PROCESS OF SEPARATING FINE SOLIDS FROM OIL

摘要

The present invention provides a process of separating fine solids from oil in which the solids are dispersed, characterized in that the oil is treated with a combination of a compressed above-critical gas and an entraining agent at such temperature and such pressure that the system consisting of the oil, entraining agent and above-critical gas constitutes a single phase, the single-phase mixture of oil, entraining agent and above-critical gas is withdrawn from the solids, the separated single-phase mixture is heated to decompose the mixture into an liquid phase rich in oil and a gas phase poor in oil, and/or the separated single-phase mixture is sufficiently pressure-relieved to decompose the mixture into a liquid phase rich in oil and a gas phase poor in oil.