Process Optimization
What are the possible impacts on US refineries processing shale oils?
No singular event has had as significant an impact on the quality of refinery feedstocks as the shale revolution. Not only are shale crudes, such as Eagle Ford and Bakken, generally lighter than other..
Maximize precious metals returns from spent process catalysts
What you think you know, what you do not know, and what you should know about precious metal recovery of spent catalysts can impact your refinery’s profitability. Most hydrocarbon, petrochemical ..
Consider new online analyzers to optimize FCC operations
Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and near infrared (NIR) process analyzers are highly effective in quantifying physical properties in hydrocarbons, especially where the feedstock, intermediate and final product streams are all interlinked.
HP Editorial Comment: Take a moment and breathe
“Don’t panic” is probably the best advice for the downstream industry regarding oil prices. The upstream fully recognizes the present and short-term conditions for its business.
HP Boxscore Construction Analysis: Will British Columbia build the greenest refineries in the world?
In our latest Boxscore Construction Analysis, we examine proposals by Kitimat Clean and Pacific Future Energy to process bitumen first and then ship those fuels to market.
HP Global: 2015 outlook for oil price and its refining sector implications
What is the oil price outlook for the next 12 months? As of early January, the price of Brent has effectively halved compared to the 2014 summer peak, similar to the price collapse of 2008. However, u..
HP Petrochemicals: Update on ethylene tube coating technology
Improving the efficiency of ethylene furnaces has been a long-time goal for olefin manufacturers. The steam cracking or pyrolysis of hydrocarbons to yield ethylene also coproduces unwanted coke that a..
HP Project Management: Outsourcing creates opportunities beyond engineering
The present “shale revolution” has generated opportunities in the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) industry that even a few years ago would have seemed fanciful. Billions of d..
HP Viewpoint: Going our way?—How the US will benefit from natural gas and fuel cell technology
A remarkable convergence is taking place in North America, as rising natural gas production meets the growing market for both stationary fuel cells providing power to businesses and the utility grid, ..
HP Viewpoint: The data revolution
The world’s population is expected to exceed 9 B people by 2040, and the corresponding energy demand for many of these newly affluent consumers will rise similarly. For the industrial sector, mor..
- NAPCOR releases 2024 PET recycling report highlighting system efficiency gains and continued strength of PET circularity 12/12
- OQ courts other partners for petrochemical complex in Oman as SABIC drops out 12/12
- Brazil's BNDES approves $71 MM for carbon storage project 12/12
- Cuba on edge as U.S. seizure of oil tanker puts supply at risk 12/12
- China oil demand to plateau between 2025 and 2030 12/12
- Germany's PCK refinery says no impact from pipeline leak 12/12

