Patent ID: 8894846

Claim:
A method for using a supercritical fluid to reactively refine hydrocarbons comprising the steps of: providing supercritical water; removing heavy oil, bitumen or bitumen-like hydrocarbons from porous hydrocarbon-containing material by mixing the supercritical water with the material to dissolve the hydrocarbons; mixing the supercritical water with the hydrocarbons to create a supercritical mix; heating and pressurizing the supercritical mix in a reaction portion to react the supercritical mix to form reaction products having differing molecular weights; contacting the reaction products in a contacting portion operated in a single phase supercritical mode for the supercritical mix; and imposing a thermal gradient in the contacting portion to effect by thermal diffusion a single-phase separation of close-boiling reaction products, whereby heavy hydrocarbons are reactively refined.