gas, Air, Water
• Bottomless Design – No Waste Oil
• Environmental Friendly
• Low Capital Cost
• Low Operating Cost – US$ 4 /BBL
• GHU Patented Technology (Canada Patent No. 2306069, US No. 7001502 Process for treating crude using hydrogen in aspecial unit, Special unit is a reactor that through high temperatures and high pressures breaks down the hydrocarbon molecules and adds hydrogen to the molecule. US 7510689, US 8147677 Method and apparatus for introducing fluids into a hydrocracking reactor.
• Technology offers Large API Increases
• Viscosity reduction -99 %
• Superb sulfur reduction – up to 99.5 %
• Consistent pitch conversion level 93 %
• Demetalization rates -98 %
• Conradson Carbon Reduction – 87 %
• Denitrogenation rate of -53 %

The Fixed Bed Process

Fixed bed and ebullating bed systems were developed in the 1960s for the desulphurization of residues to make low-sulphur fuel oils. Additional units continue to be built, but the emphasis has shifted to the hydrotreating / hydroconversion of heavy oil and residues to gas oils and the preparation of reduced metals, reduced asphaltene FCC or other refinery feeds.

The development of new and improved hydroprocessing catalytic cracking technologies has been possible because of the development of new and improved catalysts. Catalysts have been developed by process licensors and by catalyst vendors for specific needs such as hydrodemetallization (HDM), hydrosulphuration (HDS), hydrodenitrogenation (HDN), and hydrocracking (HYC) at elevated pressure in fixed bed, ebullating bed or slurry phase reactors.

Fixed bed units have long been utilized for hydrodesulphurization, hydrodenitrogenation and hydroprocessing of distillates. When operating on heavy crude oil, bitumen or residues, the process and the catalyst must contend with higher metals (Ni and V) and higher asphaltenes content. These tend to deposit on the catalyst, deactivating and plugging the catalyst, and reducing the catalyst’s life and run length.

The Genoil GHU™ can be utilized to upgrade heavy oil, and refinery residue streams, and for hydroprocessing naphtha, kerosene, diesel and vacuum gas oil. The Genoil movable plus fixed bed system will have a reactor sequence and catalyst distribution to protect the more active hydroprocessing catalyst. The first bed is an HDM guard bed to remove metals from the feed followed by an HDS, or a combination of HDM and HDS beds to protect the more active hydroconversion catalyst (HYC) beds in the second reactor upgrading the residues. If the feed is of a quality wherein the HDM guard bed is not required, the entire hydroconversion process can be processed through a single reactor. The unconverted residue formed after hydroprocessing through the fixed beds can be sent to a Syntheses Gas unit, gasified, and the syntheses gas can then be used for hydrogen production and fuel gas to generate power and steam.

Using high activity hydrotreating catalysts and proprietary design technology, Genoil has conducted multiple pilot plant tests on various bitumen feedstocks ranging from 6.5º to 17.5º API gravity. The operating conditions (pressure, temperature, space velocity) were selected to achieve a minimum one-year cycle while maintaining maximum conversion of the vacuum residue fraction of the feed.

Typically, the Genoil GHU™ operating conditions were substantially milder (pressure, space velocity) than competitive processes such as fixed bed hydroprocessing, and the conversion of the vacuum residue fraction with the GHU™ process was also much higher while avoiding precipitation of asphaltenes.

For example, when processing crude extracted from Western Canada tar sands using the GHU™ technology, with the addition of a distillation unit after the GHU™ and using the residue to feed a syntheses gas unit, the API can be increased again from 24º to at least 34º API.

Bitumens have been extensively used for years in road paving, roofing and industrial applications, making them perceived as commodity materials by most stakeholders.

However, bitumen production has changed significantly over the past decades. Refining processes have adapted to this new context as well as to changes in fuel demand, technical progress and economic pressures. This constantly changing context not only has made bitumen a specialty product for oil companies but an even more complex material with chemical composition and properties dependent on the crude oil source and process.

Bitumen Challenges

During our research and investigations we found already in the year 2012 that Shell Bitumen believes (as we do) that challenges impact the road construction industry in a number of ways:

Demand: More roads will be needed, cities will require further mobility, infrastructure budgets will remain constrained and prices may become increasingly volatile.
Conventional oil supply: Due to a variety of technological and market factors, refinery to obtain. Crude oil inputs to refineries may become more variable with the decline of conventional feedstocks, thus impacting product quality.
Climate stress: Governments globally can be expected over time to increase regulation of greenhouse gas emissions. In addition to impacting large emitters such as the refineries that produce road bitumen, the fossil fuels used by road contractors are also likely to be subject to some form of carbon tax.

(Source: www.shell.com, 21.05.2012)

Two years later we have found and excellent article of Jean Pascal Planche, which neatly summarised the developments in our industry.

Bitumens have been extensively used for years in road paving, making them perceived as commodity materials by most road stakeholders. However, bitumen production has changed significantly over the past two decades. Refining processes have adapted to this new context as well as to changes in fuel demand. This evolving context not only has made asphalt/bitumen a specialty product for oil companies but an even more complex material with chemical composition and properties more dependent on the crude oil source and process.

Article, July 2014 – more information about Jean-Pascale Planche, University of Wyoming, Laramie Civil Engineering, Chemical Engineering, PhD

IMO 2020 regulations and the Effect on Bitumen Quality

The new sulphur limits of the IMO 2020 regulation are probably the most drastic and radical change which has been imposed on the global refining industry of all times. The ultimate effect of the implementation of new IMO 2020 regulations on the use of fuel oil contain sulfur on the quality of bitumen is currently unknown.

What are the IMO regulations?

In 2018 Geoff Rowe elaborated in an article about the IMO regulations:
IMO (International Maritime Organization) has been introducing rules to lower the use of high sulfur fuel oils (bunker fuel) over the past years. Annex VI to the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL Convention) was adopted in 1997, to address air pollution from shipping. The current global limit for Sulphur content of ships’ fuel oil has been 3.50% m/m (mass by mass). The new global limit is 0.50% m/m apply since 1 January 2020.

Regulation 14 - Sulphur Oxides (SOx) and Particulate Matter
The Sulphur content of any fuel oil used on board ships shall not exceed the following limits:

• 4.50% m/m prior to 1 January 2012;
• 3.50% m/m on and after 1 January 2012; and
• 0.50% m/m on and after 1 January 2020.

IMO has been working to reduce harmful impacts of shipping on the environment since the 1960s.

Potential changes to bitumen

Crudes are classified as sour or sweet according to Sulphur content. Major locations where sweet crude is found include the Appalachian Basin in Eastern North America, Western Texas, the Bakken Formation of North Dakota and Saskatchewan, the North Sea of Europe, North Africa, Australia, and the Far East including Indonesia. Sour crude is more common in the Gulf of Mexico, Mexico, South America, and Canada. Crude produced by OPEC Member Nations also tends to be relatively sour. Vacuum residual yield and sulfur content will cause larger crude price differentials. This will create crude slate optimization opportunities for almost all refineries and hence impact bitumen quantities and qualities.

Geoffrey Rowe, Worldwide Asphalt and Pavement Technology Expert

Info

Dr. Rowe is the president and CEO of Abatech Inc which conducted pavement engineering projects around the world from it’s headquarter location in Pennsylvania, USA. Dr. Rowe leads several research efforts in rheology and the fracture of asphalt with funding from industry and government sources. In addition, Dr. Rowe currently heads an ASTM Sub-committee developing standards for forensic engineering.

Dr. Rowe is a licensed Professional Engineer in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Florida. In addition, he is a Chartered Materials Engineer in the United Kingdom.

And now the Covid-19 Pandemic

National lockdowns across the world to contain the spread of Covid-19 are having a serious impact on global refinery sector. Stringent travel restrictions have wiped out the market for transportation fuel, long storage durations are leading to a deterioration of products such as gasoline and jet fuel and with stocks piling up and refiners are witnessing increased inventory costs. Such circumstances have forced the refinery sector to cut the production rate despite falling crude prices. Yet again impacting bitumen quantity and quality.

All of the above is why you should re-think bitumen. We support you to get the bitumen properties you want, when and where you need them.

As a matter of fact Bitumen is one of the most fascinating materials we have ever come across. And one of the most underestimated ones at the same time which again is part of its fascination.

What is actually known about bitumen is in fact very little:
Interestingly enough nobody knows exactly what Bitumen is. Accordingly all definitions you can find are descriptive rather than explaining what Bitumen is.

Generally speaking bitumen is a very complex mixture of more than 100,000 different hydrocarbons. It is commonly described as a colloidal system out of a continuous phase, the maltenes, and a dispersed phase, the asphaltenes.

After that early stage of the description there is already some disagreement amongst chemists regarding its structure and the composition of bitumen. It is stated that it is exceedingly difficult to separate individual hydrocarbons in pure form and that it is almost impossible to separate and identify all the different molecules of bitumen as the number of molecules with different chemical structure is extremely large.

So let us take a step back to the maltenes and asphaltenes. In an attempt to further describe the bitumen elemental composition the so called SARA analysis has been used which is originally an analysis method that divides crude oil components according to their polarizability and polarity. SARA stands for the four substance groups Saturates, Aromatics, Resins and Asphaltenes, whereby the Saturates, Aromatics and Resins together represent the maltene fraction.

As part of the work on bitumen chemistry and structure realised in the USA known as a the Strategic Highway Research Program, SHRP, which is a 20 year research program started 1987, the ASTM D4124 (standard test method for separation of bitumen into four fractions) had been developed in order to provide a standardised testing method. This method reflects the SARA composition of a bitumen.

It is undisputed that bitumen consists out of four substance groups, saturates, aromatics, resins and asphaltenes and that the balance of these four substances determine the quality of the bitumen. Furthermore the elements carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, sulphur, oxygen, vanadium and nickel can be found.

Interestingly enough the term bitumen itself is as ambiguous as the composition of the material. For instance are the terms bitumen and asphalt used interchangeably to mean both natural and manufactured forms of the product. Outside the United States, the product is mainly called bitumen. Furthermore crude oils with an API gravity of less than 10 are referred to as bitumen as well, although we are still talking about an unrefined crude oil.

In essence it is fair to say that bitumen is not bitumen and from our point of view it is fundamentally insufficient to describe the quality of the construction material bitumen for instance by softening point and ring and ball values only. You need to go deeper than this. We are more than happy to support you by telling you how.

The Business Model: 3 is a magic number

Throughout time, it seems humans have latched onto 3 to help them make sense of the world. Some of it seems logical and some just pure imagination. But it can’t be denied that 3 has stuck in the human mind for millennia as being a number that means something.

For our company it reflects our desire to represent the missing link in our modern business world of oil refining, refining residues and bitumen – the link between producer and consumer, product and consumer, problem and solution.

Try us – make us your solution provider for your value creation with residues, bitumen and related products.

What we do

We provide services, trade products apply processes in order to upgrade refining residues and to engineer better bitumen to make better asphalt and longer lasting roads.

Doing business across borders successfully requires understanding of cultural and technical issues involved. Different specifications and performance criteria are often used in the country of destination and in the country of origin of a product. It is, therefore, important to understand and consider the specifications used to produce bituminous binders in one country, and the specifications that are used in another country to define project requirements and acceptance criteria.

ASC provides technical assistance and for each market to meet the conditions of the specific project, region, bitumen, asphalt and pavement.

Who we are

We are the mavericks of the industry who scrutinise the entire supply chain of bitumen and refining residues looking for answers, preferably new answers and innovative answers in order to make better bitumens, better asphalt and better pavements.

We are continiously looking for answers, as the answers need to change as the (business) environment changes. We are constantly on the hunt of a moving target.

We are Bitumen Designers.

Services

Consultancy / Third Party Business Development

• Ugrading concepts for residues
• Bitumen Production Concepts
• Bitumen Design
• Selection & sourcing of additives and chemicals
• Machinery & equipment for bitumen production & modification facilities, terminals, refineries, laboratories

Price Hedging & Risk Management

• Fixed price term contracts
• Development of proxy hedges for non-listed products

ALBR3CHT Supply Concepts GmbH
Necklenbroicher Straße 11
40667 Meerbusch, Germany

Phone: +49 2132 9139 482
Fax: +49 2132 9139 487
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
www.supply-concepts.com

Managing Director: Frank H. W. Albrecht

Mönchengladbach Local Court HRB 13519
VAT ID no.: DE 183335793
Tax number: 114/5750/0894

Photographs

101871457 – Wokers at jack up oil rig leg © snapin
95434784 – New road construction © Stockr
89073498 – Fuel. © BillionPhotos.com
84064401 – Strada e guard rail al tramonto © Giorgio Pulcini
83882599 – Businessman Checking Data © James Thew
83224389 – Chemical plant, containers © Franco Nadalin
50936556 – Yellow oil drums © Ulrich Müller
25519679 – Working oil pumps © Sergiy Serdyuk
www.fotolia.com

Rocks – Photo by Rollalyn Ruis
Sunset water – Photo by Jason Leung
Wood, street from above – Photo by neostalgic
Desert street – Photo by Jeremy Bishop
Iceland street – Photo by Jesse Bowser
https://unsplash.com 

Design and programming

Lockstoff Design GmbH

Disclaimer

This website contains information for the personal use of users relating to ALBR3CHT Supply Concepts GmbH (ASC) and related companies.

Limitation of liability for internal content

The content of our website has been compiled with meticulous care and to the best of our knowledge. However, we cannot assume any liability for the up-to-dateness, completeness or accuracy of any of the pages.

Pursuant to section 7, para. 1 of the TMG (Telemediengesetz – Tele Media Act by German law), we as service providers are liable for our own content on these pages in accordance with general laws. However, pursuant to sections 8 to 10 of the TMG, we as service providers are not under obligation to monitor external information provided or stored on our website. Once we have become aware of a specific infringement of the law, we will immediately remove the content in question. Any liability concerning this matter can only be assumed from the point in time at which the infringement becomes known to us.

Limitation of liability for external links

Our website contains links to the websites of third parties (“external links”). As the content of these websites is not under our control, we cannot assume any liability for such external content. In all cases, the provider of information of the linked websites is liable for the content and accuracy of the information provided. At the point in time when the links were placed, no infringements of the law were recognisable to us. As soon as an infringement of the law becomes known to us, we will immediately remove the link in question.

Copyright

The content and works published on this website are governed by the copyright laws of Germany. Any duplication, processing, distribution or any form of utilisation beyond the scope of copyright law shall require the prior written consent of the author or authors in question.

Data protection

A visit to our website can result in the storage on our server of information about the access (date, time, page accessed). This does not represent any analysis of personal data (e.g., name, address or e-mail address). If personal data are collected, this only occurs – to the extent possible – with the prior consent of the user of the website. Any forwarding of the data to third parties without the express consent of the user shall not take place.

We would like to expressly point out that the transmission of data via the Internet (e.g., by e-mail) can offer security vulnerabilities. It is therefore impossible to safeguard the data completely against access by third parties. We cannot assume any liability for damages arising as a result of such security vulnerabilities.

The use by third parties of all published contact details for the purpose of advertising is expressly excluded. We reserve the right to take legal steps in the case of the unsolicited sending of advertising information; e.g., by means of spam mail.

YouTube videos

YouTube videos are used to visualize content. When playing YouTube videos, data is collected. This fact is beyond the control of ALBR3CHT Supply Concepts GmbH and it is here expressly referred to the applicable data protection regulations of Google at https://policies.google.com/privacy when opening YouTube videos.

Vimeo Videos

We also use videos from Vimeo on our website. The video portal is operated by Vimeo LLC, 555 West 18th Street, New York, New York 10011, USA. With the help of a plug-in, we can show you interesting video material directly on our website. Certain data can be transferred from you to Vimeo.
Vimeo is an active participant in the EU-US Privacy Shield Framework, which regulates the correct and secure transfer of personal data. You can find more information on this at https://www.privacyshield.gov/participant?id=a2zt00000008V77AAE&status=Active . You can find out more about the use of cookies at Vimeo at https://vimeo.com/cookie_policy , information on data protection at Vimeo can be found atRead https://vimeo.com/privacy.