In this article, we present data on the distribution of sulfur in Estonian kukersite shale oil. It was found that the highest concentration of sulfur is present in the fractions boiling between about 150 and 190°C. Also, we studied the effect of N2, N2/steam, CO2, and CO2/steam environments on the concentrations of some sulfur compounds in shale oil. The results show that thiophenic compounds comprise most of the sulfur compounds in crude kukersite shale oil. Furthermore, CO2 increased the concentration of some of the identified sulfur compounds in the shale oil as compared to N2. The presence of steam significantly increased the concentration of sulfur compounds in the oil as compared to dry sweeping gases. This was also supported by investigation of the release of H2S and SO2 gases during the pyrolysis of oil shale in which steam enhanced the release of sulfurous gases. The presence of steam not only enhances the release of sulfur compounds from oil shale, but also causes it to occur at lower temperatures.
Use of Ames test in evaluation of shale oil fractions.
