| In this work the kinetics and the mechanisms of the solubilization of the organic matter of an oil shale from the Timahdit formation (Morocco) in toluene in the temperature range 300;The experimental data showed that asymptotic conversions of 33%, 42% and 50%, based on the organic carbon content of the shale, were achieved at the temperatures: 300;The experimental data were analyzed in terms of conversion to fractions of molecular weight. This analysis revealed that a model according to which species are solubilized via a first order process whose kinetic parameter was dependent on the molecular weight best fitted the conversion and the molecular weight distribution data. Furthermore, the activation energies involved in the solubilization of compounds having a molecular weight less than 1,070 atomic mass units were small, suggesting a diffusion mechanism for the recovery of these compounds. On the other hand, the compounds with higher molecular weight involved activation energies that were sufficiently high to suggest that chemical bonds were broken to solubilize these compounds. |
