Hydroprocessing is one of the most important processes in petroleum refining industry, not only for upgrading of heavy oils but also for producing low-impurity content fuels and preparing feeds for various conversion processes. Experimental results obtained in pilot plant and semi-commercial scales for hydroprocessing of heavy oils are reported in this work. Mexican heavy crude oils (10, 13 and 16°API) with high amount of impurities were used for all tests. Hydroprocessing was conducted at moderate reaction severity in two fixed-bed reactors in series. Removals of sulfur, metals and asphaltenes, as well as changes of API gravity and viscosity were monitored at different reaction conditions with time-on-stream. Upgraded oils with reduced amounts of impurities and increased API were obtained, keeping sediment formation below maximum allowable content. Removal of impurities was higher in semi-commercial scale compared with pilot plant test. Have been proved that the heavier the feed the greater the gain in product quality. For instance, 10°API crude can increase its gravity up to ~22°API (Δ°API = 12), while 16°API crude increases its gravity up to ~25°API (Δ°API = 9). Sediment formation was also kept below 0.05 wt % and no other problems (excessive reactor delta-P, plugging, etc.) were observed during the test.
