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

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 ...

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

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

Options for CO2 capture from SMR

Oct-2014

As CO2 capture from steam methane reforming becomes increasingly important, the economics of retrofit for recovery from process gas streams need to be ...

Cost estimating for turnarounds

Jan-2012

Cost estimates for refinery turnarounds can lack accuracy, but lessons learned 
from capital project estimating could improve matters

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

Diesel and VGO recovery

Oct-2005

Fundamental design considerations influencing diesel and vacuum gas oil (VGO) recovery when revamping existing or designing grassroots crude units. By ...

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

Safe removal of polymeric deposits

Jan-2015

Damaging polymeric fouling of internals can be cleaned in situ by safe 
chemical treatments. Butadiene polymer formation is not an unusual problem ...

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

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 ...

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 t ...

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 ...

Main fractionator water wash systems

Sep-2006

When properly designed and operated, main fractionator wash water systems can remove salt with little upset

Applying relief load calculation methods

Apr-2008

Case study compares dynamic simulation vs conventional unbalanced heat method for relief load calculations in a naphtha hydrotreater, focusing on the strengths ...

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 ...

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 ...

Foam control in crude units

Oct-2004

Installation of vortex tube clusters in crude unit preflash drums has eliminated foam carry-over, increasing diesel and atmospheric gasoil product yie ...

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 ...

Bulk separation of gas-liquid mixtures

Apr-2011

Effective gas-liquid separation is increasingly important to produce high-quality products from feedstocks of decreasing quality

Planning for a turnaround

Jan-2018

Without the efforts of professional craft planners and logistics professionals, turnarounds will be a serious challenge

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 ...

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

Vacuum unit troubleshooting

Sep-2003

Case studies show how accurate field-measured differential pressure can be interpreted incorrectly when troubleshooting refinery vacuum columns

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 ...

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

Hydrocracker revamp lifts product flexibility

Nov-2020

How an innovative moving bed technology enabled a major refinery to improve residue conversion and crude flexibility.

Maximising stripping section performance

Aug-2021

The design of a crude unit stripping section affects diesel and gasoil yields, energy usage, and unit reliability.

Improving turnarounds and operations with online cleaning

Sep-2020

Case histories illustrate the financial and operational gains achieved by replacing mechanical cleaning with online, closed-loop operations. The conventional ...

Modelling ensures a successful revamp

Nov-2020

Pre-turnaround computational modelling built confidence in the benefits of introducing design changes to a FCC regenerator revamp.

Planning a turnaround that fits

Jan-2021

A risk based work selection process screens worklist items to ensure they are justified for risk reduction or financial benefit as part of a turnaroun ...

Revamp of a methanol wash column

Jun-2022

Installation of high performance trays and internals enabled a successful revamp for a syngas purification process.

Introduction to refractory

Dec-2022

Structured catalyst reactor system for steam methane reforming

Aug-2023

Results from pilot plant test programme confirm significant advantages and value creation. Steam methane reforming is the predominant and most widely used ...

FCC petrochemicals production at minimum capex

Nov-2021

Adapting FCC gas concentration unit design using dividing wall technology delivers high purity petrochemicals at significantly lower capital cost.

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.

Premature foam-flood in an amine absorber: Part 1

Nov-2021

Troubleshooting and hydraulic analysis identified vapour channelling in fixed valve trays as the root cause of premature foam-flooding in a high pressure ...

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 ...

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 ...

Effective preparation for turnarounds

Dec-2020

Defining the objectives, planning thoroughly and ensuring operator readiness will increase the likelihood of a successful turnaround.

Column revamp boosts diesel production

Nov-2020

Revamping the internals of a main fractionator column enabled a refinery to increase its diesel throughput.

Delayed coker revamp for a capacity increase

Mar-2021

Revamping to a three-drum coker arrangement delivered improved product yields, higher throughput, and greater feedstock flexibility.

The keys to successfully revamping a fired heater: how to maximise value

May-2022

Fired heaters are facing scrutiny because they contribute to the global emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx). For refineries and ...

Capital priorities in the downstream industry

Aug-2022

Margins opportunities in chemicals and biofuels dominate long-term investments.

Debottlenecking product recovery using product pair distillation: Part I

Apr-2023

Advantages of using a thermodynamically efficient method to debottleneck existing distillation trains using fewer new columns than traditional methods ...

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 ...

Using future rows capacity to debottleneck fired heaters

Jun-2022

Opportunistic usage of the future row provision can lead to a multitude of benefits, provided the refiner knows what they are looking for during the r ...

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 ...

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.