May 2019

Archive

Special Focus: Maintenance and Reliability

Equipment reliability: Critical to protecting margins in a volatile environment
Donlon, A., ExxonMobil

For any hydrocarbon processor, margin is king.

Four key benefits of an integrity operating window (IOW) implementation
Addington, F., Folse, J., PinnacleART

In today’s operating facilities, it is critical to have robust mechanical integrity (MI) programs that provide the capability to understand the various parameters that affect asset integrity so that inspections can be planned accordingly.

Cloud-based condition monitoring solutions optimize reliability of rotating equipment
Mishra, G., India Farmers Fertilizer Cooperative, Phulpur; McClatchie, D., Vedula, S., Nanoprecise Sci Corp.

Hydrocarbon processing (HP) companies are seeking opportunities to improve productivity, optimize equipment availability and increase process uptime.

Oil flushing benefits and optimization
Toledano, I., Wattco

Oil flushing has a direct impact on the performance and lifespan of industrial equipment.

Process Optimization

Case study for a high-performing refinery loss control program
Valentine, J., Emerson Automation Solutions; Videla, R., YPF

Most refineries have some sort of mass balance and loss control program in place for accounting, planning and scheduling, as well as for financial and operational evaluation purposes.

Pump sealing for low-temperature hydrocarbons and liquefied atmospheric gases
Savage, M., John Crane Inc.

Pumping of low-temperature and cryogenic fluids requires specific and unique engineering technologies for the shaft sealing system.

Separate fine solid particles from dusty air with a uniflow cyclone
Sakthivel, S., TATA Consulting Engineers Ltd.; Pitchumani, B., Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi

Fine particles are usually collected by dry collectors, wet collectors, electrostatic precipitators and filters, at the commercial level.

Heat Transfer

Optimize transient plant operations with castable-free fired heater

Fired heaters are designed with castable refractory in various sections of the heater.

Calculate shell-and-tube exchanger heat input for PSV fire case
Su, S., ProPEng Inc.

According to API Recommended Practice (RP) 521, 4.4.13.1, “Fire exposure on equipment can result in overpressure due to vapor generation and/or fluid expansion.

Water Management

Selection of cooling water system for gas, petroleum and petrochemical plants located on coastline—Part 2
Safamirzaei, M., Namvaran P&T

The main options for the cooling water systems of gas, petroleum and petrochemical plants located on coastlines are studied here, and alternatives are compared with the consideration of several technical and economic parameters.

Environment and Safety

Can nuclear power plant methodologies help improve hydrocarbon processing reliability?—Part 1
Pradhan, S., Consulting Engineer; Zamora, A. A., Tecnicas Reunidas

Safety requirements within nuclear power plants (NPPs) have encouraged the development of several rigorous methodologies that, in turn, have stimulated excellence in operability, availability, reliability and maintenance to the extent that numerous guides and standards now regulate that industry.

Process Engineering

Coke drum and blowdown system overpressure protection design—Part 2
Geronimo, G. DI, ExxonMobil Rotterdam refinery; Ceary, P. J., Markham, N., ExxonMobil Research and Engineering Co.; Groenendijk, S., Moreno, Y., Fluor

The blowdown (BD) system in delayed coking units (DCUs) receives waste streams generated during the coke drum (CD) decoking process to recover valuable hydrocarbons and water.

Cybersecurity

Applying industry standards to address cybersecurity risk
Cosman, E. C., ARC Advisory Group

Cybersecurity standards and related practices contain valuable information for both asset owners and solution suppliers.

Columns

Editorial Comment: Sustainability: The latest creation in advancing ideas
Nichols, Lee, Hydrocarbon Processing Staff

Over the past few months, Hydrocarbon Processing’s editorial staff has traveled thousands of miles to attend numerous conferences, events, users’ groups, groundbreakings, etc.

Reliability: How “Equifactor” training meets the needs of industry
Bloch, Heinz P., Hydrocarbon Processing Staff

Almost three decades ago, a Knoxville-based company fittingly called System Improvements (“SI”) decided to change the way the world solves problems.

Project Management: Check installation of the tray column before box-up
Dixit, P., Consulting Engineer

To push the project schedule, plant owners sometimes proceed the boxing up of columns without approval of the tray designer.

Africa: Financing Africa’s petrochemical projects
Oirere, S., Contributing Editor

The financing of Africa’s petrochemicals industry expansion remains a key issue for a continent on which governments and the private sector are grappling with an infrastructure financing deficit of $130 B–$170 B, despite some investors having found options to fund their petrochemical projects.

Executive Viewpoint: A vision for the refinery of 2030
Beck, R., Aspen Technology Inc.

The refining business needs to change dramatically over the next decade.

Digital: Digitalize process plants for operational excellence
Sukumaran Nair, M. P., Center for Green Technology and Management

A large volume of data is generated during the operation of refining, petrochemical and fertilizer plants.

Power: Temporary power tips for turnarounds and maintenance activities
Smith, B., Aggreko

Maintenance activities and turnarounds often prove challenging to a facility’s electrical power system.

Workforce: What is the state of the global petrochemicals workforce?
Marx, J., Airswift; Peet, H., Energy Jobline

Since its inception 3 yr ago, the Global Energy Talent Index (GETI) has aimed to deliver valuable insights on the needs, concerns and desires of the energy workforce to enhance recruitment and retention strategies.

Industry Perspectives: The evolution of the downstream
Nichols, Lee, Hydrocarbon Processing Staff

In Hydrocarbon Processing’s April issue, the editorial comment focused on advancing ideas in the downstream processing industries.

Business Trends: HPI construction: Capital expenditures remain above $1.8 T
Nichols, Lee, Hydrocarbon Processing Staff

As the hydrocarbon processing industry (HPI) nears the middle of 2019, Hydrocarbon Processing is providing an assessment of the global midstream/downstream processing industries’ capital investments.

Industry Metrics
Rhodes, Mike, Hydrocarbon Processing Staff

A combination of planned and unplanned refinery outages affected US gasoline production, resulting in considerable declines in inventory levels.

Innovations
Rhodes, Mike, Hydrocarbon Processing Staff

Alfa Laval has introduced wide-opening design plates in its Packinox heat exchangers.

Onsite
Nichols, Lee, Hydrocarbon Processing Staff

Opening Gulf Energy Information’s 2019 Eastern Mediterranean Gas Conference (EMGC) in Cyprus was the Minister of Energy, Commerce and Industry for the Republic of Cyprus, H. E. Yiorgos Lakkotrypis.

People
Rhodes, Mike, Hydrocarbon Processing Staff

Stress Engineering Services Inc. (SES) has promoted Kenneth Bhalla to Chief Technology Officer (CTO).