Refinery Stream Cuts & Distillation

Cut-point ranges, IBP/EP, and typical compositions for refinery distillation streams from atmospheric and vacuum towers.

Refinery Stream Cuts

REFINERY STREAM CUTS & DISTILLATION REFERENCE · Basis: ASTM D86; Meyers 'Handbook of Petroleum Refining' 4th Ed; Gary & Handwerk 'Petroleum Refining: Technology & Economics' | Rev 1 | Created 2026-04-23

Cut / Stream	IBP (F)	FBP (F)	Typical API Gravity	Typical Sulfur (wt%)	Typical Yield (vol% crude)	Primary Use	Notes / Downstream
Refinery Fuel Gas (RFG)	-	60	>90	varies	1-2	Plant fuel	C1-C2 to amine then fuel gas header
LPG (C3/C4)	-44	90	>90	<0.001	2-5	LPG product / alkyl feed	Treated via Merox/amine; sold as propane/butane
Light Straight Run (LSR)	100	200	60-80	<0.01	3-7	Gasoline pool (low octane)	Isomerization feed for octane boost
Heavy Naphtha	200	330	45-60	0.01-0.1	10-25	Reformer feed	CCR/semi-regen reformer to high octane reformate
Kerosene / Jet	330	460	40-48	0.05-0.3	8-15	Jet fuel / heating oil	Hydrotreat for S spec; Jet A <3000 ppm, Mx <500 ppm
Light Atmospheric Gasoil (LAGO)	460	610	32-40	0.3-1.0	10-20	Diesel pool	ULSD via DHT; <10 ppm S per EPA Tier 3
Heavy Atmospheric Gasoil (HAGO)	610	700	28-36	0.6-1.5	6-12	Diesel / FCC feed	Heavy diesel component; some goes to FCC via VGO
Atmospheric Residue	700+	+	8-22	1.5-4.5	30-50	VDU feed / FO	Goes to Vacuum Distillation Unit or Fuel Oil blending
Light Vacuum Gas Oil (LVGO)	650	850	26-32	1.0-2.0	8-15	FCC feed	Primary FCC feedstock
Heavy Vacuum Gas Oil (HVGO)	850	1050	20-28	1.5-3.5	15-30	FCC/HCU feed	Pretreat via VGO HDT then FCC
Vacuum Residue	1050+	+	<10	3-6	8-25	Coker/Visb/SDA/FO	Coker feed for petcoke & transportation fuels
Coker Gasoline	100	380	50-65	0.1-0.5	varies	Reformer feed (post-HDT)	High olefins; needs mild HDT before reformer
Coker LGO / HGO	380	700	20-38	1.5-3.5	varies	Diesel blend / HCU feed	High olefins/diolefins; severe HDT required
Petroleum Coke	solid	-	-	1-7	varies	Anode/fuel coke	Sulfur content depends on crude; fuel grade 4-7%
APPLICATION NOTES
1. All cut points are ASTM D86 TBP (True Boiling Point) equivalents. Actual refinery operation targets D86 5%/95% points at refinery splitter.
2. API gravity: API = 141.5/SG - 131.5. Lighter = higher API. Crude averages: Arab Light 32, WTI 40, Maya 22, Diluent bitumen 10-14.
3. Sulfur content scales with crude source: sweet (<0.5%) vs sour (>0.5%). Gasoline/jet/diesel pool blending must meet Tier 3 gasoline (10 ppm S), Jet A (3000 ppm), ULSD (15 ppm, pre-pipeline blending 10 ppm).
4. Typical US refinery yields: LPG 3%, Gasoline 45-50%, Jet 10%, Diesel 25-30%, Resid 5-10%, Coke/Asphalt 3-5%. Conversion refineries minimize resid with FCC/HCU/Coker.
5. Cut temperatures shift with crude gravity: heavy crudes have higher cut points (more residue); light crudes yield more straight-run gasoline/jet.
6. Downstream routing: reformate/LSR/alky/MTBE make gasoline pool. Kero->jet pool (w/ HDT). LCGO/HCGO/VGO->diesel pool or conversion. Resid->VDU or FO.
7. For fuel quality beyond cut control, downstream units provide: HDT (S/N removal), Reformer (octane), FCC/HCU (conversion), Alky (octane/RVP), Iso (RVP reduction).

Source: Refinery_Stream_Cuts_Distillation_Reference_v1.xlsx

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