2nd Mercosur Congress on Chemical Engineering

4th Mercosur Congress on Process Systems Engineering

OPTIMIZATION TOOL FOR PREDICTING CRUDE OIL BLENDING

PROPERTIES
Debora Duarte Silvestre da Cruz1*, Marcia Dardari Castanheira Faria1, Karla Mattos Boaventura1, Hélcio
Carneiro Pinheiro2, Marcelo da Silva Costa1
1
Petrobras / Cenpes, 2IME,

Abstract. The crude oil blending is a very important task in order to obtain a higher profitability in the oil
refining industry.
The correct crude “recipe” to be processed aid in the accomplishment of the desired quality at the lowest cost.
The performer is required to be rather experienced so that the formulation blending can be carried out on
schedule on a reliable way, once the calculations of blending properties are not ordinary.
Most of the process simulators calculate the blending properties. As they are strict models, however, data
input frequently requires process parameters.
Taking this into consideration, CENPES Logistic area decided to develop a tool that could perform the
calculations of the blending properties, making the knowledge of process simulation tools unnecessary.
So, Blend-BR simulator of petroleum blending has been developed so as to supply blend properties and
PEV’s fraction results, using only the crude blend composition and the PEV’s temperatures as input.
Looking for the principal user’s necessities, which are in general:
- Lower crude blend cost;
- The best results for the main blend and fractions properties;
- Adequate yield of a certain crude fraction.
An optimized version of the system was developed. This version uses the non-linear programming solver
NPSOL within the simulator tool. We call it Blend-BROT.
The use of Blend-BROT is quite friendly to the user, who must provide as input data:
- The blend’s components and their ratio;
- The ratio limits;
- The objective function selected from a provided list;
- The fractions temperatures;
- The properties constraints of the blend or of the fractions, that are desirable to the reality;
- The constraints’ limits.
This could be an excellent helper to users that deal frequently with crude trading, because of its good
estimations on the blend’s properties values.

Keywords: crude oil, blending, simulation, optimization, objective function, constraints and schedule.

1. Introduction

The world’s oil refining industry has been forced, in the last years, to a regular reduction on its profit margins.
On the other hand, in Brazil, the oil refining industry has been developing a great effort to, simultaneously,
reduce its costs and improve its products quality, due to the market demand, that has became more and more
competitive, and the constraints imposed by the current legislation.
Most worldwide oil refineries have a core business that can be separated in three major sections: (i) crude oil
unloading and blending, (ii) production unit scheduling and (iii) product blending and delivery of final products
(Mendez et al., 2004). Figure 1 shows the typical diagram.

*
To whom all correspondence should be addressed.
Address: Cidade Universitária, quadra 7, Ilha do Fundão,
E-mail: deboraduarte@petrobras.com.br
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Figure 1 – Illustration of a standard refinery system

Crude oil blending is an attractive solution for those refiners who have the ability to blend different crude
types to provide a consistent and optimal feedstock to refinery operations. Optimal crude purchasing is an
effective method to improve refinery profits (Yu et al., 2004).
So, the crude oil blending (and its cuts) properties prediction, can contribute with the costs reduction, acting
in the giveaway, avoiding the reprocessing and reducing the necessity of big stocks.
This paper is focused in the solution of the crude oil blending properties prediction problem and the main
objectives proposed are: (i) minimize the blend costs, (ii) optimize a crude oil blend property, (iii) optimize a
crude oil blend’s cut property, (iv) optimize a cut yield and (v) minimize the difference between some blend
properties and some standard oil properties.
The main objective of this work was to develop a tool able to reproduce the crude oil blending optimized
values in a fast and efficient way, making the knowledge usually required in ordinaries simulation tools, such as
parameters involved in the process, unnecessary. This paper is organized as follows: Section 2 is dedicated to the
problem description, whereas the proposed solution is presented in Section 3. Section 4 has an application case;
conclusion and discussion are reported in Section 5. Section 6 lists the references and concludes the paper.

2. Problem Definition

Crude oils are often blended to increase the sale price or process ability of a lower grade crude oil by
blending it with a higher grade, higher price crude. The objective is to produce blended crude oil to a target
specification at the lowest cost using the minimum higher cost crude oil (Yu et al., 2004).

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One of the difficulties faced by the supply chain and trading professionals is to predict crude oil blending and
its cuts properties, once the blend qualities prediction is usually made through complex correlations that depend
on the concentration and the properties of the blend’s components. So, the calculations to obtain the properties
generally take a long time from the professional to make it done.
It shows that a good model for the blending system is beneficial for supervision operation, prediction of the
export petroleum quality and realizing model based optimal control.
In crude assays, a true boiling point (TBP) distillation provides properties of discrete crude fractions obtained
by batch distillation of the crude. Nevertheless, there is often interest in blends with different boiling point ranges
those reported in the assays, in order to simulate seasonal variations in refinery operation that satisfy different
product slates (Maples, 1997).
The Research Center of Petrobras has developed a petroleum data base, where there are more than four
hundred crude assays, which were the basis for the starting of the project of a tool for prediction of crude oil
blending properties. Once we have the assays, it would be necessary to create an algorithm for the calculation of
the blending properties.
In this work, we considered three groups of properties: (i) directly weight proportional, (ii) non directly
weight proportional and (iii) calculated from another procedure. Each group is calculated in a different way.
(i) Directly weight proportional
This group of properties is calculated by the following procedure:
n

n ∑ (m i* p i)
1≤ i ≤ n M = ∑mi P= 1

1 M

mi – ingredient i weight

pi – ingredient i property (specific per unit of weight, for instance, 5.0 [%S])

M – blend mixture weight

P – blend property
(ii) Non directly weight proportional
The non directly weight properties are calculated by the blending index method. They are defined by
properties correlations, showing a directly volume proportional behavior, taking into consideration the
correlation validity limits. Generally, the methodology is:
n

n ∑ (m i* y i)
1≤ i ≤ n yi = f ( pi ) M = ∑mi Y= 1
P = invf (Y )
1 M

mi – ingredient i weight

pi – ingredient i real property (for instance, cloudy point [ºC] or [ºF])

yi – ingredient pseudo-property (for instance, cloudy point index)

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M – blend mixture weight

Y – blend pseudo property

P – blend real property

f – function to obtain the pseudo-property y by the property p

invf – function to obtain the blend real property P by the blend pseudo-property Y

The properties calculated by this method are:

- pour point (ºF)
- cloudy point (ºF)
- Freeze point (ºF)
- Smoke point (mm)
- Aniline point (ºF)
- RON
- MON
(iii) Properties calculated from another procedure
Table 1 shows the properties and the reference method to calculate the blend property.

Table 1 . Reference methods of blend properties calculation

Property Method
Normal cuts – crude assay
True Boiling Point PEV (TBP)
Another cuts – interpolation
Boiling Point ASTM D-86 API-TDB
Cinematic Viscosity API-TDB
Specific Gravity API-TDB
ºAPI API-TDB
Cetane Index ASTM-4774
Cetane Number KBC – Petrofine
Watson factor API-TDB

2.1. Optimization Problem

The implementation of an optimization version for that kind of problem requires the utilization of a non-
linear programming solver, once the blend qualities follow rules, in general, non-linear.
The main goal is to determine the best crude oil blending, taking into consideration the constraints imposed.
2.2. Variables
The variables involved in the problem are: crude oil’s percentage in the blending and the cuts initial and final
boiling point temperature.

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2.3. Constraints
This kind of problem has, naturally, three linear constraints:
- the sum of the crude oils compositions must be one hundred

∑
n
x = 100
i =1 i

- the final boiling point must be greater than the initial boiling point (for the same cut)

TFIM n − TINI n > 0

- the initial boiling point of a n cut must be greater than the final boiling point of the n-1 cut

TINI n − TFIM n−1 > 0

We can also have some non-linear constraints, according to user’s necessity, which could be any property
value calculated by the system.

3. Solution Proposed
The tool developed was, firstly, a simulator able to reproduce the properties results of a crude oil blending, in
an easy and fast way. The blending calculations used in the simulator were based on the methods mentioned in
section 2, Table 1. The optimization version was developed as an upgrade of the simulation version and it is the
main objective of this article.
The optimization version gives the same results as the simulation one, if we consider the initial crude oil
composition proposed by user. Besides that, it may also calculates the crude oil ingredients’ optimal proportion,
when the user specifies the objective and the properties limits for the blend and for its cuts.
The optimization applied was Mathematical Programming with Constraints. We used a commercial package,
written in FORTRAN-77, which uses the SQP (Sequential Quadratic Programming) algorithm to solve a
minimization problem of a real and smooth function, subject to linear and non-linear constraints.
Once the simulation version has been written in FORTRAN-90, it was possible to build the optimization
version based on the simulation one, adapting the optimization algorithm to the problem. In addition to it, in the
final version it is possible for the user to choose between to optimize a crude oil blend or simply to make a
simulation.

3.1. Basic Data Flow

As it is written in section 2, the crude oils data come from the restrict database, created by Cenpes/Petrobras,
called Crude Oil Evaluation Data Base (BDAP – in Portuguese, Banco de Dados de Avaliação de Petróleos).
This database can be generated in Excel plans (BDAP Excel), which has to be “treated” to compose Blend-BR
crude oil list. In order to compose a blend, the user chooses the required crude oil from the list and gives the
necessary information to run the optimization.
The simplified data flow of the optimization process is indicated in Figure 2.

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BDAP
EXCEL
Treated data
Consolidated data

Data plan
Crude oil list
1
To treat the
BDAP Excel 2
To define
optimization
Optimization input data Optimization data

Optimization Usuário

Optimization input data

3 Optimization execution
To execute solicitation
optimization

Input data archive to Output data archive

calculations routines Input data archive

Output data archive from

calculations routines to
interface

Figure 2. Optimization Simplified Data Flow

3.2. Objective Functions Implemented

It has been defined on these version four options as objective function, as it will be described.
I. To minimize the crude oil blend cost.
In this case, the user gives the “price” of each crude oil that builds the blend. The solver calculates the best
proportion of each blend component.
n
f = ∑ ( xi C i )
i =1

f – objective function
xi – crude oil quantity in the blend
Ci – crude oil cost
The independent variables are the n crude oil’s quantities.
The non linear constraints are, generally, limits on some properties values, given by the user.
The linear constraint is a composition constraint, defined in the program source code:

∑
n
x = 100
i =1 i
xi – crude oil percentage in the blend
It means that the sum of the percentage of each crude oil in the blend must be 100.

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II. To minimize or to maximize one blend property or one cut property (defined by user).
In this kind of problem, the goal is to find the best value for one crude oil property or for one cut property.
The independent variables are each crude oil proportion in the optimized blend.
As in option I, the linear constraint is a composition constraint, defined in the program source code:

∑
n
x = 100
i =1 i

And the non linear constraints are, generally, limits on some properties values, given by the user.
III. To minimize or to maximize the yield of a certain cut.
In this case, the objective is the maximization or the minimization of one cut yield, previously defined.
The solver calculates the crude oils proportion in the blend, being able to vary initial and final temperatures
of the cut to be optimized, too. So, those are the independent variables in case we choose this objective function.
The non linear constraints are, generally, limits of some properties values, given by the user.
In this kind of problem, there are two types of linear constraints: composition and temperature constraints,
defined by the equations:

∑
n
x = 100
i =1 i

TFIM n − TINI n > 0

TFIMn – cut final temperature
TINIn – cut initial temperature
IV. To minimize the difference between any blend qualities and the same qualities in a crude oil, chosen as a
standard
When this option is selected, the goal is to find the quantity, or the proportion, of each crude oil in the blend,
in a way that the blend would be seemed to the crude oil choose as a standard. This similarity is measured by the
equation:
2
n
 calci − propi 
f = ∑  
i =1  equalconci × propi 
f – objective function
calci – crude oil blend i property calculated value
propi – crude oil standard i property value
equalconci – equal concern factor for the i property
The equal concern factor is the inverse of the square minimum mathematical expression traditional weight.
1
equalconcern =
weight
The equalization between calculated property and “standard” property is done by the equal concern factor
criteria, where the user may give importance levels for the properties to be compared.
The standard property value is in the objective function expression in order to normalize all the properties
differences allotments.

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In this kind of optimization, the equal concern indicates the equivalence between the calculated value and
standard value differences for each property that compounds the sum to be minimized.
The independent variables are the n crude oils quantities.
The non linear constraints are, generally, limits of some properties values, given by the user.
The composition linear constraint is defined in the source code:

∑
n
x = 100
i =1 i

The program was conceived and implemented in order to permit some modular increase in the number of
optimization problem options, being unnecessary any changing in the current source code programming lines.

4. Application Case
Suppose there are two crude oils to be processed in a certain refinery, as follow in Table 2. The distillation
cuts are as just as shown in Table 3. The objective function is to maximize diesel yield, with the possibility to
vary the initial temperature between 235° - 240°C and the final temperature in 370°C - 375°C, subject the
constraints shown in Table 4.

Table 2 . Example of two crude oil blending

Crude Oil Initial Proportion Low Limit Upper Limit
Cabiúnas 90% 0% 100%
Brass River 10% 0% 15%

Table 3 . Distillation Cuts

Distilation Cuts Initial Destilation Temperature (°C) Final Destilation Temperature (°C)
LPG -90 -20
Naphta -20 163
QAV 163 239
Diesel 239 372
Light Gas Oil 372 387
Heavy Gas Oil 387 530
Circulating Gas Oil 530 540
Vacuum Residue 540 1000

Table 4 . Constraints
Constraint Minimum Value Maximum Value
% Sulfur in Diesel 0% 1,5%

The objective function result is 23,758% of diesel. Table 5 and Table 6 show a resume of the results obtained
for the crude oil proportion and for the constraint value.
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Table 5 . Variable Optimization Results

Variables Low Limit Calculated Value Upper Limit
Cabiúnas proportion 0% 85% 100%
Brass River proportion 0% 15% 15%
Diesel Initial Temperature 235°C 235°C 240°C
Diesel Final Temperature 370°C 375°C 375°C

Table 6 . Constraints Optimization Results

Constraints Low Limit Calculated Value Upper Limit
% Sulfur in Diesel 0% 0,2713% 1,5%

5. Conclusion
Nowadays, refinery industries are trying to find a way to reduce its costs and make a better use of the crude
oil slates available to them to process. In addition to it, there is the necessity to obey some products quality
specification values. These demands can be satisfied using prediction model of blending properties.
The crude oil blending optimization results can compose a group of information to help in decisions such as:
what is the best crude oil blend that can be done, in order to have the minimum costs or maximum yield of a
certain product, or even maximize or minimize any quality value in the crude oil blend or in a certain cut.

References

Mendez, Carlos A., Grossmann Ignacio E., Pousga Kaboré, Iiro Harjunkoski (2004). Optimization Techniqucs for Blending
and Scheduling of Oil-Refinery Operations. Pittisburg, USA.
Yu, Wen, Rubio, José de Jesús, Morales, America (2004). Optimization of Crude Oil Blending with Neural Networks. 43rd
IEEE Conference on Decision and Control. Atlantis, Paradise Island, Bahamas.
Blend-BR Manual of Theory (2005), Petrobras / Cenpes, Rio de Janeiro, RJ.