Refining
Total limits Texas refinery operations after worker dies in bulldozer accident
Thomas Courts, a 66-year-old contractor from Denton, Texas, drowned in the large pit beneath the coker after the bulldozer he was driving flipped over early on Saturday.
Fire injures four at REG’s biorefinery in Louisiana
The fire injured four people, REG reported, including one REG employee and three contractors. All are being treated at the Baton Rouge General Hospital. REG noted that emergency crews quickly responded to contain the fire, and it was declared completely extinguished by 4:20 a.m.
Gevo completes first US marine sales of gasoline blended with isobutanol
Gevo's bio-based isobutanol helps meet renewable fuel and clean air standards, while solving concerns that many boaters have with ethanol-blended fuels, which can damage internal engine parts.
API: New EIA report shows US crude oil exports could lower fuel costs
“The EIA report provides a final, non-partisan confirmation that ‘70s-era trade restrictions on US oil are bad for American consumers,” said Kyle Isakower, the API's vice president of regulatory and economic policy.
Unload the SRU to reduce operating costs and plugging problems
The SWAATS process can unload SRU capacity and reduce plugging problems and operating costs in a safer and environmentally-friendly way, especially as refiners find rising amounts of ammonia and SWSG.
Enabling the refinery of the future—Safety first
Within this “new” economy, automation systems must be capable of delivering new levels of productivity and scalability, while ensuring safety, managing globalizations and addressing new workforce demographics.
Implement best practices in enterprise-wide operations management
Several lessons learned were identified during the refinery project implementations.
Central America: A downstream outlook to 2020
Due to the growth in the region’s middle class, Latin America has seen tremendous petroleum products demand growth over the past decade.
Determine fouling margins in tubular heat exchanger design
Fouling, which is caused mainly by the deposition and accumulation of an undesired layer of solids on a heat transfer surface, is very common in tubular heat exchangers.
Create an operator ownership culture to achieve continuous improvement in reliability—Part 2
Operators have a significant influence on a plant’s reliability.
- INEOS Acetyls and Sandpiper Chemicals announce $1.7-B, 1.1-MMtpy low-carbon methanol project in Texas (U.S.) 4/29
- Envision joins AEA Ammonia Certification System pilot to accelerate global clean ammonia trade 4/29
- BASF and Nutrien collaborate on expanding access to low-carbon biofuel markets 4/29
- India proposes rules to allow higher ethanol-blended fuels in vehicles 4/29
- Indian refiners' March crude processing slips 1.8% from a year earlier 4/29
- Sinopec refinery utilization drops, but chemical exports rise due to Iran war 4/29

