Structural Types in Petroleum Asphaltenes as Deduced From Pyrolysis/Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry

An integrated technique has been developed for the study of the thermal chemistry of petroleum fractions—particularly the asphaltenes. The procedure involves the integrated use of a pyroprobe/gas chroma-tographic/mass spectrometric technique which offers information about the structuraI-types and distribution within the volatile products from the thermal decomposition of asphaltenes. The technique offers itself as an attractive on-line analytical method for the study of structural types that occur in asphaltenes as well as a technique for studying the parameters that can influence asphaltene decomposition. The concept of deducing “average” structures of asphaltenes is briefly discussed in terms of the observance of the lower molecular weight species in the volatile products of the thermal decomposition.