PROCESS FOR HIGH-TEMPERATURE FLASH DISTILLATION OF RESIDUE OILS

According to the invention, liquid residual oil from processing crude oil, natural bitumen or oil sand is mixed in a mixer with hot coke as a heat carrier (heat-carrier coke) whereby 60 to 90 weight per cent of the residual oil is evaporated. The proportion of residual oil which has not evaporated, i.e. the part containing metalliferous asphaltenes is converted to oil vapour, gas and coke in the mixture with the heat-carrier. The gases and vapours are extracted from the mixer separately from the granular coke and are subsequently cooled to obtain an oil product and gas. The coke extracted from the mixer is re-heated and returned to the mixer as a heat-carrier. The liquid residual oil is mixed with heat-carrier coke in the mixer according to a weight ratio of 1:3 to 1:30, said heat-carrier coke being at a temperature of 500 to 700 ~C. A residual liquid film forms on the granules of heat-carrier coke as a result of this mixing process. The majority of said residual film evaporates in the mixer at a lowest possible operating temperature of 450 to 600 ~C. The remaining residual liquid film on the coke is converted to oil vapour, gas and coke during a retention time of 6 to 60 seconds. Dry, pourable coke is extracted from the mixer, said coke being essentially free of any liquid constituents. The gases and vapours produced are extracted from the mixer after a retention time of 0.5 to 5 seconds.