Process scheme configurations are disclosed that enable conversion of crude oil feeds with several processing units in an integrated manner into petrochemicals. The designs utilize minimum capital expenditures to prepare suitable feedstocks for the steam cracker complex. The integrated process for converting crude oil to petrochemical products including olefins and aromatics, and fuel products, includes mixed feed steam cracking and gas oil steam cracking. Feeds to the mixed feed steam cracker include light products and naphtha from hydroprocessing zones within the battery limits, recycle streams from the C3 and C4 olefins recovery steps, and raffinate from a pyrolysis gasoline aromatics extraction zone within the battery limits. Feeds to the gas oil steam cracker include hydrotreated gas oil range intermediates from the vacuum gas oil hydroprocessing zone. Furthermore, vacuum residue is processed in a solvent deasphalting unit to produce deasphalted oil as additional feed to the gas oil hydroprocessing zone.

According to one or more embodiments presently described, a feedstock oil may be processed by a method which may include hydrotreating the feedstock oil to reduce or remove one or more of sulfur content, metals content, nitrogen content, or aromatics content to produce a hydrotreated oil stream; separating at least a portion of the hydrotreated oil stream into a at least a lesser boiling point oil fraction stream and a greater boiling point oil fraction stream in a first separator; hydrocracking the greater boiling point oil fraction stream; and steam cracking the lesser boiling point oil fraction stream.

According to one or more embodiments presently described, a feedstock oil may be processed by a method which may include hydrotreating the feedstock oil to reduce or remove one or more of sulfur content, metals content, nitrogen content, or aromatics content to produce a hydrotreated oil stream; separating at least a portion of the hydrotreated oil stream into a at least a lesser boiling point oil fraction stream and a greater boiling point oil fraction stream in a first separator; hydrocracking the greater boiling point oil fraction stream; and steam cracking the lesser boiling point oil fraction stream.

Process for the production of olefins and of middle distillates from a paraffinic feedstock, in which: a) a paraffinic feedstock resulting from a Fischer-Tropsch unit is recovered, the said feedstock containing a light fraction and a heavy fraction; b) the light fraction is sent to a catalytic cracking unit; c) the effluent resulting from the catalytic cracking unit is separated in a fractionation unit in order to obtain a fraction of light hydrocarbons, an olefinic fraction and a residual liquid fraction; d) the heavy fraction is sent to a hydrocracking/hydroisomerization unit; e) the effluent resulting from the hydrocracking/hydroisomerization unit is separated in a fractionation unit in order to obtain a middle distillates fraction, a naphtha cut having a maximum boiling point of less than 180 C. and an unconverted heavy fraction; f) a part of the naphtha cut resulting from the fractionation unit is sent to the catalytic cracking unit.

Integrated pyrolysis and hydrocracking systems and processes for efficiently cracking of hydrocarbon mixtures, such as mixtures including compounds having a normal boiling temperature of greater than 450 C., 500 C., or even greater than 550 C., such as whole crudes for example, are disclosed.

Methods and systems for treating pygas are disclosed. Methods include depentanizing the pygas to produce a C.sub.5 stream and a C.sub.6+ stream before hydrotreating the C.sub.6+ stream, to integrate the processing of pygas with the production of isoprene, piperylene, and dicyclopentadiene. Systems include a depentanizer added before a pygas hydrotreatment unit.

Methods and systems for treating pygas are disclosed. Methods include depentanizing the pygas to produce a C.sub.5 stream and a C.sub.6+ stream before hydrotreating the C.sub.6+ stream, to integrate the processing of pygas with the production of isoprene, piperylene, and dicyclopentadiene. Systems include a depentanizer added before a pygas hydrotreatment unit.

Processes herein may be used to thermally crack various hydrocarbon feeds, and may eliminate the refinery altogether while making the crude to chemicals process very flexible in terms of crude. In embodiments herein, crude is progressively separated into at least light and heavy fractions. Depending on the quality of the light and heavy fractions, these are routed to one of three upgrading operations, including a fixed bed hydroconversion unit, a fluidized catalytic conversion unit, or a residue hydrocracking unit that may utilize an ebullated bed reactor. Products from the upgrading operations may be used as feed to a steam cracker

A process for steam cracking a whole crude including a volatilization step performed to maintain a relatively large hydrocarbon droplet size. The process may include contacting a whole crude with steam to volatilize a portion of the hydrocarbons, wherein the contacting of the hydrocarbon feedstock and steam is conducted at an initial relative velocity of less than 30 m/s, for example. The resulting vapor phase, including volatilized hydrocarbons and steam may then be separated from a liquid phase comprising unvaporized hydrocarbons. The hydrocarbons in the vapor phase may then be forwarded to a steam pyrolysis reactor for steam cracking of the hydrocarbons in the vapor phase.

Processes herein may be used to thermally crack various hydrocarbon feeds, and may eliminate the refinery altogether while making the crude to chemicals process very flexible in terms of crude. In embodiments herein, crude is progressively separated into at least light and heavy fractions. Depending on the quality of the light and heavy fractions, these are routed to one of three upgrading operations, including a fixed bed hydroconversion unit, a fluidized catalytic conversion unit, or a residue hydrocracking unit that may utilize an ebullated bed reactor. Products from the upgrading operations may be used as feed to a steam cracker.