August 2009

Archive

Special Report: Fluid Flow and Rotating Equipment

Consider ceramic bearings for screw compressors
Bloch, Heinz P., Hydrocarbon Processing Staff

This retrofit resulted in a six-fold increase in service life

Understanding and maintaining an effective lubrication system
DeBaecke, J., Philadelphia Gear Corp.

Follow these guidelines to improve gearing equipment life

Predicting liquid hold-up in horizontal stratified two-phase flow
Firoozfar, H., Kasiri, N., Khanof, M. H., Iran University of Science and Technology

A new model has an average error of only 1%

Improve gas compression systems with all-welded shell-and-plate heat exchangers
Gavelin, S., Tranter International

They offer benefits compared to shell-and-tube and welded-plate designs

A retrofit of this system at a refining company provided a payout in less than a year
Hong, W., Jin, J., Institute of Process Equipment; Tang, L., Sinoec Zhenhai Refining & Chemical Co.

Improved stepless capacity regulation for reciprocating compressors

Heat Transfer

What metals should be used in critical service heat exchangers?
Pramanik, R., Consolidated Contractors Co.

Here are important guidelines when considering titanium for exchanger construction

Piping/Fluid Flow

A support vector classification method for regime identification of slurry transport in pipelines
Ghanta, K. C., Lahiri, S. K., National Institute of Technology

Statistical analysis showed the proposed solution has an average misclassification error of only 1.5%

Process Technologies

Biorefineries: Fact or fiction?
Bruscino, M., Scientific Design Co.

Technology advances facilitate building integrated chemical complexes based on renewable feedstocks that can cost-effectively process ethylene derivatives

Columns

HP Control: APC designs for minimum maintenance—Part 3
Friedman, Y. Z., Petrocontrol

This is the third in a series of three editorials about designing advanced process control (APC) applications for an environment of little to no maintenance. Having lamented for years about APC applic..

HP Reliability: Electric motors and mechanical efficiency
Bloch, Heinz P., Hydrocarbon Processing Staff

Reliability-focused readers know quite a bit about oil mist and many use plantwide oil mist systems for their process pumps and electric motor drivers. In fact, some major grassroots olefins plants us..

HP Water Management: Update on water treatment for ethanol plants
Huchler, L. A., MarTech Systems, Inc.

Several refiners have recently purchased ethanol plants; here are some insights into the water treatment issues in these plants. The unit operation with the most stringent water requirement is the low..

HP Integration Strategies: Intelligent toxic gas detectors: a smart move for the HPI
Avery, Allen, ARC Advisory Group

In the wake of several high-profile industrial accidents, and against the background of an aging installed base and a shrinking workforce, HPI owner/operators should consider upgrading and modernizing..

Letters to the Editor

Letters to the Editor

Words of praise I want to thank you for Hydrocarbon Processing magazine. I consider it one of the most premier, professional and informative trade journals that I receive. Recently, I had a question ..

HP Construction: North America
Thinnes, Billy, Hydrocarbon Processing Staff

Pearl will be managing the construction of an expansion project for a gas processing plant in North Louisiana. Pearl is currently executing the engineering for the addition of inlet separation, dehydr..

HP Construction: Europe
Thinnes, Billy, Hydrocarbon Processing Staff

Hellenic Petroleum has started a new 27,000-bpd fluid catalytic cracking gasoline desulfurization unit in Greece. The unit utilizes CDTECH technologies to produce ultra-low-sulfur gasoline. In additio..

HP Construction: Middle East
Thinnes, Billy, Hydrocarbon Processing Staff

  Saudi Aramco Total Refining and Petrochemical Co. finalized the plan to award engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contracts for the 13 different process packages of its 400,000-bpd ..

HP Construction: Asia-Pacific
Thinnes, Billy, Hydrocarbon Processing Staff

INPEX Corp. recently started construction of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) receiving terminal at the port of Naoetsu in Joetsu City, Japan. The LNG receiving terminal project is estimated to be comple..

HP In Brief: HPIn Brief
Thinnes, Billy, Hydrocarbon Processing Staff

A tsunami of change awaits US refiners A tsunami of change awaits US refiners, according to a recent report from Deloitte (www.deloitte.com). Citin..

HP Impact: HPImpact: Global energy demand down in 2009
Romanow, Stephany, Hydrocarbon Processing Staff

Mark Finley, general manager of Global Energy Markets for BP America, shared BP's view on future global energy at the Baker Institute Energy Forum. According to the BP Statistical Review of World Ener..

HP Impact: HPImpact: Economic recovery in sight for chemical industry
Romanow, Stephany, Hydrocarbon Processing Staff

"Recovery is in sight for the US and global chemical industry," according to the American Chemistry Council's mid-year 2009 outlook. At mid-year, expectations for 2009 are stabilizing; the freefall is..

HP Associations: ILTA gathers to take annual look in mirror
Thinnes, Billy, Hydrocarbon Processing Staff

  The International Liquid Terminals Association (ILTA) held its 29th Annual International Operating Conference and Trade Show on June 8-10, 2009, in H..

Misc

Costly flawed paradigm means 'shaking up' molecules
Wright, Tim L., Hydrocarbon Processing Staff

Because there's no such thing as throwing things "away," it's time to get out the white coats and do some serious chemistry. We need to use hydrocarbon molecules in a completely different way. Also, w..