Separating crude oil into fuels and petrochemicals consumes about half of the process energy used in the chemical and petrochemical industries. 

New research involving scientists at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) could help make that process more efficient through advanced membrane technology that reduces the energy required to refine hydrocarbons, with potential benefits for Saudi Arabia’s refining and petrochemical sectors. 

“A more effective approach would be to minimize carbon dioxide production by investing in more sustainable and less energy-intensive separation methods, such as membrane technologies integrated into industrial processes at an early stage,” said Professor Suzana Nunes, whose Nanostructured Polymeric Membrane Lab worked alongside KAUST Core Labs to support a global research effort to improve a critical industrial process. 

In a study published in Science, an international team of researchers addressed fundamental materials challenges that have limited the use of membrane technologies as a lower-energy alternative to conventional thermal distillation in crude oil refining. The breakthrough provides selective nanoscale pores and prevents the swelling that typically occurs when polymers are exposed to hydrocarbons. 

Crucially, the researchers use approaches that can be manufactured at scale and integrated membranes into standard modules already used in industry. Such membranes could help refineries significantly reduce energy use and carbon emissions, operate smaller, more flexible processing units, and remove sulfur-containing compounds earlier in the refining process. 

“The role of my group at KAUST in this new manuscript was performance characterization for crude oil fractionation,” said Nunes, professor of chemical and environmental science and engineering. “We’ve been working for years on membrane synthesis and development for applications in the chemical industry, including crude oil fractionation.” 

KAUST Assistant Professor of Chemistry Anqi Wang contributed to the material characterization. Nunes and her fellow researchers are exploring different approaches for membrane manufacturing and investigating how the membranes could be integrated into targeted hybrid processes alongside existing refinery infrastructure. 

Testing with Arabian crude 

For this study, led by Professor Andrew Livingston of Queen Mary University of London, researchers tested the membranes using Arabian Extra Light crude oil. Nunes said this allowed them to evaluate the technology under realistic conditions and compare results with previous studies. She believes membrane technologies offer significant opportunities to make industrial separations in the Kingdom cleaner, more efficient, and less energy-intensive. 

“There’s a huge opportunity for Saudi Arabia — where the petrochemical, chemical, and pharmaceutical industries are growing fast — to integrate membrane technology into cleaner and more effective separation units.” 

Building on years of membrane research exploring different materials and fabrication methods, the new paper focuses on polymers of intrinsic microporosity, a class of highly permeable materials that could improve membrane performance and scalability for industrial applications. 

One of the biggest challenges in developing membranes for crude oil separations is that hydrocarbons can swell or even dissolve some polymer materials, altering pore structures and reducing performance. Effective membranes must be precisely engineered at the nanoscale, combining the right materials, pore architecture, and stability, Nunes said. 

Scalability is equally important. Even the most effective membrane must be manufactured at industrial scale if it is to be adopted by petrochemical facilities that process enormous daily volumes of hydrocarbons, she added. Nunes noted that sustainable separation technologies not only reduce emissions but also improve industrial competitiveness. 

“Closer collaboration among the Saudi petrochemical industry, successful membrane producers, and experienced scientists in the field is the best strategy to innovate and introduce better separation technologies.” 

KAUST drives membrane innovation 

Membrane technologies are unlikely to completely replace conventional distillation, Nunes said. Rather, their value comes through integration at specific stages of refining, improving efficiency while reducing energy use and emissions. Advancing such technologies has been a focus of KAUST membrane researchers since the University’s earliest years. 

“The topic of this paper and other analogous developments we are working on is 100 percent aligned with the mission-driven objectives of the Kingdom. Beyond oil refining, our membrane developments target pharmaceutical separations in organic solvents.” 

Nunes noted that KAUST’s membrane research also extends to the water sector, with applications in desalination, water reuse, and purification. 

In fact, a KAUST-led team, BioH2O, is one of only 17 semifinalists in the novel materials and methods track of the ongoing XPRIZE Water Scarcity competition, developing advanced desalination technologies capable of producing freshwater from seawater with lower energy consumption and greater scalability than current ones. 

“KAUST has membrane scientists with a high international reputation who have played important roles globally in the membrane field even before joining KAUST,” Nunes said. “Membranes are highly relevant across the broad range of development priorities recognized by the Kingdom.” 

She added that international collaborations, such as the newly published membrane study, enable researchers to identify shared challenges, combine expertise, and advance science for the benefit of Saudi Arabia and the world.