21-09-2015

Aggreko to reduce catalyst cooling time during refinery turnarounds

Aggreko, the world leader in rental power, heating, cooling and oil-free  compressor solutions, announced today that the United States Patent and  Trademark Office has awarded the company a patent (US Patent  No.9,134,064) for its ‘Catalyst Cooling’ process. The unique solution is  designed to reduce catalyst cooling time during the initial stage of a  planned or unplanned maintenance turnaround for hydro processing and  reformer units within the petrochemical and refining industry. This is  the first U.S. patent for Aggreko within this sector and its second U.S.  patent overall.

The patented solution, developed by Aggreko Process Services (APS) team,  focuses on last phase catalyst cooling and uses a combination of heat  exchangers, chillers and pumps. Based on a correlation model specific to  an oil refiner’s turnaround operations and timeline for cooling, APS  demonstrated the process can cool reactor catalyst between 12-24 hours  faster than liquid nitrogen.

By utilizing this new process, refiners can move catalyst cooling off  the critical path and permit more work to be done while the unit is  down. In addition, refiners can avoid the cost of nitrogen and potential  safety issues associated with the extra logistical and human activity  required to transport, handle and dispose of it. All combined, Aggreko’s  process can produce savings from $250,000 to more than $5,000,000  depending on if catalyst is on the critical path and the number of  refinery units affected.

“This solution demonstrates Aggreko’s commitment to the petrochemical  and refining industry. Our catalyst cooling process will safely shorten  a plant’s turnaround time, significantly reduce emissions and also  provide significant cost savings,” said Bruce Pool, managing director of  Aggreko North America. “This patent is a true testament to the  innovative capabilities and industry experience our APS team continues  to provide.”

APS is the rental equipment industry’s only specialized, rapid response  team of elite, licensed process engineers that provides customized  solutions for turnaround, emergency, process improvement or  debottlenecking purposes. The group supports Aggreko’s Refining and  Petrochemical division which has been providing rental equipment  solutions to the industry for more than 25 years.