The Shukhov cracking process is a

thermal cracking In petrochemistry, petroleum geology and organic chemistry, cracking is the process whereby complex organic molecules such as kerogens or long-chain hydrocarbons are broken down into simpler molecules such as light hydrocarbons, by the breaking o ...

process invented by

Vladimir Shukhov Vladimir Grigoryevich Shukhov (russian: link=no, Влади́мир Григо́рьевич Шу́хов; – 2 February 1939) was a Russian Empire and Soviet engineer-polymath, scientist and architect renowned for his pioneering works on new ...

and Sergei Gavrilov. Shukhov designed and built the first thermal cracking device for the

petrochemical industry The petrochemical industry is concerned with the production and trade of petrochemicals. A major part is constituted by the plastics (polymer) industry. It directly interfaces with the petroleum industry, especially the downstream sector. Comp ...

. His patent (Shukhov cracking process – patent of

Russian empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the List of Russian monarchs, Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended th ...

No. 12926 from November 27, 1891) on cracking was used to invalidate

Standard Oil Standard Oil Company, Inc., was an American oil production, transportation, refining, and marketing company that operated from 1870 to 1911. At its height, Standard Oil was the largest petroleum company in the world, and its success made its co- ...

's patents ( Burton process – Patent of United States No. 1,049,667 on January 7, 1913) on

oil refineries An oil refinery or petroleum refinery is an industrial process plant where petroleum (crude oil) is transformed and refined into useful products such as gasoline (petrol), diesel fuel, asphalt base, fuel oils, heating oil, kerosene, liquef ...

. In 1937 the Shukhov cracking process was superseded by

catalytic cracking Fluid Catalytic Cracking (FCC) is the conversion process used in petroleum refineries to convert the high-boiling point, high-molecular weight hydrocarbon fractions of petroleum (crude oils) into gasoline, olefinic gases, and other petroleum prod ...

. It is still in use today to produce diesel.

References

Information on cracking in oil refining

* "Vladimir G. Suchov 1853-1939. Die Kunst der sparsamen Konstruktion.",

und andere, 192 S., Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt, Stuttgart, 1990, . Chemical processes Oil refining Vladimir Shukhov History of the petroleum industry Russian inventions {{reaction-stub

See also

References