화학공학소재연구정보센터
Fuel Science & Technology International, Vol.14, No.3, 465-478, 1996
Viscosity and solubility of mixtures of bitumen and solvent
The solubilities of three bitumen samples (Suncor, Syncrude and Lloydminster) in five solvents were examined and prediction on the various bitumen-solvent mixture viscosities were made with Cragoe equation. By calculating the Cragoe constant 'a' for each mixture and using the average value in the Cragoe equation the prediction accuracy of the equation was improved by over 60%. Bitumen-naphtha mixtures showed the best viscosity prediction characteristics. The solubility of the asphaltenes in the bitumen was highest in toluene among the five solvents. However, naphtha, showed a moderate solvating power, which negligibly varied over the range of composition studied. Therefore naphtha, a solvent derived from bitumen was recommended as the most appropriate solvent for reducing the viscosity bitumen.