Thermal Characterization of Carbonaceous Pitches from Residue of PETRONAS Refinery

Residue often not treated well and being disposed as waste. It is formed from heavier fractions of crude oil that fail to vaporize. The main objective of the project is to study the thermal characterization of carbonaceous mesophase pitches from the residue of PETRONAS refinery. From the result the mesophase forming ability and graphitizability can be established and recommendations can be made on how to make use of the residue pertaining to fabrication of carbon and graphite materials. Properties of pitch materials derived from the residue of distillation of hydrocarbons might vary depending upon the source of the crude oil. Mesophase pitch which has a high graphitizability is highly favoured due to its value as a precursor to expensive or exotic carbonaceous or graphite materials. So far studies on the petroleum residue from PETRONAS refineries were not well reported. Since it might have a high economic values, the petroleum residue of PETRONAS refineries need to be studied in its ability to be used as precursor to carbonaceous materials. Throughout the project, several experiments have been conducted to achieve the objectives. The experiments performed were XRD, DSC, SEM, optical microscopy, FTIR and TGA. In the end of the project, all the outcome results are positive and indicate the sample which is residue that obtained from PETRONAS refinery is mesophase.