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Vacuum Bottom

The crude oil in the refinery is converted by distillation to its components, and crude oil is separated from each other due to the difference in boiling point in different parts of the tower. In the process of primary distillation (distillation at ambient pressure), some heavy materials remain at the bottom of the tower, which is transferred to the distillation towers in the vacuum and disassembled by distillation in the vacuum of its various components. The remainder of the tower, known as Vacuum Batum, is used to produce bitumen. 

 In order to produce bitumen, the batons are put into the bitumen production unit (bitumen production tower) under aeration operations. The temperature of the vacuum bottom inside the tower is about 240 to 320 ° C, and the passage of air from the vacuum bottom at this temperature causes an oxidation process to occur, and as a result of the aeration process, the residual properties can be improved. The most important effect of blowing air on vacuum batons is the transformation of the Meltan molecules into heavier molecules, namely asphaltenes. This conversion reduces the degree of penetration of bitumen and increases bitumen smoothness.