Geography and physical-chemical properties of sulfur oils
The questions, concerning with the development of hard-to-recover reserves assume prominence under the conditions of volume growth of hydrocarbon production, taking into account the reserves depletion of middle and low-density and viscosity of the oil of shallow horizons. The article is devoted to the description of geological conditions of occurrence (deep depth, the complex structure of deposits, etc.) and the characteristics of oils with abnormal physical-chemical properties, especially characteristics of sulfur oils. Sulfur oils are considered to be hard to-recover oils as they are characterized with the properties, that make the development difficult.  Materials and methods  The database of the Institute of Petroleum Chemistry (Siberian Division of the Russian Academy of Sciences) on physical-chemical properties of 32,300 samples of oils of the world; methods of geostatistical and dimensional analysis.  Results  The dimensional analysis of sour oils distribution of the world was carried out. The information about the properties of 1000 samples of oils with high content of sulfur, which was obtained from the global database of physical and chemical properties of oil, was used in the article. Patterns of the occurrence of these oils and features of their properties was identufied. The analysis of physical and chemical properties of sulfur oils of the Volga-Ural and the West Siberian Basins is presented in the article.  Сonclusions  The results of the analysis of physical-chemical properties of sulfur oils and their location worldwide are described in the article. It was shown that oils with high content of the sulfur are extra-heavy and high-viscosity oils with increased concentration of asphalt-resin substances and with low content of fuel factions. The results can be used for developing new and improving of existing methods and technologies of processing oils with high content of the sulfur.