January 2019

In November 2017, US crude oil production eclipsed the 10-MMbpd mark, setting the highest production record in history.

New plant construction includes expectations for optimized production performance to achieve targeted profitability. After a capital investment decision is made to build a new plant, it can take years to secure critical items, including property, permits, technology licensors, front-end engineering and design (FEED), staffing, training, engineering and procurement for final design and construction.

The processing industry consumes significant amounts of resources, such as materials and energy, to produce valuable goods for society.

Amine units, and to a lesser extent tail gas treating units (TGTUs), experience occasional “shoe polish” sludge contamination.

Paraxylene (PX) separation is an energy-intensive process, as are most industrial chemical separations.

Revamp projects are inherently challenging due to the numerous constraints imposed by existing equipment design and space limitations.

A technique for the optimization of mixed refrigerant (MR) composition was developed and successfully applied at the Sakhalin LNG plant on Sakhalin Island, Russia.

Since market reforms first started in 1978, China has shifted from a centrally planned economy to a market-based economy, experiencing rapid economic and social development.

During the operation of process fired heaters, the potential exists for sudden interruption of process flow.

These are interesting times for universal serial bus (USB) security.

The Buncefield explosion in the UK was the worst post-World War 2 fire/explosion incident.

According to the editors of <i>Hydrocarbon Processing,</i> the downstream processing industry will witness substantial growth in new refining, petrochemical and gas processing/LNG capacities over the next several years.

We recently corresponded with an engineer-manager who divides his time between managing a highly productive group of product developers and a growing number of callers that are interested in the innovative solutions his company offers.

Using quadratic equations rather than a linear relationship in a linear programming (LP) model increases the model’s accuracy and reduces money left on the table.

For a process facility, guaranteeing maximum profit over its lifecycle while increasing safety and taking care of environmental aspects means continuous improvement toward operational excellence.

The cost of failing to properly align shafts or belts on rotating machinery adds up to more than the need to physically fix damaged machinery.

Hydrocarbon processing industry (HPI) companies are under constant pressure to maintain safe and reliable operation of processing equipment.

Embedding machines with artificial intelligence (AI) allows them to learn from their past experiences.

Digital transformation is a common theme at many industry gatherings and events, as operating companies are more readily sharing their digital success stories and audiences are becoming more comfortable with the digital themes.

A new era of game-changing competition is about to take over and transform the refining industry as we know it.

In 1982, I wrote an article called “Using process computers as robots for refining operations,” which was published in the May issue of <i>Hydrocarbon Processing.</i>

In the December 2018 issue of <i>Hydrocarbon Processing,</i> we detailed our editorial opinion on the most likely route that shippers will take to adhere to new International Maritime Organization (IMO) sulfur regulations.

Readers who have had the misfortune of being drawn into debates over the precise definitions of words or terms might agree that much time can be lost in unproductive squabbling.

US markets weakened despite positive performance at the middle of the barrel due to considerable gasoil and jet/kero inventory drawdowns.

<i>Hydrocarbon Processing’</i>s Construction Boxscore Database is tracking more than 1,300 active projects in the hydrocarbon processing industries worldwide.

Claroty has made several significant enhancements to its Continuous Threat Detection product.

Steve Elliott, Senior Director of Marketing, Schneider Electric, explained how Triconex safety solutions can help to actively manage the profitability of process operations at Triconex’s User Group event.

Change is taking place at the top of the Endress+Hauser Group. Dr. Andreas Mayr will become Chief Operating Officer (COO) responsible for sales, production and support, assuming more responsibility on the executive board and serving as deputy CEO to Matthias Altendorf.