The Shukhov cracking process is a thermal cracking process invented by Vladimir Shukhov and Sergei Gavrilov.
Origins Shukhov designed and built the first thermal cracking device for the petrochemical industry. His patent (Shukhov cracking process – patent of Russian Empire No. 12926 from November 27, 1891) on cracking was used to invalidate Standard Oil's patents (Burton process – Patent of United States No. 1,049,667 on January 7, 1913) on oil refineries.
Present In 1937 the Shukhov cracking process was superseded by catalytic cracking. It is still in use today to produce diesel.
See also Cracking (chemistry) Timeline of historic inventions Burton process
References Information on cracking in oil refining Biography of Vladimir Shukhov "Vladimir G. Suchov 1853-1939. Die Kunst der sparsamen Konstruktion.", Rainer Graefe und andere, 192 S., Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt, Stuttgart, 1990, ISBN 3-421-02984-9.