ARTICLES
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Understanding centrifugal compressor performance
Apr-2002
In a connected process system, expensive changes to the compressor and driver can be avoided with system debottlenecking modifications
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Centrifugal compressor operations
Jul-2004
The wet gas compressor is used as an example in this article reviewing compressor performance, operating conditions and basic control philosophy
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Crude overhead system design considerations
Jul-2007
Proper crude unit overhead system design is important when building a new unit or revamping an existing one to process different crudes
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An atmospheric crude tower revamp
Jul-2005
Overall gas oil yield was maintained with heavier crudes due to a crude tower revamp. The revamp allowed for a crude heater outlet temperature reducti ...
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Enhancing heat transfer in Texas Towers
Oct-2009
Retrofit technology enhances heat recovery in feed-effluent exchangers, increases throughput, reduces furnace load and provides cost benefits
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Why vacuum unit fired heaters coke
Oct-2004
A description of the internal workings of vacuum heaters and the causes of coke formation within them
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Oct-2005
Fundamental design considerations influencing diesel and vacuum gas oil (VGO) recovery when revamping existing or designing grassroots crude units. By ...
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Improving the distillation energy network
Oct-2013
Energy-efficient design applied to the refit of a distillation unit was achieved through optimisation between the distillation column and heat network ...
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Cost estimating for turnarounds
Jan-2012
Cost estimates for refinery turnarounds can lack accuracy, but lessons learned from capital project estimating could improve matters
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FCC gas concentration unit stripper revamp
Jul-2007
Unit charge rate and reactor conversion were increased by the elimination of stripper column flooding. Chemical-grade propylene specifications were me ...
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FCC fundamentals: turnaround best practices
Apr-2009
Basic procedures and activities are presented for the unit engineer and other support personnel, designed to ensure a successful and safe FCC turna ...
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Managing vanadium from high metals crude oils
Sep-2003
Improvements in process and equipment design with regard to crude unit and delayed coker distillation column performance can reduce metals content
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Entrainment issues in vacuum column flash zones
Jan-2010
For a vacuum tower to operate effectively, the flash zone and the wash section must work together to provide the best possible feed quality to the sections ...
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Main fractionator water wash systems
Sep-2006
When properly designed and operated, main fractionator wash water systems can remove salt with little upset
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Stepwise simulation of vacuum transfer line hydraulics
Oct-2009
A stepwise hydraulic calculation determines the pressure profile of a vacuum transfer line by linking the hydraulic model to process simulation result ...
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Revamping atmospheric crude heaters
Sep-2007
Revamp of an atmospheric crude unit heater suffering from coking caused by asphaltene precipitation resulted in an increased heater run length
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Identifying poor heat exchanger performance
Sep-2007
Identifying root causes of poor crude unit debutaniser reboiler performance and low-cost solutions that help meet exchanger original design conditions
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Accurate front-end scope definition: the key to a successful revamp project
Mar-2014
One of the characteristics of a mature industry such as petroleum refining, particularly in the U.S., is that many capital projects are facility revam ...
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Oct-2004
Installation of vortex tube clusters in crude unit preflash drums has eliminated foam carry-over, increasing diesel and atmospheric gasoil product yie ...
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Jan-2006
Cost-effective exchanger network solutions need to rely on more than just pinch technology if they are to be successful
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Reactor effluent air cooler safety through design
Oct-2013
Quality-controlled replacement of carbon steel with Duplex 2205 for revamps can increase the service life and reliability of the REAC in the high-pressure ...
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Online cleaning and decontamination of a butadiene unit
Apr-2010
Chemical treatment by closed-loop recirculation reduced cleaning time for a butadiene unit turnaround from a typical 20 days to 24 hours
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Distributor design and testing
Oct-2006
A new main fractionator designed to separate a range of feed streams incorporates multiple layers of structured packing and a slurry section. Flow testing ...
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Delayed coking: valves make the difference
Jan-2009
Traditional manual methods of coke drum unheading are labour intensive, costly to maintain, expensive to repair and carry inherent risk for personnel on ...
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Designing for sulphur removal and storage: part 1
Apr-2010
Selection of technologies for the sulphur block must serve legislative demands and the efficient operation of upstream processes
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Revamping crude towers for quality and yield
Nov-2016
A successful revamp of distillation towers for increased diesel quality and yield depended on reliable design and accurate assembly
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Stepwise simulation of vacuum transfer line hydraulics
Oct-2009
A stepwise hydraulic calculation determines the pressure profile of a vacuum transfer line by linking the hydraulic model to process simulation result ...
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Troubleshooting instability in a debutaniser tower
Dec-2019
Successful diagnosis and remediation of premature flood in a debutaniser tower demonstrate the value of good diagnosis for solving tower problems econ ...
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An atmospheric crude tower revamp
Jul-2005
Overall gas oil yield was maintained with heavier crudes due to a crude tower revamp. The revamp allowed for a crude heater outlet temperature reducti ...
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Enhancing heat transfer in Texas Towers
Oct-2009
Retrofit technology enhances heat recovery in feed-effluent exchangers, increases throughput, reduces furnace load and provides cost benefits
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Centrifugal compressor operations
Jul-2004
The wet gas compressor is used as an example in this article reviewing compressor performance, operating conditions and basic control philosophy
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Refining/petrochemical integration: a new paradigm
Sep-2013
The global trend in motor fuel consumption favours diesel over gasoline. There is a simultaneous increase in demand for various petrochemicals such as ...
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Reactor effluent air cooler safety through design
Oct-2013
Quality-controlled replacement of carbon steel with Duplex 2205 for revamps can increase the service life and reliability of the REAC in the high-pressure ...
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Planning for a refinery turnaround
Jan-2019
A consistent approach, coupled with an aligned team, leads to successful preparation at the front end of a turnaround.
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FCC unit revamps at minimum cost
Oct-2016
Selective modifications for FCC unit revamps can deliver the best return on investment
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Correcting vacuum column design flaws
Apr-2017
Conventional design practices have been proven inadequate when maximising diesel recovery and gas oil cut point
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Use of non-abrasive ceramic materials in the FCCU
Oct-2017
Fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) technology has been a part of the petroleum industry since it was introduced in the US in 1942 to help feed the voracious ...
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Revamp cat feed hydrotreaters for flexible yields
Nov-2016
Revamping a cat feed hydrotreater to a flexible mild hydrocracker can be the most attractive economic option for adjusting the gasoline to diesel rati ...
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Revamping crude and vacuum units to process bitumen
Apr-2015
Revamping crude and vacuum units to process dilbit can involve extensive equipment replacement as well as major changes to the crude preheating scheme
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Understanding centrifugal compressor performance
Apr-2002
In a connected process system, expensive changes to the compressor and driver can be avoided with system debottlenecking modifications
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Revamping a hydrocracker’s overhead condenser
Jul-2015
A stepwise approach solved seasonal issues affecting plans to increase a hydrocracker’s capacity
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Successful turnaround planning
Dec-2019
Discussion of five key components in planning and executing a successful turnaround.
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Revamping a crude distillation unit
Feb-2020
A revamp project aimed to increase process safety and reduce high energy consumption in a CDU. It also delivered better product separation and higher diesel ...
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Improving the distillation energy network
Oct-2013
Energy-efficient design applied to the refit of a distillation unit was achieved through optimisation between the distillation column and heat network ...
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FCC gas concentration unit stripper revamp
Jul-2007
Unit charge rate and reactor conversion were increased by the elimination of stripper column flooding. Chemical-grade propylene specifications were me ...
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Delayed coking: valves make the difference
Jan-2009
Traditional manual methods of coke drum unheading are labour intensive, costly to maintain, expensive to repair and carry inherent risk for personnel on ...
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Using pinch technology in operations?
Sep-2013
Pinch Technology is a well established concept, and a tool used to optimise waste heat recovery and design efficient heat integration schemes in a wide ...
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Cost estimating for turnarounds
Jan-2012
Cost estimates for refinery turnarounds can lack accuracy, but lessons learned from capital project estimating could improve matters
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FCC profitability assessment via advanced modelling
Oct-2015
Process and computational fluid dynamic modelling were applied to validate the technology used in an FCC unit revamp at Shell’s Puget Sound refinery ...
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Designing for sulphur removal and storage: part 1
Apr-2010
Selection of technologies for the sulphur block must serve legislative demands and the efficient operation of upstream processes
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Improving turnarounds and operations with online cleaning
Aug-2020
(White Paper) - Case histories illustrate the financial and operational gains achieved by replacing mechanical cleaning with online, closed-loop operations. ...
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Slug catcher debottleneck protects downstream processing (TIA)
Aug-2020
Effective separation of oil and gas from different impurities in upstream operations is a matter of paramount importance. All downstream activities and ...
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Revamp raises crude flexibility and profits (TIA)
Aug-2020
Hyundai Oilbank (HDO) has been operating an atmospheric residue desulphurisation (ARDS) unit, producing feed for the RFCC unit, at its Daesan, South Korea, ...
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Improving hydrotreater performance with welded plate heat exchangers
Jul-2020
Pressure has never been higher on refiners to improve the efficiency of their energy-intensive processes.
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Coke drum repair restores capacity (TIA)
May-2020
The mechanical integrity of processing units is key for oil refineries to deliver smooth operations and maximum productivity. When structural damage was ...
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High octane isomerates from light naphtha
Feb-2020
Dividing wall column distillation is an energy efficient, cost effective alternative to conventional distillation for delivering high octane products from ...
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Dividing wall technology in distillation columns
Feb-2020
Increased throughput required the revamp of a gasoline unit. Space constraints and strict product requirements led to dividing wall column technology as ...
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Revamping a crude distillation unit
Feb-2020
A revamp project aimed to increase process safety and reduce high energy consumption in a CDU. It also delivered better product separation and higher diesel ...
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Renewables: four options for greater market share and profitability (ERTC)
Dec-2019
The refineries industry is facing profound changes. In the EU, RED (Renewable Energy Directive) requires member countries to meet at least 10% of their ...
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Successful turnaround planning
Dec-2019
Discussion of five key components in planning and executing a successful turnaround.
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Troubleshooting instability in a debutaniser tower
Dec-2019
Successful diagnosis and remediation of premature flood in a debutaniser tower demonstrate the value of good diagnosis for solving tower problems econ ...
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Flow maldistribution in shell and tube heat exchangers
Dec-2019
Old designs of shell and tube heat exchangers need to be revamped to develop uniform flow distribution in the inlet header and mitigate tube-side foul ...
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Respond to changing markets with revamps
Nov-2019
In volatile product markets, revamps are among the most compelling investment opportunities for refiners.
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Revamping an air separation unit
Nov-2019
Revamp of a high pressure column with structured packing, reducing operating costs and avoiding discharging finished products to atmosphere.
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Rust to robust for Spanish refinery (TIA)
Aug-2019
The efficient prevention and minimisation of corrosion induced deterioration in distillation columns is a key aspect helping refineries to remain productive ...
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Planning for a refinery turnaround
Jan-2019
A consistent approach, coupled with an aligned team, leads to successful preparation at the front end of a turnaround.
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Online monitor slashes biocide dosage (TIA)
Nov-2018
In many systems, fouling and deposits are a serious problem which results in shutdowns, cleaning actions and unexpected costs for the customer.
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How ceramic solutions simplify field installation and address skilled labor gap
Oct-2018
Innovative ceramic designs simplify field installation and address critical manufacturing skills gap.
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Some myths about mechanical cleaning
Aug-2018
Because it has long been the only option when unit cleaning becomes unavoidable, the true cost of mechanical cleaning has been overlooked.
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Aug-2018
The benefits of including a non-intrusive approach within a risk based strategy for the inspection of pressure vessels.
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Challenges and opportunities of an FCC revamp
Jul-2018
An FCC revamp for enhanced refinery performance and profitability called for close coordination with the technology licensor and contractors.
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Jan-2018
Without the efforts of professional craft planners and logistics professionals, turnarounds will be a serious challenge
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Use of non-abrasive ceramic materials in the FCCU
Oct-2017
Fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) technology has been a part of the petroleum industry since it was introduced in the US in 1942 to help feed the voracious ...
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Enhancements in Ethylene Oxide/Ethylene Glycol manufacturing technology
Aug-2017
The markets for ethylene oxide (EO) and ethylene glycol (EG) continue to see attractive growth. This means that at least one or two new plants will need ...
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Troubleshooting crude column constraints
Jul-2017
Multiple limitations to operating capacity were identified and resolved during a column turnaround
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Improving turnarounds and operations with online cleaning
Aug-2020
(White Paper) - Case histories illustrate the financial and operational gains achieved by replacing mechanical cleaning with online, closed-loop operations. ...
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