The Chevron STB process is an above-ground shale oil extraction technology. It is classified as a hot recycled solids technology.

The Chevron STB process is a hot recycled solids technology, which processes small particles of oil shale

Oil shale

Oil shale, an organic-rich fine-grained sedimentary rock, contains significant amounts of kerogen from which liquid hydrocarbons called shale oil can be produced...

. It was invented by Paul W. Tamm and Gordon E. Langlois in the Chevron Research Company

Chevron Corporation

Chevron Corporation is an American multinational energy corporation headquartered in San Ramon, California, United States and active in more than 180 countries. It is engaged in every aspect of the oil, gas, and geothermal energy industries, including exploration and production; refining,...

 laboratory in Richmond, California

Richmond, California

Richmond is a city in western Contra Costa County, California, United States. The city was incorporated on August 7, 1905. It is located in the East Bay, part of the San Francisco Bay Area. It is a residential inner suburb of San Francisco, as well as the site of heavy industry, which has been...

. As a heat carrier, it uses oil shale ash, produced by combustion of spent oil shale in the separate combustor.

In this process, crushed oil shale is fed into the top of the retort

Retort

In a chemistry laboratory, a retort is a glassware device used for distillation or dry distillation of substances. It consists of a spherical vessel with a long downward-pointing neck. The liquid to be distilled is placed in the vessel and heated...

 where it is mixed with the hot oil shale ash. The oil shale moves downward through the retort as fluidized bed

Fluidized bed

A fluidized bed is formed when a quantity of a solid particulate substance is placed under appropriate conditions to cause the solid/fluid mixture to behave as a fluid. This is usually achieved by the introduction of pressurized fluid through the particulate medium...

 of particles. While descending, the heat is transferred from the oil shale ash to the raw oil shale causing pyrolysis. As a result, oil shale decomposes to shale oil

Shale oil

Shale oil, known also as kerogen oil or oil-shale oil, is an unconventional oil produced from oil shale by pyrolysis, hydrogenation, or thermal dissolution. These processes convert the organic matter within the rock into synthetic oil and gas...

 vapors, oil shale gas

Oil shale gas

Oil shale gas is a synthetic gas mixture produced by oil shale pyrolysis. Although often referred to as shale gas, it differs from the natural gas produced from shale, which is also known as shale gas.-Process:...

 and spent oil shale. A stripping gas is inserted from the bottom of retort, which carries oil vapors into solids separation section. The fine particles are directed to the combustor while oil vapors are moved to the condenser

Condenser (heat transfer)

In systems involving heat transfer, a condenser is a device or unit used to condense a substance from its gaseous to its liquid state, typically by cooling it. In so doing, the latent heat is given up by the substance, and will transfer to the condenser coolant...

. In condenser, shale oil is separated from water vapor and product gases. On the bottom of retort the spent shale is transported to cumbustor.

See also

• Galoter process
  Galoter process
  The Galoter process is a shale oil extraction technology for a production of shale oil, a type of synthetic crude oil. In this process, the oil shale is decomposed into shale oil, oil shale gas, and spent residue...
  
  
• Alberta Taciuk Process
  Alberta Taciuk Process
  The Alberta Taciuk process is an above-ground dry thermal retorting technology for extracting oil from oil sands, oil shale and other organics-bearing materials, including oil contaminated soils, sludges and wastes...
  
  
• Petrosix process
  Petrosix
  Petrosix is currently the world’s largest surface oil shale pyrolysis retort with an diameter vertical shaft kiln, operational since 1992. It is located in São Mateus do Sul, Brazil, and it is owned and operated by the Brazil energy company Petrobras. Petrosix means also the Petrosix process, an...
  
  
• Kiviter process
  Kiviter process
  -History:The Kiviter process is based on the earlier vertical retort technology . This technology underwent a long process of development...
  
  
• TOSCO II process
  TOSCO II process
  The TOSCO II process is an above ground retorting technology for shale oil extraction, which uses fine particles of oil shale that are heated in a rotating kiln. The particularity of this process is that it use hot ceramic balls for the heat transfer between the retort and a heater...
  
  
• Fushun process
  Fushun process
  The Fushun process is an above-ground retorting technology for shale oil extraction. It is named after the main production site of Fushun, Liaoning province in northeastern China.-History:...
  
  
• Paraho process
  Paraho process
  The Paraho process is an above ground retorting technology for shale oil extraction. The name "Paraho" is delivered from the words "para homem", which means in Portuguese "for mankind".-History:...
  
  
• Lurgi-Ruhrgas process
  Lurgi-Ruhrgas process
  The Lurgi–Ruhrgas process is an above-ground coal liquefaction and shale oil extraction technology. It is classified as a hot recycled solids technology.-History:...
  
  
• KENTORT II‎