Molecular Weight and Association of Asphaltenes: a Critical Review

The determination of asphaltene molecular weights is complicated by the tendency of asphaltene molecules to associate with each other and with other petroleum constituents, and reported molecular weights vary from 900 to 300 000. This paper reviews the methods (vapor pressure osmometry, size exclusion chromatography, ultrafiltration, ultracentrifugation, viscosity, small angle X-ray scattering, infrared spectroscopy, solubilization, and interfacial tension) that have been used to estimate asphaltene molecular weights and to probe association phenomena. It is concluded that asphaltene fractions from typical crudes have a number average molecular weight of 1 200-2 700 and a molecular weight range of 1,000-10,000 or higher. Intermolecular association phenomena are primarily responsible for observed molecular weights up to and in excess of 100,000 but detailed mechanisms of the intermolecular associations are not well understood. Certain observations suggest that asphaltene molecules are associated in reversedmicelles and that asphaltenes interact selectively with resins although the evidence on these points is subject to alternate interpretations. H-bond interactions between asphaltenes and resins have been demonstrated