Abstract
Reducing aromatic carbon content and removal of obnoxious odor are operations of prime importance for the purpose of domestic use of petroleum-derived materials such as kerosene. This derivative is widely used as a solvent for pesticides and usually represents about 30% of the total formulation. Effective reduction of aromatic carbon content and removal of bad odor from Sarir kerosene was achieved by using solid adsorbents, mainly activated carbon (AC). Attainment of improved results was possible by synergism between AC, silica, and alumina adsorbents. Thus, removal of bad odor and reduction of aromatic carbon content to 1% was possible by a 1:1, volume to weight ratio of kerosene to combined adsorbents weights; activated carbon (14%), silica (43%), and alumina (43%).
The use of solid adsorbents for dearomatization was superior to solvent extraction by N-methylpyrrolidinone (NMP). Meanwhile, extraction by NMP enabled the identification of several mono- and di-ring aromatic compounds in Sarir kerosene by capillary gas chromatography. The identification was ascertained by matching with authentic aromatic compounds.