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A desalter is a process unit on an oil refinery
Oil refinery

An oil refinery is an industrial process plant where crude oil is processed and refined into more useful petroleum products, such as gasoline, diesel fuel, asphalt, heating oil, kerosene, and liquefied petroleum gas....
 that removes salt from the crude oil. The salt is dissolved in the water in the crude oil, not in the crude oil itself. The desalting is usually the first process in crude oil refining.


The term desalter may also refer to a desalination
Desalination

Desalination, desalinization, or desalinisation refers to any of several processes that remove excess sodium chloride and other minerals from water....
 facility used to treat brackish water
Brackish water

Brackish water is water that has more salinity than fresh water, but not as much as seawater. It may result from mixing of seawater with fresh water, as in estuary, or it may occur in brackish fossil aquifers....
 from agricultural runoff
Surface runoff

Surface runoff is the water flow which occurs when soil is infiltrated to full capacity and excess water, from rain, snowmelt, or other sources flows over the land....
. This may be done either to produce potable water
Drinking water

Drinking water is water that is of sufficiently high quality so that it can be consumed or utilized without risk of immediate or long term harm....
 for human or animal consumption, or to reduce the salinity of river water prior to its crossing an international border, usually to comply with the terms of a treaty
Treaty

A Treaty is an agreement under international law entered into by actors in international law, namely states and international organizations. A Treaty may also be known as: agreement, protocol, covenant, convention, exchange of letters, etc....
.






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Encyclopedia


A desalter is a process unit on an oil refinery
Oil refinery

An oil refinery is an industrial process plant where crude oil is processed and refined into more useful petroleum products, such as gasoline, diesel fuel, asphalt, heating oil, kerosene, and liquefied petroleum gas....
 that removes salt from the crude oil. The salt is dissolved in the water in the crude oil, not in the crude oil itself. The desalting is usually the first process in crude oil refining.


The term desalter may also refer to a desalination
Desalination

Desalination, desalinization, or desalinisation refers to any of several processes that remove excess sodium chloride and other minerals from water....
 facility used to treat brackish water
Brackish water

Brackish water is water that has more salinity than fresh water, but not as much as seawater. It may result from mixing of seawater with fresh water, as in estuary, or it may occur in brackish fossil aquifers....
 from agricultural runoff
Surface runoff

Surface runoff is the water flow which occurs when soil is infiltrated to full capacity and excess water, from rain, snowmelt, or other sources flows over the land....
. This may be done either to produce potable water
Drinking water

Drinking water is water that is of sufficiently high quality so that it can be consumed or utilized without risk of immediate or long term harm....
 for human or animal consumption, or to reduce the salinity of river water prior to its crossing an international border, usually to comply with the terms of a treaty
Treaty

A Treaty is an agreement under international law entered into by actors in international law, namely states and international organizations. A Treaty may also be known as: agreement, protocol, covenant, convention, exchange of letters, etc....
. Desalters are also used to treat groundwater
Groundwater

Groundwater is water located beneath the ground surface in soil porosity spaces and in the fractures of lithologic formations. A unit of rock or an unconsolidated deposit is called an aquifer when it can yield a usable quantity of water....
 reservoirs in areas impacted by cattle feedlots
Feedlot

A feedlot or feedyard is a type of Factory farming#Confined Animal Feeding Operations which is used for finishing livestock, notably beef cattle, prior to slaughter....
 and dairies
Dairy

A dairy is a facility for the extraction and processing of animal milk—mostly from goat or cattle, but also from bovine, sheep, horses or camels —for human consumption....
.

Why Desalt Crude?

  • The salts that are most frequently present in crude oil are Calcium,Sodium and Magnesium Chlorides. If these compounds are not removed from the oil several problems arise in the refining process. The high temperatures that occur downstream in the process could cause water hydrolysis, which in turn allows the formation of hydrochloric acid.
  • Sand, Silts, Salt deposit and Foul Heat Exchangers
  • Water Heat of Vaporization reduces crude Pre-Heat capacity
  • Sodium, Arsenic and Other Metals can poison Catalysts
  • Environmental Compliance, i.e., By removing the suspended solids, which might otherwise become an issue in flue gas opacity norms, etc.,


See also


  • Brackish water
    Brackish water

    Brackish water is water that has more salinity than fresh water, but not as much as seawater. It may result from mixing of seawater with fresh water, as in estuary, or it may occur in brackish fossil aquifers....
  • Desalination
    Desalination

    Desalination, desalinization, or desalinisation refers to any of several processes that remove excess sodium chloride and other minerals from water....


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