Comparative oxidation of adsorbed asphaltenes onto transition metal oxide nanoparticles

In this study asphaltenes – waste hydrocarbons and problematic constituent present in heavy oil – have been investigated for its oxidation onto different types of nanoparticles, namely NiO, Co3O4 and Fe3O4. All nanoparticles tested showed high adsorption affinity and catalytic activity for asphaltene adsorption and oxidation in the following order NiO > Co3O4 > Fe3O4. The oxidation temperature of asphaltenes decreased by 140, 136 and 100 °C with respect to non-catalytic oxidation in the presence of NiO, Co3O4, and Fe3O4 nanoparticles, respectively. A correlation appears to exist between the adsorption affinity and the catalytic activity, the higher the affinity the greater the catalytic activity.