HP_2010_04

APRIL 2010

HPIMPACT

SPECIALREPORT

TECHNOLOGY

Hydrogen demand expands

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

Analyzer improves diesel yields

Global refining operations

Innovation drives efficiency and profits

In-depth look at six sigma training

Hot work

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APRIL 2010 • VOL. 89 NO. 4 www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com

SPECIAL REPORT: PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

33

Upgrade syngas production Advancements of synthesis gas processes are key to improved GTL profitability R. Bonneau

43

Plastics enable better automobile designs

51

Improve inerting practices at your facility

57

Upgrade low-value refinery streams into higher-value petrochemicals

High-quality advanced engineered polymers and new molding methods provide advantages in modern vehicle construction and manufacturing processes S. Bauer

The petrochemical/chemical industry relies on inerting methods to safeguard facilities and maintain product qualities H.-J. Reinhardt and H.-R. Himmen

Cover Shaw’s Energy and Chemicals Group provided proprietary technology, engineering, procurement, and construction services for the recently completed 1.3 million metric tpy ethylene plant in Al-Jubail, Saudi Arabia. The project, which was executed for Eastern Petrochemical Co., also known as SHARQ, comprised more than 7,400 people from 10 different countries and was completed without a lost time injury.

New catalytic olefin cracking process yields more propylene over ethylene from stranded refining materials M. J. Tallman

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Update: Spent caustic treatment Better operating practices and prevention methods reduce problems in handling ‘red oil’ C. Maugans, M. Howdeshell and S. De Haan

SAFETY/LOSS PREVENTION

67

What every manager should know about layers of protection analysis

HPIMPACT 17 Demand expands for hydrogen 17 OPEC’s perspective on global refining operations 18 Hot work is dangerous business

New methods ‘quantify’ the frequency of risky events in a facility G. C. Shah

PROCESS ANALYZERS

69

Looking for improved diesel yields?

Consider using spectro-molecular control to maximize profits P. J. Giammatteo and G. Winter

PROJECT MANAGEMENT

71

The six sigma green belt training program: An in-depth look Implementing this program improves competition P. B. Deshpande

PIPING/RELIABILITY

75

Solve liquid-hammer problems Here are several options F. Salehi

ROTATING EQUIPMENT/WASTEWATER TREATMENT

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Blower selection for wastewater aeration Use these guidelines to understand the many factors that differentiate different designs The staff of Aerzen USA, Coatesville, Pennsylvania

DEPARTMENTS 9 HPIN BRIEF • 17 HPIMPACT • 21 HPINNOVATIONS • 25 HPIN CONSTRUCTION • 29 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR • 30 HPI CONSTRUCTION BOXSCORE UPDATE• 90 HPI MARKETPLACE • 93 ADVERTISER INDEX •

COLUMNS 11 HPIN RELIABILITY Grounding-ring technology for variable-frequency drives 13 HPIN CONTROL Distillation column dual-temperature control—Part 2 15 HPI VIEWPOINT How refiners can thrive in an uncertain market 94 HPIN CONTROL Process control practice renewal 2010

A boost in accurate positioning

Trial-and-error tuning during start-up is a thing of the past.

Thanks to its precisely manufactured bypass restriction, the rugged Type 3755 Booster by SAMSON can be set exactly for its task and lead-sealed. As the booster is completely balanced, it works reliably and remains unaffected by changing pressure conditions. It supplies one-to-one signal pressure with a defined hysteresis. And the booster does all this very quietly.

Combined with a positioner, the booster has even more to offer: Both devices ensure a fast and accurate positioning of the valve, even when handling high flow rates or pressure drops.

SAMSON Type 3755 – boosting performance us a t o n V is i t st , Hou 5-2 2010 3 8 C 4 T O th , Boo A l l Ha

www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com Houston Office: 2 Greenway Plaza, Suite 1020, Houston, Texas, 77046 USA Mailing Address: P. O. Box 2608, Houston, Texas 77252-2608, USA Phone: +1 (713) 529-4301, Fax: +1 (713) 520-4433 E-mail: editorial@HydrocarbonProcessing.com www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com Publisher Bill Wageneck bill.wageneck@gulfpub.com EDITORIAL Editor Les A. Kane Senior Process Editor Stephany Romanow Process Editor Tricia Crossey Reliability/Equipment Editor Heinz P. Bloch News Editor Billy Thinnes European Editor Tim Lloyd Wright Contributing Editor Loraine A. Huchler Contributing Editor William M. Goble Contributing Editor Y. Zak Friedman Contributing Editor ARC Advisory Group (various) MAGAZINE PRODUCTION Director—Editorial Production Sheryl Stone Manager—Editorial Production Angela Bathe Artist/Illustrator David Weeks Manager—Advertising Production Cheryl Willis ADVERTISING SALES See Sales Offices page 92.

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Because Hydrocarbon Processing is edited specifically to be of greatest value to people working in this specialized business, subscriptions are restricted to those engaged in the hydrocarbon processing industry, or service and supply company personnel connected thereto.

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HYDROCARBON PROCESSING (ISSN 0018-8190) is published monthly by Gulf Publishing Co., 2 Greenway Plaza, Suite 1020, Houston, Texas 77046. Periodicals postage paid at Houston, Texas, and at additional mailing office.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Hydrocarbon Processing, P.O. Box 2608, Houston, Texas 77252.

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Germany · SAMSON AG · MESS- UND REGELTECHNIK Weismüllerstraße 360314 · Frankfurt am Main Phone: +49 69 4009-0 · Fax: +49 69 4009-1507 E-mail: samson@samson.de Internet: www.samson.de U.S.A. · SAMSON CONTROLS INC. 4111 Cedar Boulevard · Baytown, Texas 77523-8588 Phone: +1 281 383-3677 · Fax: +1 281 383-3690 E-mail:4samson@samson-usa.com APRIL 2010 HYDROCARBON PROCESSING Internet: www.samson-usa.com

I

John Royall, President/CEO Ron Higgins, Vice President Pamela Harvey, Business Finance Manager Part of Euromoney Institutional Investor PLC. Other energy group titles include: World Oil® Petroleum Economist Publication Agreement Number 40034765

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Risk has always been part of this job.

A part we can do without.

High pressure. Extreme temperatures. Volatile products. It’s all part of the job in hydrocarbon processing. But so is the goal of maximizing safety integrity. We make the process more secure with our innovative valves and controls, which is why the industry relies on us to keep their workers safe and their plants running smoothly.

Engineering transformation.™

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HPIN BRIEF BILLY THINNES, NEWS EDITOR

BT@HydrocarbonProcessing.com

The linear-low density polyethylene (LLDPE) market is making a comeback from the economic downturn, says a new study from Ceresana Research (www.ceresana.com/en). The study expects significant growth in the sales and distribution of LLDPE in 2010. After LLDPE revenue in certain world regions fell by up to a third in 2009, to a combined total of less than $24 billion, it is now on the rise again.

Ceresana Research believes that China’s processing industry is particularly important for LLDPE demand. The Chinese have plans for capacity increases of approximately 2.7 million tons by 2012. The Asia-Pacific region is already the largest market for LLDPE, and the region is expected to consume more than half of all LLDPE manufactured worldwide by 2016. Rapid growth is also projected in the Middle East. Ceresana Research that expects LLDPE manufacturing in this region will grow at a rate of more than 9% per year until 2016. New production facilities are emerging in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kazakhstan. In contrast, Western Europe and North America are not likely to regain their peak production levels from 2008 in the near future.

The Japanese Cabinet recently released a draft cap-and-trade bill, reports Bloomberg News. Some industry groups protested as Japan’s Environment Ministry offered the draft placing “flat emissions limits on some polluters while subjecting others to limits per unit of production.” The final bill would lay the groundwork for creating a carbon market as part of Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama’s initiative to cut Japan’s emissions 25% from 1990 levels by 2020. The industry groups aligned against the bill said “emissions limits would place Japanese businesses at a disadvantage compared with competitors in China and India.” Japan’s emissions per unit of production are already among the lowest of member countries in the OECD.

Developers of renewable energy projects in the US are against the idea of expanding the renewable energy standard (RES) in Congressional energy legislation to benefit natural gas and nuclear energy, saying it risks sinking the whole concept. Environment & Energy Daily (www.eenews.net) reports that the natural gas industry wants lawmakers to expand the RES to a “clean energy standard” that would allow utilities to count the emissions they eliminate by using gas instead of coal.

Burning gas emits about half the greenhouse gases as burning coal. Some versions of the idea would also allow utilities to count emissions they reduce by using nuclear power. Environment & Energy Daily captured remarks from ConocoPhillips CEO Jim Mulva on the subject during the CERAWeek energy conference in Houston.

Mr. Mulva criticized the RES as too expensive, saying, “Why not instead implement clean energy standards? Then let renewable energy, natural gas, clean coal and nuclear power compete.”

Accenture has teamed up with Marathon Oil Corp. to deploy a wireless-enabled gas detection system that will help protect workers in potentially hazardous environments. The solution combines Wi-Fi and location-based technologies with gas detectors to allow companies to remotely monitor incidents in locations previously not suited for wireless networks. Marathon’s refinery in Robinson, Illinois, is the staging ground for this new system. “The refining industry has not been able to use wireless networks to remotely detect hazards or remotely locate workers,” said Jerry Welch, senior vice president of Marathon’s refining organization. “This solution not only alerts onsite individuals to gas incidents but would also allow off-site colleagues to locate workers and rescue them if an event were to occur. The cost-effectiveness of this solution has the potential to transform onsite safety in our industry and should be relevant to many other sectors.” Gas detection in industrial work areas is in the news again because the US Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board recently released a safety bulletin on the dangers of hot work, advocating for greater monitoring of potentially flammable air concentrations in work areas (see page 18). HP

■ The gribble solution Science is the never-ending quest to make what is remarkable one moment absolutely pedestrian the next.

Inventions like light bulbs and the internal combustion engine rocked the collective consciousness of mankind, and yet now humans take such products for granted. It is with this in mind that a new report from a group of scientists in the UK should be considered.

Scientists at the BBSRC Sustainable Bioenergy Center at the Universities of York and Portsmouth now believe that a tiny nuisance worm known as the gribble could be key to unlocking the potential for liquid biofuels. Gribbles eat wood in coastal areas, plaguing ships, docks, piers and the like. The little buggers have an amazingly strong digestive system, which the researchers focused on, demonstrating that gribble digestive systems contains enzymes advantageous for converting wood and straw into liquid biofuels.

The scientists found that the gribble digestive tract is dominated by enzymes that attack the polymers that make up wood. One of the most abundant enzymes is a cellulose degrading enzyme never before seen in animals.

“Unlike termites and other woodeating animals, gribbles have no helpful microbes in their digestive systems,” the report said. “This means that they must possess all of the enzymes needed to convert wood into sugars themselves.”

The scientists at York are now studying the enzymes to establish how they work, and whether they can be adapted to industrial applications.

“This may provide clues as to how this conversion could be performed in an industrial setting,” said Professor McQueen-Mason, of the Center for Novel Agricultural Products in the Department of Biology at York.

Duncan Eggar, of the BBSRC, agreed with his colleague, adding, “Sustainably produced bioenergy offers the potential to rapidly introduce liquid transport fuels into our current energy mix.”

A more exhaustive consideration of the gribble research is published in the latest issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA (PNAS). HP HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

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Every day at Costacurta, we work to improve the quality of our products and services and the safety of all our collaborators, paying ever-greater attention to the protection of the environment.

Within the wide range of Costacurta products you will also find some, described below, that are used specifically in the oil, petrochemical and chemical industries: - RADIAL FLOW AND DOWN FLOW REACTOR INTERNALS; - GAS-LIQUID AND LIQUID-LIQUID SEPARATORS; - ARMOURING OF REFRACTORY, ANTI-ABRASIVE AND ANTI-CORROSIVE LININGS. For more information visit our website or contact the division 'C' components for the oil, petrochemical and chemical industries at tcrc@costacurta.it.

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Radial Flow and Down Flow reactor internals

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HPIN RELIABILITY HEINZ P. BLOCH, RELIABILITY/EQUIPMENT EDITOR HB@HydrocarbonProcessing.com

Grounding-ring technology for variable-frequency drives Variable-frequency drives (VFDs) provide substantial energy savings and control for commercial and industrial process applications. Unfortunately, previously unanticipated bearing failures are occurring because modern VFDs induce a harmful voltage on the motor shaft. As the resulting current travels through motor bearings it can cause catastrophic failure and costly downtime.

While there are compelling reasons to specify insulated (actually, aluminum oxide-coated) or ceramic (“hybrid”) rollingelement bearings for VFDs, there may be instances where bearing protector rings are well justified and might further reduce the risk of shaft current-induced bearing distress. When specifying such shaft grounding rings (SGRs), steer clear of knock-off products that use carbon fibers and mounting methods in a manner that compromises long-term reliable service.

Reliability-focused VFD users would involve both VFD manufacturer and bearing suppliers in issues dealing with bearing failure avoidance strategies. Also, reliability-focused users would endeavor to become familiar with SGR technology.

A company that initially focused on mitigating static charges in the printing and imaging markets, Electro Static Technology Company (EST) has—since about 2005—been producing conductive micro-fiber SGRs for rotating equipment. EST’s Bearing Protection Ring products are marketed as AEGIS products, representing proprietary technology said to provide a reliable and essentially maintenance-free SGR. Such rings may be needed to mitigate the issues of electrical erosion in motor bearings when electric motors are controlled by pulse width modulated (PWM) VFDs.

FIG. 1

An SGR grounding device.

Fundamentals of shaft-grounding rings. At the simplest level, an AEGIS™ SGR provides the “path of least resistance to ground” for VFD-induced shaft voltages. If these voltages are not diverted away from the bearings to ground, they may discharge through the bearings and cause damage known as electrical-discharge-machining (EDM), pitting, and fluting failure in bearings. These shaft grounding rings can be adapted as an integral part of the motor design. Good products meet both the spirit and intent of the NEMA MG1 Part 31 specification, aimed at preventing bearing fluting failure in electric motors as well as their attached equipment. NEMA MG1 identifies induced shaft voltage in VFDs as a potential cause of motor failure and recommends shaft grounding as a solution to protect both motor bearings and attached equipment. Fig. 1 shows a late version of a well-designed grounding device.

Properly designed shaft grounding rings must provide a large number of small-diameter fibers to induce ionization; they must discharge voltages away from motor bearings and to ground. Selecting carbon fibers of specific mechanical strength and electrical characteristics is critically important to providing break-free and non-wearing service. The fibers must be allowed to flex within their elastic limit and while contacting the shaft with the proper overlap. For long-term reliability they must be placed in an engineered holder that protects against breaking and mechanical stress. Chances are that, without placement in protective channels, the reliability of shaft grounding rings is severely compromised.

Circumferential rows of fibers. The best available designs will optimize fiber density so as to maintain the required fiber flexibility. If too many fibers are bundled together (as may be the case in less-than-optimal designs) the fibers will break. A soundly engineered SGR has two full rows of fibers. The continuous circumferential “ring” design and fiber flexibility allows them to divest small amounts of oil film, grease, and dust particles away from the shaft surface. It was noted that EST’s patents prevent others from copying technology that arranges one or more rows of fibers in a continuous fiber ring inside a protective channel completely surrounding the motor shaft. This design ensures that there are literally hundreds of thousands of fibers available to handle discharge currents from VFD-induced voltages at the various prevailing high frequencies. The fibers can then flex inside the channel while maintaining optimal contact with the motor shaft. HP The author is HP’s Equipment/Reliability Editor. A practicing consulting engineer with close to 50 years of applicable experience, he advises process plants worldwide on failure analysis, reliability improvement and maintenance cost avoidance topics. He has authored or co-authored 17 textbooks on machinery reliability improvement and over 480 papers or articles dealing with related subjects.

HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

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HPIN CONTROL Y. ZAK FRIEDMAN, CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Zak@petrocontrol.com

Distillation column dual-temperature control—Part 2 Part 1 of this editorial1 has considered a distillation dual temperature control structure and concluded that such strategy is problematic and not likely to work. If you accept that dual-temperature control is not the ideal basic structure—how then should we configure DCS for distillation? In my experience, either with heat balance or mass balance, only one of the tray temperature controllers can work. Many considerations affect the selection of rectifying versus stripping tray, and it goes without saying that this temperature controller must ultimately affect the yield and, hence, it isn’t desirable to choose a stripping tray temperature for a mass-balance control structure.

Say we have selected the stripping tray temperature on a heatbalanced column, and that is a simplified inference of bottom purity. What should we do to control top purity? The simplest way is to set the reflux-to-feed ratio to a reasonable value. I prefer reflux-to-feed ratio over reflux-to-product because the latter introduces a mass-balance component into a heat-balance structure.

I.e., the ratio to product flow makes reflux proportional to the drum level controller output.

ARC vs. MPC. That gives us the basic DCS structure of Fig. 1, and now we can discuss APC, and whether MPC or ARC is to be employed for dual composition control. It is rather rare in refining to find both top and bottom analyzers on a single column. Not counting main fractionators, I would say that fewer than 10% of refinery distillation columns have two analyzers. If we consider only reliable analyzers then the number goes down below 5%. APC has to rely on inferential models, and that is not bad because inferential models do not have the dead-time of analyzers, and inferential models, if done right, have fewer reliability problems than analyzers. If you are lucky enough to have a reliable analyzer as well as an inference model, the ideal structure is to connect the inference as the primary controller, while setting up a slow inferential bias to reduce the difference between the inference and analyzer.

And what if two inference models are available, can we attempt control of both top and bottom composition? Being in the inferential modeling business, I often come up with both top and bottom models that rely on rectifying and stripping tray temperatures.

Connecting both models in closed loop is just as problematic as dual-temperature control. My approach for avoiding interaction between the two loops is to use one of the models for manipulating yield, for example connecting it to the reboiler steam. The other, say top model, I would rework as a function of bottom purity and internal reflux, and use that model for setting reflux ratio. Now we have an APC design that overcomes the top/bottom interactions, and would work either in MPC or ARC format. The temperature based inference controller—ARC or APC type—would act quickly on the reboiler, directly or via a tray temperature controller, making the top purer and bottom more contaminated (or vise versa) by changing the yield. The internal reflux based inference controller

PC

TI RC

LC

LC

TI

Tray 6

FC

FC

PI LC TI

FIG. 1

FC

Tray 25 Tray 30

FC

TC FC

Single-temperature control on a heat-balance control structure.

would act slowly on the reflux, an action which makes both products purer (or more contaminated).

Lastly, where do I stand in this argument about whether ARC works better or worse than MPC? In the ’70s, MPCs were not available and we implemented all APC using ARC plus custom logic. When implemented by a competent engineer they worked well. By and large we continued this way into the ’80s. MPCs were already there but the early versions were no better than ARC. I have continued to be involved with ARC through inferential modeling. I often supply models in open loop. Then once the inference works there’s a push to close the loop, and the cheapest way to do that is ARC. I have thus implemented ARC applications with fairly high complexity in crude units, alkylation units, FCCs and a host of smaller distillation columns. My judgment is that under multiple constraints MPCs work somewhat better, but the most important factor is the engineer. The difference between a competent implementation versus a mediocre one is much greater than the difference between MPC and ARC. A second important consideration is availability of local skill to perform MPC or ARC maintenance work. HP 1 2

LITERATURE CITED Friedman, Y. Z., “Distillation column dual temperature control—Part 1,” Hydrocarbon Processing, March 2010.

Shinskey, F. G., “Multi-variable control of distillation,” Parts 1, 2 and 3, Control Global, May, June and July 2009.

The author is a principal consultant in advanced process control and online The author a principal consultant in advanced process control and models online optimization withis Petrocontrol.

He specializes in the use of first-principles optimization Petrocontrol. specializes use of for inferentialwith process control andHe has developedina the number of first-principles distillation and models reactor for inferential process control and has developed number of distillation andindustry, reactor models.

Dr. Friedman’s experience spans over 30ayears in the hydrocarbon models.

Friedman’s experience spans over 30 years in the hydrocarbon industry, working Dr. with Exxon Research and Engineering, KBC Advanced Technology and since working with Exxon Research and aEngineering, KBC the Advanced Technology and since 1992 with Petrocontrol.

He holds BS degree from Israel Institute of Technology 1992 with and Petrocontrol.

He holds BS degree from the Israel Institute of Technology (Technion) a PhD degree froma Purdue University.

(Technion) and a PhD degree from Purdue University.

HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

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Call us for your next turnaround, revamp, upgrade, repair or emergency; we’ll put the best hands (and minds) in the business to work for you.

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HPI VIEWPOINT How refiners can thrive in an uncertain market Süleyman M Özmen is vice president of refining and chemical licensing of Shell Global Solutions International B.V. Mr. Özmen has over 34 years of petrochemical and refining industry experience. He joined Shell in January 2006 and relocated to The Hague to lead the worldwide licensing organization. Mr. Özmen previously worked for UOP for 20 years, with BP-Amoco for 8 years, and IFP for 3 years.

At UOP, he held positions as research and development manager, regional licensing sales manager and commercial director in service and consultancy business. At Amoco, he was the chemical licensing general manager, and at BP, he was the polyolefins licensing commercial director. He graduated with a BS degree in physical chemistry from the University of Paris and chemical engineering degree from ENSPM, France. He also holds an MBA from the University of Chicago.

While there was much talk in the media at the end of 2009 of “green shoots” and possible signs of recovery from the global economic downturn, the fact is that we are still in a period of uncertainty. For refiners across the globe, there is little confidence in how the sector will perform in 2010. Will there be an upturn? Will the markets fall further? Or will we first see a rise, and then a further dip? With this uncertainty about the future, it is hardly surprising that many refiners may be struggling to make long-term decisions.

Despite the crisis, however, there are a few things that are relatively certain. One is that the demand for energy is growing in the long term, especially in emerging economies, such as China and India. Consequently, it is relatively certain that supply will struggle to keep pace with demand. Although oil exists, reserves are increasingly more difficult to access, and there are more difficult crude fractions to process. So, it will still be a big challenge for the refineries to meet demand.

Sulfer paradox. There is also what we at Shell refer to as the

“sulfur paradox” to consider. More sulfur-heavy, difficult crudes are being sourced, and demands for heavier crudes are increasing.

However, environmental regulations and legislation are demanding less and less sulfur in fuels. This is coupled with the increasing pressure to lower carbon dioxide (CO2), which is especially problematic as sulfur removal is often an energy intensive process.

That’s the challenge that all engineers and project planners have to think about and prepare for.

Although we don’t know when the upturn will come, we need to be ready. New refining capacity will be needed. There are refineries being built in locations as far afield as Russia and China.

Increased regulations will also no doubt continue, with developing countries that are experiencing rapid industrialization deciding, or being persuaded, to follow the developed nations with more stringent emissions rules. This is a challenge that refiners need to respond to and decide where technology can provide help to meet this demand.

Across the downstream sector, for example, many assets are aging. There are refineries in Europe that are 25+ years old.

While in the US, although many refineries have added units, a new refinery has not been built for many, many years. Part of the reason behind this is that, over the past two years, demand for refinery products has stagnated, making it hard to get financing for new projects. Consequently, a well-prepared, fully planned project is extremely important for a refiner hoping to secure bank funding.

Compounding this is the inefficiency and ineffectiveness that has crept in during the boom years. When things were good and there was a $10 margin, ensuring efficiency was less important for some refiners as the returns generated by tired, outdated equipment were still significant. In the current climate, however, when the margins are close to $2, refiners know that, if you can save 20¢/bbl, it’s a great improvement. That’s why many are going to try to sweat their assets to see if they can save up to 10¢/bbl.

Achieving more with less. Achieving this can come from a variety of measures. The cheapest of these, involving little capital expenditure, is improving operational efficiency and reliability. This encompasses hydrocarbon supply chain optimization, improved work process efficiency and energy efficiency, and more streamlined operations. The savings that these efforts can generate can vary significantly, depending on how efficient the refinery currently is; it could be 5¢/bbl, it could be 20¢/bbl.

Refiners should also examine the number of technical revamps that are available that can be done for less than $20 million.

Examples include a deep-flash operation on a vacuum distillation unit or converting a vacuum gasoil hydrotreater to a mild hydrocracker. Catalysts, too, are low-cost ways of making a difference to productivity and efficiency during a refinery’s turnaround period. Refiners should also attempt to do pre-engineering preparation now, which is generally of low cost. By taking these moves now, when the turnaround comes up and capital is freed up, refiners can start ordering their equipment immediately.

Businesses thinking about investing in high CAPEX projects should consider investments that will be using a range of products. A lot of deep-flash and vacuum units are now being ordered because they can be utilized to lift more than one product.

Hydrocracking and de-waxing projects are also proving popular as refiners respond to demands for cleaner, more efficient fuels and brace themselves for regulations in products such as fuel oil and marine diesel.

Demand is not gone. Despite present pressures and uncertainty, refiners do need to think long term. There is still demand.

The consumers are there; they are still consuming. And it appears likely that this will increase. There are measures that can be implemented now to make sure that the downstream sector can meet this demand. Refiners need to prepare projects carefully and be ready. They need to evaluate their finances and establish where they can best make investments for the future, investing enough time to do effective front-end development. Despite the uncertainty, the need remains to invest during the downturn to avoid regrets in the future. At its most simple, it all boils down to doing the right project and doing that project right. HP HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 15

© 2010 Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. All rights reserved. Copyrights in and to the Man covering face photograph are owned by a third party and licensed for limited use only to Thermo Fisher Scientific by Veer, a Corbis Corporation.

SOLA II Trace—because a poisoned catalyst can ruin your whole day. And your bottom line.

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With the SOLA II Trace, you get the information you need to keep quality high and production moving full speed ahead. To learn more, visit www.thermo.com/sola, call 1 (713) 272–0404 or 1 (800) 437–7979 or email us at sales.process.us@thermofisher.com.

Moving science forward Select 115 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS

Thermo Scientific SOLA II Trace — An online analyzer with a proven track record in detecting trace levels of sulfur to help prevent catalyst contamination.

HPIMPACT BILLY THINNES, NEWS EDITOR

BT@HydrocarbonProcessing.com

OPEC’s perspective on global refining operations Looking for some intel on how refiners are faring in 2010? OPEC published a report in March that pulled numbers up to the end of February and extrapolated them out to make some predictions about the future.

“Continuation of cold weather along with the refinery strike in France and lower crude prices, provided support for refining margins in February. Seasonal refinery turnarounds and continuation of discretionary run cuts have also contributed to positive developments in the product markets,” OPEC said. “With the approaching end of winter season and the lack of robust demand for major products, product mar-

Source: OPEC

FIG. 1

WTI (US Gulf) A.Heavy (US Gulf)

Brent (Rotterdam) Dubai (Singapore)

Refining margins for the US, Europe and Asia.

Source: OPEC

FIG. 2

Singapore United States

Feb 10

Jan 10

Dec 09

Nov 09

Oct 09

Sep 09

Aug 09

Jul 09

75 Jun 09

Feb 10

Jan 10

Dec 09

Nov 09

Oct 09

Sep 09

Aug 09

Jul 09

Jun 09

May 09

Apr 09

Mar 09

-4

80 May 09

0

85

Apr 09

4

90

Mar 09

8

ket sentiment is not expected to improve significantly in the near future. This situation may encourage refineries to continue their low run policy and exert pressure on crude market fundamentals.”

For the European refining industry, OPEC saw improved performance in February, attributable to increased export opportunities to the US and West Africa. Margins for Brent crude in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, jumped significantly by $1.58/b from January to February (Fig. 1). Meanwhile, margins for WTI crude on the US Gulf Coast fell 12 cents from the previous month.

Over in Asia, refining margins were in the black for the first time since October 2009, thanks to higher regional demand and export opportunities to other markets.

Chinese refiners were running at maximum capacity (Fig. 2) and the Japanese increased their throughput, resulting in a Japanese surge in refinery utilization of 2.6%. Glancing back at the US and Europe, though, the numbers were not as tantalizing, as refiners in those regions saw no need to change their current conservative operations policy.

2010 has brought a higher stock build for gasoline in the US, but OPEC views the start of the spring driving season as an indicator that the gasoline market will enter a strengthening trend.

“The continuation of the cold weather, along with lower refinery runs, has helped the previous imbalances of the US middle distillate market to ease, but the overhang remains amid less demand from the industrial sector for diesel,” OPEC said.

95

Feb 09

12

Feb 09

Refining margins, US$/b

Global demand for hydrogen is forecast to expand 3.4% per year through 2013 to 475 billion cubic meters. This is according to a new study from The Freedonia Group (www.freedoniagroup.com). Demand will benefit as global petroleum refiners consume more hydrogen in the production of low-sulfur fuels. Favorable demand fundamentals for hydrogen also exist in chemical manufacturing, as well as in the production of semiconductors, float glass, metal components and food.

Petroleum refineries are the largest consumers of hydrogen, accounting for nearly 90% of global consumption in 2008.

Historically, most refinery consumption was produced in a captive manner during refining. However, the production of lowsulfur, clean-burning fuels requires massive amounts of hydrogen for the hydrotreating of petroleum distillates, which is driving demand for merchant supplies. Of the anticipated 73 billion cubic meters of increased global hydrogen demand projected through 2013, just under 84% will be consumed by refineries. Merchant suppliers will provide 55% of the increased hydrogen demand by refineries.

Manufacturing and other (non-refining) hydrogen applications accounted for 11% of consumption in 2008, or 45 billion cubic meters. Chemical manufacturing (exclusive of ammonia and methanol production) accounted for 6% of global

consumption; the remaining 5% was accounted for by other manufacturing and non-manufacturing applications.

In 2008, North America led the world in hydrogen consumption. The AsiaPacific region was a close second. More rapid growth in the economies of China, India and other Asia-Pacific countries will make this region the global leader in hydrogen consumption well before 2013. Western Europe is third among the world’s hydrogen consumers. Other developing regions like Latin America, Eastern Europe and Africa will also experience faster growth in hydrogen demand than the more mature economies of North America and Western Europe.

Refinery utilization rates, %

Demand expands for hydrogen

EU-16 Japan

Refinery utilization rates, 2009–2010, for the US, the European Union, Japan and Singapore.

HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 17

HPIMPACT Europe’s product market was affected

by Total’s refinery strike in February. But it benefited from arbitrage opportunities to the US, West Africa and the Middle East.

When OPEC looks into its crystal ball for future predictions, it thinks the “European fuel market may lose fur-

ther ground upon the arrival of warmer weather and increasing supplies from Russia,” while Asia’s naphtha market is predicted to remain strong in the upcoming months.

Wrapping things up in a nice, concise package, Table 1 provides a detailed

TABLE 1. Refinery operations in selected OECD countries Refinery throughput, mb/d Dec 09 Jan 10 Feb 10 Feb/Jan US

Dec 09

Refinery utilization, % Jan 10 Feb 10 Feb/Jan

14.20

13.74

13.89

0.14

80.3

79.1

80.5

1.3

France

1.52

1.51

1.48

–0.03

81.8

81.7

81.5

–0.2

Germany

1.88

1.84

1.87

0.03

85.2

84.9

85.0

0.2

Italy

1.65

1.61

1.63

0.02

76.9

76.7

76.8

0.1

UK

1.46

1.45

1.34

–0.11

77.6

76.9

76.7

–0.2

Euro16

10.76

10.78

10.81

0.03

81.9

81.4

81.6

0.3

Japan

3.87

3.87

4.10

0.23

85.4

85.5

88.1

2.6

Sources: OPEC statistics; Argus; Euroilstock Inventory Report; IEA

18

FIG. 3

The gasoline storage tank at the TEPPCO McRae Terminal following a hot work accident in 2009 that killed three workers.

FIG. 4

Damage to an oil tanker sustained from an explosion at EMC Used Oil Corp. in December 2008.

I APRIL 2010 HYDROCARBON PROCESSING

overview of refinery operations in selected OECD countries.

Hot work is dangerous business Performing hot work activities on tanks is dangerous business that should involve the utmost in safety considerations. The US Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) is particularly concerned about hot work because, since 1990, it has identified over 60 fatalities in the US due to explosions and fires from such activity.

The CSB recently put out a safety bulletin that highlights seven key lessons found to be applicable to most hot work incidents.

The bulletin advocates for effective hazard assessment and proper monitoring of potentially flammable air concentrations in work areas. Alternatives to hot work should be considered if at all possible. Thorough hazard assessment is crucial. Using a properly calibrated combustible gas detector to monitor the atmosphere before and during hot work should be de rigueur practice. The use of written permits, thorough employee training and closely supervised contractors are key lessons that all companies involved in the HPI should embrace.

The CSB deconstructs 11 accidents in the bulletin. Photos from the accidents (Fig. 3 and Fig. 4) illustrate the deadly and destructive force that poorly executed hot work can have. One such accident took place at the TEPPCO McRae Terminal in Garner, Arkansas, on May 12, 2009.

“Three contractors were using a cutting torch on top of the internal floating roof of a 67,000-barrel-capacity gasoline storage tank when an internal explosion blew both the top of the floating roof and the secondary dome-shaped lid off the tank,” the CSB said in the bulletin. “All three were killed.

The contractors were preparing to install a gauge pole. Part of the installation process involved cutting an opening into the floating roof for the pole to be inserted. The torch-cutting activity most likely ignited flammable vapor within the tank.”

The CSB concludes its bulletin by commenting that hot work is one of the most common causes of worker deaths among accidents it investigates. It also emphasizes that it is not the only organization encouraging the need for gas monitoring.

The National Fire Protection Association, American Petroleum Institute and FM Global all have published documents advocating for the same thing. HP

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With our technologies we can produce synthesis gases, hydrogen or carbon monoxide: for downstream conversion to petrochemicals. Based on resources like natural gas, coal and tar sand residues we produce synthesis gas which we convert into low-pollutant fuels.

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HPINNOVATIONS SELECTED BY HYDROCARBON PROCESSING EDITORS editorial@gulfpub.com

Regulator series that maximizes uptime E m e r s o n Pr o c e s s Ma n a g e m e n t announced the release of the Fisher EZHSO series regulator as well as Whisper Trim Cage options to the EZH and EZHSO series. The EZHSO (Figs. 1 and 2) design incorporates a patent-pending spring cartridge that offers a fail-to-open alternative, ensuring gas delivery and maximizing uptime. The Whisper Trim technology provides efficient noise prevention at the source and the cage can be easily retrofitted in the field.

The EZHSO and EZHSO-OSX (slamshut) regulators are available in 1-, 2- and

FIG. 1

EZHSO series regulator with PRX pilot.

3-in. sizes. These new offerings provide the same benefits as Emerson’s proven Fisher EZH regulators such as: • True no-bleed design: Environmentally friendly design eliminates emissions for higher pressure pipelines • True top-entry maintenance: Reduces time and expense for training, installation and maintenance • Bubble-tight shutoff: Reduces cost of ownership by precisely regulating high-pressure transmission lines, providing consistent reliability of gas delivery and shutoff • 1,500-psig (103-bar) inlet/outlet rating: Meets higher system requirements.

The Whisper Trim Cage option is available for 2, 3 and 4-in. sizes, opening a broader application range for this product family. Noise reduction of 10–20 dB(A) can be achieved, depending on the application. As a “source treatment,” the Whisper Trim technology utilizes multiple orifices of special size, shape and spacing, which reduces noise-producing interactions and offers a better alternative than path treatment or buried service. Units already installed can be easily retro fitted with a Whisper Trim Cage.

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Companies form direct coal liquefaction alliance Axens and Headwaters Incorporated have signed an agreement to form a strategic alliance to provide a single-source solution for producing ultra-clean fuels by direct coal liquefaction (DCL) alone or in combination with refinery residues or biomass.

Headwaters Incorporated, a diversified growth company dedicated to improving sustainability by transforming underutilized resources into valuable products, and Axens, a refining, petrochemical and natu-

FIG. 2

Internal view of EZHSO series regulator with Whisper Trim Cage.

As HP editors, we hear about new products, patents, software, processes, services, etc., that are true industry innovations—a cut above the typical product offerings. This section enables us to highlight these significant developments. For more information from these companies, please go to our Website at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/rs and select the reader service number.

ral gas market focused company offering products including processes, catalysts, adsorbents and equipment, have created a strategic alliance around their DCL technologies. The two companies will combine their technologies and licensing activities for coal-to-liquids (CTL) projects world-wide.

The new “Alliance DCL”, expects to provide a single-source solution for producing ultra-clean transportation fuels from coal— whether alone or in combination with other low-cost or renewable feedstocks, such as biomass and refinery residues.

Headwaters brings its slurry catalyst technology and its extensive CTL research facilities. Axens will contribute its ebullated-bed H-Coal process and proprietary catalyst. Both evolved from a common background and DCL technologies developed by Hydrocarbon Research, Inc., which were commercialized with support from the US Department of Energy and industrial clients. Building on decades of experiences in DCL and a database on a wide range of coals, both companies have continued to increase liquid yields, improve energy efficiency, lower production costs and reduce the environmental footprint.

Alliance DCL will market the technologies and anticipates offering project-specific services, from feedstock characterization, pilot plant evaluation, feasibility studies and engineering design through plant start-up and ongoing technical support. Axens will also provide the coal liquids upgrading technologies necessary to achieve finished fuel specifications. Both companies provided technology packages and basic engineering contributing to the successful construction and start up of the first commercial direct coal liquefaction plant in China in December 2008. Several new DCL projects are currently in development by the alliance.

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Green cooling towers Delta Cooling Towers has introduced a series of factory-assembled plastic towers to suit almost any size requirements up to 2,000 cooling tons in a single, modularized unit. The unparalleled lifespan has been achieved by plastic cooling tower models that feature a seamless, molded high-density polyethylene (HDPE) shell, such as HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 21

HPINNOVATIONS the one pioneered by Delta. Backed by a 15-year shell warranty, this non-corroding engineered-plastic design will not rust, corrode or require the downtime for service that traditional metal towers require.

HDPE plastic eliminates disposal problems because the material may be ground and recycled into other sustainable products.

The engineered HDPE plastic design allows seamless-shell water towers the most aggressive water-treatment options available.

This allows users to run at higher cycles of concentration, thereby saving make up water. These water and chemical savings can be very large and help solve water issues as well as save on operating costs.

While the traditional, galvanized metalclad cooling towers have done a good job at cooling process water, they have also been highly prone to corrosion and, therefore, frequent cleaning, re-coating and replacement. Additionally, metal cooling towers

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require extra caution when using watertreatment chemicals to maintain continuous proper water chemistry to prevent accelerated loss of galvanizing, leading to costly downtime and early replacement.

Traditional metal towers, which last only a few years in many applications, confront owners with environmental and economic issues including increased chemical use, higher maintenance costs, replacement costs and disposal requirements.

With improved thermal performance, counterflow designs have less of an environmental impact than crossflow designs.

Counterflow designs have much less water splash than crossflow models, especially during high winds or when fans are off at low-load or low wet-bulb conditions. Cooling towers of this design also keep water totally enclosed and free from sunlight, thereby lessening the occasion for biological growth—which requires less harsh water treatment chemicals.

While the cost of electric power to drive cooling-tower fans may seem incidental to process costs, they can also add up. Some manufacturers use direct-drive motors to power their cooling fans—Delta was the first cooling-tower manufacturer to standardize NEMA premium-efficiency direct-drive motors. With no pulleys, bearings and belts, direct-drive motors are more efficient, and provide substantial savings in energy costs while also delivering more horsepower.

When modular towers are incorporated into a multi-cell configuration, direct-drive tower motors or complete cells can be shut off independent of others when supported processes are not operating or heat load is low. The efficiency of Delta’s high-performance design, which runs on less horsepower than comparable standard models, is reflected in the savings of electricity usage.

US Green Building Council Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design credits are available for buildings complying with American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) 90.1 minimum efficiency standards.

Recently adopted ASHRAE 90.1 standards established minimum efficiency standards for cooling towers with either axial or centrifugal fans. Traditional metal towers only last a few years in many applications, confront owners with environmental and economic issues including increased chemical use, higher maintenance costs, replacement costs and disposal requirements.

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Select 152 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS 22

A

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Team’s Programmable Logic Controller and SCADA ® software provide the brains for its Wireless SmartHeat 400 ® system. Driven by interchangeable, Internet-enabled laptops, one Team technician controls multiple heat cycles from a single remote location. Real-time temperatures can be monitored via PDA or PC, giving you the peace of mind that the process is being executed exactly as required.

From small, complex f ittings to massive turbines, Team Wireless Heat Treating delivers reliable, documented results that save you time and money. For complete information visit w w w.te amindus tr ials e r vice s .com.

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Overpressure risk never goes away.

That’s why we offer total pressure relief solutions.

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It’s simple. Safety relief valves and services to support your facility’s entire lifecycle. Pressure relief systems designed right from the start. Pressure relief valves that help your plant operate safely. Global valve maintenance and repair support. And PSM software and audit services to ensure your plant operates the way it was designed to during an overpressure event.

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HPIN CONSTRUCTION BILLY THINNES, NEWS EDITOR BT@HydrocarbonProcessing.com

North America Praxair, Inc., has a contract with ExxonMobil to build, own and operate an air separation unit to supply additional nitrogen for enhanced oil recovery operations at ExxonMobil’s Hawkins, Texas, gasprocessing plant site. Under the new contract, Praxair will install a new production facility to meet ExxonMobil’s requirements for nitrogen. Operations from the new supply network are scheduled for start up in the second half of 2011. Praxair will produce 85 million cf/d of high-pressure nitrogen and additional quantities of liquid argon.

KBR has a contract to provide instrument and electrical support services to Shell’s chemical plant in Deer Park, Texas, and its refining joint venture facilities with PMI Norteamérica. KBR will provide instrument and electrical support services to include capital projects, turnarounds and continuing maintenance needs. The services will be provided by KBR subsidiary Instrument Technology International, which specializes in providing instrument and electrical services from construction through checkout, commissioning, startup, operational phases and post-operational maintenance.

Southern LNG Co., LLC, and Elba Express Co., LLC, have completed two related projects: the expansion of the Elba Island LNG receiving terminal near Savannah, Georgia, and the new Elba Express Pipeline in eastern Georgia. The Elba Island LNG terminal expansion consists of three new vaporizer units that were put in service March 1, raising the facility’s sendout capacity to a total of 1.75 Bcf/d and one new storage tank that will be commissioned later this summer increasing the storage capacity at the facility by 4.2 Bcf. Elba Express Pipeline, an approximately 190mile pipeline with a total capacity of 945 million cf/d, transports natural gas supplies from the Elba Island LNG terminal to markets in the southeastern and eastern US.

South America Braskem and Novozymes recently announced a research partnership to develop large-scale production of polypropylene

from sugarcane. Braskem and Novozymes will develop a green alternative based on Novozymes’ core fermentation technology and Braskem’s expertise in chemical technology and thermoplastics. Braskem is currently building a 200,000-tpy polyethylene plant in Brazil with ethanol from sugarcane as the raw material. Novozymes is producing enzymes to turn agricultural waste into biofuels and has partnered to convert renewable raw materials into acrylic acid.

Gassco AS has a pre-engineering contract with CB&I Lummus B.V. for an upgrade of the Norsea gas terminal in northern Germany. The pre-engineering will address necessary upgrades to extend the lifetime of the terminal. The work will also include some minor work at the Europipe metering station and the Europipe receiving facilities. The contract has a value of approximately 50 million NOK. Completion of the project is expected by the end of 2010.

Europe CB&I has a contract of approximately $50 million with Hyundai Heavy Industries to provide engineering services for the Goliat floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) project. The project is a part of an oil development undertaking in the Norwegian sector of the Barents Sea. CB&I’s scope, which includes the detailed engineering for process topside modules, utility modules, flare boom and associated hull interface engineering for the FPSO, is scheduled to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2010.

TREND ANALYSIS FORECASTING Hydrocarbon maintains an extenHydrocarbonProcessing Processing maintains an sive database of historical HPI project extensive database of historical HPI inforprojmation.

Current project activity is published ect information.

Current project activity three times athree year times in theaHPI Construction is published year in the HPI Boxscore.

When a project is completed, Construction Boxscore.

When a project it is removed itfrom current from listings and is completed, is removed current retained in aretained database.in The database The is a listings and a database.

35-year projects by databasecompilation is a 35-yearof compilation of type, projoperating company, licensor, engineering/ ects by type, operating company, licenconstructor, location, etc. Many companies sor, engineering/constructor, location, etc. use thecompanies historical use datathe forhistorical trendingdata or sales Many for forecasting. trending or sales forecasting.

The historical information is available in comma-delimited or Excel® and can be custom sorted to suit your needs. The cost of the sort depends on the size and complexity of the sort you request and whether a customized program must be written. You can focus on a narrow request such as the history of a particular type of project or you can obtain the entire 35-year Boxscore database, or portions thereof.

Simply send a clear description of the data you need and you will receive a prompt cost quotation. Contact: Lee Nichols P. O. Box 2608 Houston, Texas, 77252-2608 Fax: 713-525-4626 e-mail: Lee.Nichols@gulfpub.com.

Middle East Holding Sonatrach Raffinage et Chimie, SPA, and Total Petrochemicals Arzew SAS have selected Scientific Design Co.’s (SD) monoethylene glycol (MEG) technology for a planned joint venture complex in Arzew, Algeria. The MEG plant will have a minimum capacity of 550,000 metric tpy. The award includes the license of process technology, the provision of a process design package, technical assistance, startup services and the initial charge of SD’s ethylene oxide catalyst.

Ras Laffan Liquefied Natural Gas Co., Ltd. (3) announced the completion and startup of Train 7 at Ras Laffan Industrial City, Qatar. Ras Laffan 3 Train 7 is the fourth 7.8 million-tpy LNG plant brought online by Qatar Petroleum and ExxonMobil joint ventures within the past 12 months. It matches the capacity of Ras Laffan 3 Train 6, inaugurated in October 2009. Qatar’s North Field, which is estimated to contain in excess of 900 trillion cf of natural gas, will supply both trains.

The Al Khaleej Gas-Phase 2 (AKG-2) project, with 1,250 million cfd of sales gas capacity, initiated operations in December 2009 in Qatar. Qatar Petroleum and ExxonMobil worked together on the project. Combined with Al Khaleej GasPhase 1 (AKG-1), which began production in 2005, AKG will have a total capacity of 2,000 million cf/d. The AKG-2 project involved construction of onshore gas treating, liquids recovery and fractionation facilities and two additional offshore wellhead platforms. The onshore facilities are integrated with the Ras Laffan Liquefied HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 25

HPIN CONSTRUCTION Natural Gas Co. Ltd. (3) facilities in Ras Laffan Industrial City.

Oil Refineries Co. (ORC) has secured financing for the execution of a hydrocracker project at an estimated investment of approximately $500 million in Israel.

Technip, along with Chiyoda, has an engineering, procurement and construction contract with Qatar Liquefied Gas

Co. Ltd. for the Plateau maintenance project in Ras Laffan, Qatar. Technip and Chiyoda previously carried out the feasibility study, pre-front-end engineering design (pre-FEED) and FEED of the facilities. The scope of this contract includes a new acid gas removal unit, a new sulfur recovery unit and modifications to utility systems for handling increased feedgas rates to the existing liquefied natural gas (LNG) trains. The contract is scheduled to be completed in 2013.

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Select 153 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS

The Singapore LNG Corp. Pte Ltd. (SLNG) has awarded the contract for the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of Singapore’s LNG terminal to Samsung C&T Corp. The total budget for the terminal funded by the Singapore government is S$1.5 billion, of which about S$1 billion is for the EPC contract. SLNG, which owns and oversees the development of the terminal, will issue a “notice to proceed” to Samsung to start the detailed design, engineering and construction phases of the terminal immediately. Startup of the LNG terminal is expected in 2013.

Fluor Corp. is performing a feasibility study for a joint venture led by PetroChina Co. Ltd. The proposed 440,000-bpd refinery and 1.2 million-tpy petrochemicals complex will be located in Taizhou, Zhejiang Province, China. The final feasibility study report is expected to be completed at the end of 2010.

<ok\e[\[ Zljkfd\i nXiiXekp

26

Asia-Pacific

KBR has a contract with Woodside to execute a basis of design study for the company’s Browse liquefied natural gas (LNG) development in the northern part of Western Australia. KBR will execute the study for a 12 million-tpy liquefaction facility, as well as the associated infrastructure and marine facilities. The anticipated duration of the study is nine months.

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Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. has a contract with Saudi Aramco to develop a basic engineering package for four sulfur recovery units, each with an expected production capacity of 1,200 tpd. This new, four-train sulfur plant will be part of the Wasit gas development program in Saudi Arabia. Jacobs will license its proprietary sulfur degassing technology for the project. This investment involves building gas processing plants, two offshore gas platforms, one tie-in platform, subsea power and communication links and pipelines.

)/(%+,)%0/''

Foster Wheeler AG’s Global Engineering and Construction Group has a contract with Nghi Son Refinery & Petrochemical LLC (NSRP) for the provision of technical and commercial services for the planned Nghi Son refinery and petrochemicals complex in Vietnam. Foster Wheeler will support NSRP in the preparation of the enquiry packages, bid clarifications and bid evaluation. HP

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR editorial@HydrocarbonProcessing.com

Oil mist lubrication Heinz Bloch’s “HPIn Reliability” column from August 2009 (“Electric motors and mechanical efficiency,” p. 9) briefly discussed the advantages of using oil mist and synthetic oil in order to save energy.

I have a few questions for you about oil mist lubrication. I am really concerned about using oil mist lubrication in Zone 1 or Zone 2 environments. Since oil mist is categorized as a flammable media, using this system in such environments opens the door for potential hazards to increase.

Any failure in an oil mist piping system will release a flammable mixture. Thus, a facility using this concept may need additional protection and detection equipment, which would increase material and maintenance costs. What practical guidance can you offer to reduce these risks?

Do you have any idea how much energy is needed for the oil mist heating system?

Behshad Moradi Production Services Network Aberdeen, UK

Author’s response Your statement regarding oil mist being a flammable medium is incorrect. There have never been, nor can there ever be, such fires. The reason is simply that the air-oil mixture is several (!) orders of magnitude too lean to sustain combustion. To quote from page 103 of the Oil Mist Handbook (ISBN 0-88173-256-7): “...the oil/air mixture is substantially below the sustainable burning point.

Experiments had shown the concentration of oil mist in the main manifold ranging from 0.005 to as little as 0.001 of the concentration generally considered as flammable.”

A heater (typically 200 watts) is needed only at the point of mixing air and oil.

This heater facilitates maintaining proper proportions at the point of mixing; the heater is built-in by the (competent) oil mist system vendor. Once produced, the oil mist will migrate in unheated, uninsulated header pipes to the point(s) of application. It will do so successfully even where ambients of –40° have been encountered.

A good start for anyone questioning these issues would be a perusal of the Oil Mist Handbook.

Heinz Bloch

Stupidity and exploitation While “It’s the economy, stupid” may have worked in politics, it definitely is not the MPC technology causing control problems in the HP industry (“Letters to the editor,” January 2010, p. 25).

The stupidity is in the engineers and managers who allow the exploitation (by vendors) that size matters. Most MPC packages are matrix-based where the size can be increased by just increasing array dimensions, and the solving capability actually depends upon the computer CPU power. The computers are so powerful these days that an inefficient matrix solving algorithm will also get solved in real time even though the client may pay higher license fees for more MVs. A controller that has implementation references of having 80 MVs for a crude column is in no way more powerful than a better engineered MPC controller having just 20 MVs. By looking at the problem, 16 MVs (which are heater pass balances of two heaters, each with eight passes) can be eliminated as better handled in DCS. Many more “fee-based” MVs will fall out by a similar review, resulting in much better performance, easier tuning and maintenance and lower engineering costs.

By following the principle that the advanced control schemes for an HP unit can be divided (depending upon control requirements and equipment integration) between MPC- and DCS-based schemes, we have lost quite a few new clients, but have not failed in delivering a long-term successful control solution with our repeat clients.

size and utilizing DCS-level controls where appropriate. Further, he is assigning cause to the “big matrix” habit and placing some blame on vendors who license their MPC software by the variable. While this is true, I would also have to admit that control engineers bought strongly into the idea that bigger was better for many years. Only now are people realizing the limits of MPC and “remembering what we’d forgotten” about skilled use of DCS-level controls. Unfortunately, shifting strategy from MPC back to DCS-level controls means overcoming the perception we previously created! Vendors will continue to push and sell MPC, but as Mr. Jaisinghani says, we buyers (control engineers and managers) need to be smarter on the subject.

Alan G. Kern, PE

Author’s response, part 2 I agree that implementing pass balancing in multi-variable predictive controllers (MVPCs) is questionable, though not impossible, and that simple control logic is more effectively done at the DCS level.

MVPCs can work well or poorly, depending on the control structure, matrix model fidelity and helpful custom logic to help the controller cope in unusual circumstances.

Similarly, advanced regulatory control (ARC) works well when well-designed. The real argument is not MVPC vs. regulatory control but simple feasible control design vs. a complicated one. Once you have a good design, you would decide which parts of the control strategy would reside in the DCS, MVPC or custom code.

By the way, I see on the Intellopt Web site that Intellopt services include multi-variable controllers, so I don’t understand why they have lost clients who prefer that solution.

Y. Zak Friedman

Ravi Jaisinghani Intelligent Optimization Group Houston, Texas www.intellopt.com

Author’s response, part 1 Thank you, Mr. Jaisinghani, for your comments, which I think are in agreement with the idea of “pruning” MPC matrix

Correction In the January article, “A unique natural gas processing success story,” an error was made in Equation B on page 38. The correct equation should be:

HS + 2 Fe + + + H + + S + 2 Fe + + Hydrocarbon Processing regrets the error.

HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 29

HPI CONSTRUCTION BOXSCORE UPDATE Company

Plant Site

Project

Capacity Est. Cost Status Licensor

Engineering

Constructor

UNITED STATES Louisiana Ohio Texas

USDG/Plains All American Pipeline St James BP Husky Refining Toledo Refinery LyondellBasell Industries Houston

Terminal, Petroleum Reformer, Hydrogen Coker, Delayed

65 Mbpd 42 Mbpd None

400 12

U 2011 F 2012 P 2013

307 800 800 800 800 800 800 45

U E E E E E E E

2011 2013 2013 2013 2013 2013 2013 2011

P P F E E E

2014 2014 2011 2013 2012 2012

P P S S F P E

2012 2012 2010 2010

KBR AltairStrickland

LATIN AMERICA Mexico Mexico Mexico Mexico Mexico Mexico Mexico Peru

Pemex Pemex Pemex Pemex Pemex Pemex Pemex PlusPetrol Peru

Poza Rica Antonio M. Amor Refinery Antonio M. Amor Refinery Antonio M. Amor Refinery Miguel Hidalgo Refinery Miguel Hidalgo Refinery Miguel Hidalgo Refinery Malvinas

Storage Train, LNG Amine Regeneration Unit Desulfurization Utilities Amine Regeneration Unit Desulfurization Utilities Cryogenic Gas Plant (5)

20 Mbbl None None None None None None 520 MMscfd

Total Bayer MaterialScience AG Gassco Eni Norge\Statoil JV Gazprom Gazprom

Dunkirk Dormagen Emden Goliat Field Astrakhan Astrakhan

LNG Terminal Toluene Diisocyanate (TDI) Terminal, Gas FPSO Hydrotreater, Naphtha Isomerization, C5-C6

10 Bcmy 300 Mtpy None 100 Mbpd None None

Sinopec Sinopec PetroChina/Shell/Qatar PetroChina/Shell/Qatar Matix Fertilizers & Chemicals Ltd BOC Pakistan Ltd Singapore LNG Corp (SLNG)

Jiangxi Jiangxi Taizhou Taizhou West Bengal Lahore Jurong

Generator, CFB Steam (1) Generator, CFB Steam (2) Petrochemical Complex Refinery Ammonia Air Separation Unit LNG Terminal

50 50 1.2 440 2.2 150 3.5

Sasol

Secunda

Calcium Ammonium Nitrate

400 Mtpy

94

Saih Rawl Ras Laffan Ras Laffan Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi

Gas Compression Acid Gas Removal Sulfur Recovery Unit (2) Gas Treating Refinery (2) Refinery (7)

15 MW None None 35000 tpd 127200 bpsd None

280

Linde

ICA Fluor|Linde Saipem Saipem Saipem Saipem Saipem Saipem CB&I

EUROPE France Germany Germany Norway Russian Federation Russian Federation

206 10 6900

Bayer MaterialScience AG Sevan Marine ASA Lurgi Lurgi

CB&I Lummus CB&I|HHI MAVEG GmbH|Lurgi MAVEG GmbH|Lurgi

HHI

ASIA/PACIFIC China China China China India Pakistan Singapore

MW MW MMtpy Mbpd Mm-tpd tpd 24 MMtpy 1500

FW FW Fluor Fluor KBR

2012 2013

Linde Fluor|FW|Samsung C&T Corporation Samsung C&T Corporation

AFRICA Repub S Africa

U 2011

SNC-Lavalin

SNC-Lavalin

MIDDLE EAST Oman Qatar Qatar UAE UAE UAE

PDOC Qatargas Qatargas GASCO Takreer Takreer

2200 3110 524

E E E E E E

2012 2013 2013 2013 2013 2014

Axens|Shaw S&W

GS E&C Technip|Chiyoda Technip|Chiyoda GS E&C GS E&C GS E&C

GS E&C GS E&C GS E&C GS E&C

See http://www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/bxsymbols for licensor, engineering and construction companies’ abbreviations, along with the complete update of the HPI Construction Boxscore.

BOXSCORE DATABASE

ONLINE

THE GLOBAL SOURCE FOR TRACKING HPI CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITY For more than 50 years, Hydrocarbon Processing magazine remains the only source that collects and maintains data specifically for the HPI community, publishing up-to-the-minute construction projects from around the globe with our online product, Boxscore Database. Updated weekly, our database helps engineers, contractors and marketing personnel identify active HPI construction projects around the world to: • Generate leads • Market research • Track trend analysis • And, decide future budget planning.

Now, we’ve made our best product even better!

Enhancements include: • Exporting your search results to Excel so you can compile your research • Delivering the latest updated projects directly to your inbox each week • Designing customized construction reports for your company using our 50 years of archived projects.

For a Free 2 -Week Trial, contact Lee Nichols at +1 (713) 525-4626, Lee.Nichols@GulfPub.com, or visit www.ConstructionBoxscore.com

30

I APRIL 2010 HYDROCARBON PROCESSING

Select 154 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS

How How much much nitrogen nitrogen do do you you waste waste during during your your ethylene ethylene cracker cracker shutdown? shutdown?

The one company you can rely on to deliver efficient world-class nitrogen performance during your shutdown is BJ Services.

Nitrogen is critical to a safe and successful ethylene cracker turnaround. Why risk using your operational resources or a gas supply company when BJ Services provides a dedicated, engineered nitrogen capability that can save you time and money while reducing your risk?

The BJ Services difference is our expertise and focus on achieving an efďŹ cient turnaround by minimizing nitrogen consumption and time. BJ has built a resource capability that optimizes product freeing, accelerated cooling, hot stripping and safe inerting operations to get your cracker unit ready for access quickly. And when you are ready to start up, BJ will help ensure that you achieve a clean, dry, leak-free and inert unit ready to receive product.

For a no-cost assessment of your ethylene cracker needs, contact your BJ Services process and pipeline representative.

Real world. World class. Worldwide. www.bjservices.com Select 67 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS

PROCESS INSIGHT Optimizing CO2 Capture, Dehydration and Compression Facilities The removal of CO2 by liquid absorbents is widely implemented in the field of gas processing, chemical production, and coal gasification.

Many power plants are looking at post-combustion CO2 recovery to meet environmental regulations and to produce CO2 for enhanced oil recovery applications. The figure below illustrates actual data of fuel consumption in 2005 and an estimate of energy demand for various fuels from 2010 to 2030.

The world energy demand will likely increase at rates of 10–15% every 10 years. This increase could raise the CO2 emissions by about 50% by 2030 as compared with the current level of CO2 emissions. The industrial countries (North America, Western Europe and OECD Pacific) contribute to this jump in emissions by 70% compared to the rest of the world, and more than 60% of these emissions will come from power generation and industrial sectors.

formulated solvent without implementing any split flow configurations. This is much less than the reported steam usage for the MEA solvent.

The design of a facility to capture 90% of the CO2 from the flue gas of a coal fired power plant is based on the specified flue gas conditions, CO2 product specifications, and constraints. Using the ProMax® process simulation software from Bryan Research & Engineering, CO2 capture units can be designed and optimized for the required CO2 recovery using a variety of amine solvents. The following figure represents a simplified process flow diagram for the proposed CO2 Capture Plant.

Despite the strong recommendations from certain governments, there are very few actual investments in CO2 capture facilities geared toward reducing greenhouse gas emissions mainly because of the high cost of CO2 recovery from flue gas. CO2 capture costs can be minimized, however, by designing an energy efficient gas absorption process. Based on the findings of recent conceptual engineering studies, HTC Purenergy estimated the production cost to be US$ 49/ton CO2 (US$ 54/ tonne CO2) for 90% CO2 recovery of 4 mole% CO2 content in the flue gas of NGCC power plants. A separate study showed the cost for 90% CO2 recovery of 12 mole% CO2 from a coal fired power plant to be US$ 30/ton CO2 (US$ 33/tonne CO2). The cost of CO2 recovery from coal power plant flue gas is substantially less than that of NGCC power plant flue gas due to the higher CO2 content in the feed.

The energy efficiency of a CO2 capture plant depends primarily on the performance of the solvent and optimization of the plant. In traditional flue gas plant designs, MEA was the primary solvent and was limited to 20 wt% to minimize equipment corrosion. Recent developments in controlling corrosion and degradation has allowed an increase in the solvent concentration to about 30 wt% thus decreasing the required circulation and subsequent steam demand. A recent DOE study shows the steam consumption for an existing CO2 plant using 18 wt% MEA (Kerr McGee Process) is 3.45 lb of steam per lb of CO2 for amine regeneration. A modern process that uses 30 wt% MEA is expected to use 1.67 lb of steam per lb of CO2 for amine regeneration. The HTC formulated solvent is a proprietary blend of amines and has a lower steam usage than the conventional MEA solvent. Based on the material and energy balances for the plant designed in the recent study, the reboiler steam consumption is estimated at about 1.47 lb steam/lb CO2 using the proposed

The table below presents the main findings for CO2 capture from the coal fired power plant and the NGCC power plant, each designed to produce about 3307 ton per day (3,000 TPD metric). To produce the same capacity of CO2, only one train with smaller column diameters is required in the case of the coal power plant and two trains with larger column diameters are required in the NGCC Power Plant case. This is mainly due to processing a larger flue gas with lower CO2 content in the NGCC power plant. Consequently, a substantial reduction in the capital and production cost was reported for the coal fired power plant CO2 recovery facility.

For more information about this study, see the full article at www.bre.com/support/technical-articles/gas-treating.aspx.

Bryan Research & Engineering, Inc. P.O. Box 4747 • Bryan, Texas USA • 77805 979-776-5220 • www.bre.com • sales@bre.com Select 113 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

SPECIALREPORT

Upgrade syngas production Advancements of synthesis gas processes are key to improved GTL profitability R. BONNEAU, IFP, Lyon, France

S

yngas production is often used to better manage hydrocarbon feedstocks at the molecular level. The syngas production unit from natural gas accounts for the largest part of the total investment cost of a gas-to-liquids (GTL) plant, which uses the Fischer-Tropsch (FT) process. Special attention should be directed on decreasing processing cost. In addition, proven syngas production processes have existed for many years. But it is necessary to propose significant improvements when optimizing fuel production using the FT process and increase profitability.

Different solutions are being explored; the most promising are those methods that decrease or even eliminate completely the oxygen production unit.

SYNGAS PRODUCTION

The preparation of synthesis gas is the most capital-intensive part of a GTL project. Its weight, including the air separation unit (ASU) if any, is in the order of 50% of the total inside battery limits (ISBL) investment for a GTL plant. There is a considerable incentive to optimize and to further develop syngas production technologies that reduce costs. Consequently, improving the syngas production unit is critical for the economics of any GTL project.

Basis processing methods. The production of synthesis gas

for GTL plants is based on two basic processes: partial oxidation (POX) and steam reforming. POX is a very exothermic partial combustion, which requires expensive oxygen production including an ASU to produce a syngas that is free from enormous nitrogen inert dilution. Steam methane reforming (SMR)—the feed gas (natural gas) is mainly methane—is an endothermic process, which then requires an additional fuel supply. The combination of the two processes in the same vessel enables partially balancing the exothermicity of the POX reaction by the endothermic needs of the SMR reaction. The resulting combination process is known as autothermal reforming (ATR.) If the partial combustion uses a burner as in a POX reactor, then the reforming part uses a catalytic bed as in an SMR furnace. If no burner is used but only a catalytic bed, then the process is known as a catalytic partial oxidation (CPO).

The hydrogen (H2)/carbon monoxide (CO) ratio of the produced syngas is an important parameter concerning FT synthesis units. For stoichiometric reasons, the fitted ratio is around 2, depending on the hydrocarbon chain length and unsaturated (olefins) content. An excess of H2 or of CO will involve rejection of H2 or carbon dioxide (CO2) into the FT tail gas. But the suitable composition of syngas is strongly dependent on the FT catalyst used. Note: There is a great difference in the activity toward the water-gas shift reaction between iron (Fe)-based FT catalysts and cobalt (Co)-based FT catalysts. Due to high water-gas shift

reaction activity, Fe-based FT catalysts are used with low H2/CO ratio syngas. Conversely, the very low water-gas shift reaction activity of Co-based FT catalysts yields a syngas with an H2/CO ratio close to the stoichiometry of FT waxes that must be produced.

Conventional technologies: Partial oxidation. POX

is a processing method that can treat any feed: gas, liquid or solid.

Historically, this technology evolved from the partial oxidation of coal to produce syngas or town gas. This method involves partial combustion of hydrocarbons with less than the stoichiometric rate of oxygen needed to produce CO2 and steam—usually about 35% of the total oxygen required for complete oxidation.

The POX process was originally developed during 1945 to gasify solid carbonaceous feedstock as coal or petroleum residues.1 These processes have been updated to convert natural gas, which can be used in GTL purposes. More recently, an updated POX natural gas conversion process has been developed based on fixedbed coal gasification technology. This method can process a wide range of hydrocarbon feeds, from natural gas to heavy refinery residues.2 The feed (natural gas) is mainly methane, and the POX reaction is ideally: 1 CH 4 + O2 CO + 2H 2 2

36 kJ/mol

The residence time is short: 2 to 5 seconds. Combustion products such as CO2 and water (H2O) are formed, and the endothermic reactions like steam reforming also occur. The design of the feedstock nozzle is critical to ensure that the heat of the oxidation reaction is used in subsequent endothermic reactions.

Good progress of all these reactions determines a high outlet temperature of about 1,400°C–1,500°C, with the consequent advantage of a very low methane slip (< 0.5 vol%). All of the hydrocarbon feedstock is converted. Carbon deposition may form due to thermal cracking:

C n H 2n+2 nC + (n + 1)H 2 Accordingly, the Boudouard’s equilibrium should be involved:

2CO C + CO2 Soot formation is generally negligible with methane feed. The powdered carbon can be removed by washing.

To avoid the risk of coking heavy hydrocarbons, a pre-reforming step upstream of the POX reactor can be applied. In this option, C2+ hydrocarbons are converted into methane before the partial oxidation step, and the carbon efficiency of the syngas generation is enhanced.3 The concept of an adiabatic pre-reforming step has been successfully used in industrial ATR processes.

HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 33

SPECIALREPORT

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

A severe drawback of this process is the cost of the oxygen unit (ASU). Although available information of ATR/ASU cost breakdown is inconsistent, it seems that the ASU represents more than 20% of the cost of process units for FT complex.

The POX reaction of methane produces a syngas where the H2/CO ratio is theoretically 2. However, in truth, the ratio is less than 2. When processing a heavier (higher C) hydrocarbon feed, the H2/CO ratio drops to 1.5 to 1.8, depending on the H/C ratio of the feed. In this case, the H2/CO ratio is too low for an FT synthesis unit using Co catalyst. To make up for the hydrogen deficit, a parallel production unit with a high H2/CO ratio syngas (steam reformer) is necessary, as applied at the Shell Bintulu plant in Malaysia.

Steam-methane reforming. SMR is essentially the cata-

lytic oxidation of methane by water. Higher hydrocarbons are converted into methane and CO by an exothermic reaction.1 The steam-reforming reaction of methane is largely endothermic:

CH 4 + H 2 O CO + 3H 2

+206 kJ/mol

The shift reaction is the second main reaction occurring in the SMR:

CO + H 2 O

CO2 + H 2

41 kJ/mol

Catalysts applied in SMR are usually nickel (Ni) on alumina.

These catalysts can operate under severe conditions of temperature, pressure and preferred steam-to-carbon (S/C) molar ratio: 850°C–950°C, under 15 to 40 bars and a S/C ratio from 2 to 4.

A multi-tubular reactor is filled with a catalyst and heat is added from the exterior (all othermal process). SMR reactors are tubular furnaces constructed from expensive alloyed steel and are very large reactors with a significant footprint.

Steam reforming catalysts are under numerous development works.4 Four criteria are important for the quality of steamreforming catalysts: absence of silica (because silica can lose adequate structural properties at high temperatures in high-pressure steam); high activity in the SMR reaction; low activity in carbon formation and resistance to sintering; which is due to the coalescence at high temperatures of Ni particles on the carrier surface.

An alkali promoter is used to suppress carbon formation, and the catalyst ring shape has been improved to maintain steam reforming reaction activity.

Steam-reforming catalysts may also lose activity due to poisoning by sulfur-containing compounds. Sulfur compounds must be removed from the gas feed in hydroprocessing reactors containing catalyst of Co and molybdenum (Mo) blends (CoMo) or NiMo catalyst. After the hydrogenation reactor, the hydrogen sulfide (H2S) formed is trapped in absorbers containing zinc oxide (ZnO).

The H2/CO ratio of the syngas is in the range of 3 to 5, which is too high for an FT application. Consequently, a well-fitted ASU Natural gas

Oxygen Fischer- Syncrude Syngas Syngas Product Tropsch production upgrading synthesis FT tail gas recycle

FIG. 1

34

General schematic layout of a GTL plant.

I APRIL 2010 HYDROCARBON PROCESSING

Naphtha Diesel Kerosine Waxes

H2/CO ratio requires H2 extraction by physical processes or an improbable CO2 addition to shift the equilibrium accordingly.

However, the main drawbacks are the high steam and fuel consumption due to the endothermicity of the SMR reaction.

A solution to adapt the H2/CO ratio of the syngas to FT production is to install a mixed production scheme in which a POX unit is operated in parallel with an SMR unit. This option provides advantages, but it also produces drawbacks. The adjustment of the H2/CO ratio of the syngas is possible by acting independently on the process parameters for each unit and also by modifying the relative syngas flowrate of the two units.

Moreover, a large and expensive ASU is still necessary because around 75% of the conversion is done in the oxidation unit. This configuration is unfavorable as far as capital expenditure (CAPEX) and operating expenditure (OPEX) are concerned.

Nevertheless, it was the option chosen by Shell in its SMDS plant at Bintulu, Malaysia—the first industrial FT complex that was started up in the early1990s.

Auto-thermal reforming. ATR has been used for industrial syngas production since the end of the 1950s. However, this process was continuously improved, and new developments were achieved in the 1990s concerning soot-free operations with lower steam rate injection and new burner designs. The ATR process uses a compact design. Noncatalytic partial combustion occurs in a combustion chamber with a burner, followed by a steamreforming catalyst bed placed in a refractory-lined pressure vessel.5 For a methane feed, reactions are defined here, while similar reactions occur for higher hydrocarbons: POX ( noncatalytic):

1 CH 4 + O2 CO + 2H 2 2

Steam reforming reaction (catalytic reaction):

CH 4 + H 2O CO + 3H 2 Shift reaction (catalytic reaction):

CO + H 2 O CO2 + H 2 Partial combustion always involves the risk of soot formation.

To prevent soot formation, two parameters can be considered: • Steam-to-carbon ratio. The higher the S/C ratio, the lower the soot formation will be. If the S/C ratio is decreased, then soot will begin forming. A typical S/C ratio is 2. One major ATR improvement is the decreasing of this S/C-ratio.

• Burner design. The soot limit is also highly dependent on the burner design. It is a key point of the ATR process licensor’s know-how.

A large saving in thermal efficiency is linked to decreasing steam consumption in the process, i.e., the S/C ratio. Considerable effort has been made to achieve this goal. Initially, a S/C ratio of 3 to 2 for ammonia and methanol production was common; however, the S/C ratio industrial processes have decreased to 1, and 0.6 ratio is achievable. A licensor has successfully started several 0.6 S/C ATR units in Europe, South Africa and Qatar.

A typical process scheme for synthesis gas production using ATR is shown in Fig. 2. The successive steps of the unit are desulfurization, adiabatic pre-reforming, ATR and heat recovery with high-pressure (HP) steam generation. The adiabatic prereformer converts C2+ hydrocarbons by steam reforming into a mixture of methane, CO2, CO and H2:

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS 4C n H 2n+2 + (2n 2)H2 O (3n +1)CH 4 + (n 1)CO2 and

CH 4 + H 2O CO + 3H 2 Removal of higher hydrocarbons facilitates a higher pre-heating temperature of the ATR feed, thus reducing oxygen consumption.

The pre-reformer is loaded with a highly active Ni catalyst on a ceramic support. The ATR reactor consists of a combustion chamber with a burner and catalyst bed. The reactor is a vessel made of refractory-lined steel. The natural gas issued from the pre-reforming reactor burns with oxygen and steam in substoichiometric conditions.

In the first part of the reactor, a specially designed burner provides proper mixing of the feed streams, and combustion occurs in a turbulent diffusion flame. The exhaust syngas is oxygen free.

In the second part of the reactor, the gas is brought to equilibrium by the SMR and shift reactions in a Ni-based catalyst bed. The catalyst also has another purpose: to ensure that soot precursors, mainly olefins and acetylenics that are produced in the previous combustion part, are destroyed. Thus, syngas leaving the ATR is totally soot free and oxygen free.

As for steam reforming, some deactivation of the ATR catalyst may occur, due to sulfur poisoning and Ni-particles sintering. To avoid poisoning, sulfur compounds are removed in the same way as described in a steam reformer. Sintering can be restrained by new preparation procedures.6 As said previously, the composition of a syngas, used to produce FT gasoil, is characterized by an H2/CO ratio around 2. This

SPECIALREPORT

ratio can be produced by the ATR process and by adjusting the pre-heat temperatures and ATR exit temperature, or by recycling CO2 or high H/C ratio hydrocarbons from the FT synthesis unit tail gas (Fig. 3).

Another important parameter to adjust the H2/CO ratio is to work with a very low S/C ratio. However, this choice implies overcoming and controlling coking and corrosion problems. ATR is considered the most attractive and economical technology.

The maximal size for an industrial ATR in operation is the single-line ATR of Oryx in Qatar, i.e., 600,000 Nm3/h of syngas to produce 17,000 bpd of synfuels. Note: In an FT plant, the ATR capacity includes FT tail-gas recycling.

FT tail gas recycle

Process steam

Steam export

Natural gas O2

Syngas

Heater

Auto-thermal reformer

Prereforming FG

Desulfurization

FIG. 2

BFW

Process flow diagram of auto-thermal reformer.

CHEMCAD : All-in-one and one for all. ®

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Select 155 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS

HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 35

SPECIALREPORT

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

Air-blown ATR. Finally, we must mention the syngas process,

which is based on an air-blown ATR reactor, instead of oxygen, to avoid ASU costs and lower steam consumption. The relevance of this proprietary ATR reactor design has been successfully demonstrated in two pilot plants. It is estimated that the air-blown ATR process is economically well-suited to convert unmarketable remote or small gas fields, by installing small offshore units (2,000 bpd to 5,000 bpd of synfuels) on platforms, barges or ships.7 However, there is no industrial example to date. Concerning large FT-GTL plants, it is doubtful whether the choice of air instead of oxygen is economically attractive in large FT-GTL plants, since the presence of about 50% of inert components in the dry syngas, at first, makes the recycle concept impossible and considerably increases the required compression power. All of this leads to a low overall efficiency.

TECHNOLOGIES UNDER DEVELOPMENT

More developments being researched include: Compact steam reformer. A novel steam reformer is being developed that offers a compact and modular design. It consists of a number of packed tubes scattered with burners to provide the heat for the reaction. In this configuration, while the reforming chemical reactions are the same as in a conventional steam reformer, the heat transfer mechanism is significantly different. In a conventional steam reformer, the main heat transfer mechanism is radiation and less than 5% of the total heat transfer comes from

TABLE 1. Impact of S/C reducing from 0.6—0.4: comparative ATR key parameters.22 S/C ratio

0.6

0.4

NG feed + fuel flow

100

101

O2 feed

100

98

CO2 recycle

100

56

Syngas

100

100

3.0

convection from the hot flue gas to the tubes. It is the opposite case in a compact steam reformer (CSR).

Traditional steam reformers are either co-current down-fired or cross-flow side-fired devices. The CSR is a true counter-current exchanger (see Fig. 4), which drastically increases the efficiency of the process.8 This is the explanation of the compactness of the reformer, which provides significant savings as compared to a conventional steam reformer. The thermal efficiency is improved from 60% to about 90%—a 30% fuel saving. The CSR footprint is as low as 25% of a conventional SMR unit. Its modular concept makes for easier fabrication and transportation. A full-scale commercial compact reformer is in operation by BP in Nikiski, Alaska.

ATR at low S/C ratio. GTL plants need a huge syngas

flowrate. With this aim in mind, the ATR technology has a significant potential for optimization, mainly by reducing the S/C ratio. S/C-ratio reduction has two advantages: better fitting of the syngas composition and less CO2 production, thus reducing the recycle. In this way, higher single-line capacity ATR lines could be considered, thereby lowering CAPEX. Obstacles.The main obstacle for operating the ATR at low S/C values is the potential danger of carbon deposit and a corrosion phenomenon known as metal dusting in equipment operated at temperatures at 450°C–850°C. These conditions can prevail in the cooling section of the ATR process downstream from the ATR reactor.

Metal dusting is a corrosion condition that results from catastrophic disintegration of metal surfaces and produces powdery metal particles. This corrosion method forms pits and general metal wastage. At first, there is carbon formation and subsequent carbon deposition on the metal surface that initiates metal dusting degradation. This mechanism is not fully understood, but seems to be related to the destruction of the protective oxide layer on the surface, followed by carbide formation in grain boundaries. If the rate of carbon formation is not too large, and if sufficient steam is injected, the formed carbon would be oxidized in the ATR catalyst bed.9 However, a technology licensor noticed that operations at low S/C-ratio reduce the margin to carbon formation in the

H2/CO = 0.8 2.5

Air

1.0

CO2/CH4

2.0

Fuel gas 1.5

Syngas 480°C

1.5

1.0

Air fuel preheating zone

2.0

Combustion zone

2.5

0.5

3.0 0.0 0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5 H2O/CH4

2.0

2.5

3.0

Feed preheating zone Natural gas

Auto-thermal reforming with CO2 import or recycle.

Thermodynamic calculation of syngas ratio in dependence of feed ratios.

Pressure = 25 bar Equilibrium temperature = 1,000°C Natural gas = 100% CH4 O2/CH4 = 0.5 – 0.75

FIG. 3

36

Relationship of H2/CO syngas produced by the ATR with feed S/C-ratio and CO2/C.21

I APRIL 2010 HYDROCARBON PROCESSING

Flue gas to heat recovery

FIG. 4

Schematic of a compact reformer.

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PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

pre-reformer and soot formation in the ATR, and they performed operations for an extended period of time at S/C ratio < 0.40, which was demonstrated in a pilot unit. Table 1 lists a comparative index of various key parameters to illustrate the impact on singleline capacity when reducing the S/C ratio from 0.6 to 0.4.

Optimizing the mechanical design of the ATR reactor and other main equipment (catalyst, refractory and burner) has been achieved. Computational fluid dynamics simulations, hydraulic modeling and pilot-plant tests made the design of soot-free combustion burners possible. The optimized design in combination with the reduced S/C ratio should facilitate a major increase in the single-line capacity of at least 15%. A process demonstration unit is operating in Houston, Texas, with satisfactory performances.10 Steam addition involves an H2/CO ratio rising above the H2/ CO ratio desired for FT synthesis. For this reason, the FT tail gas containing CO2 is recycled to the ATR reactor, which leads to oversizing the syngas production unit. Commercialization of the ATR with S/C ratio = 0.4 is expected within the near future, and pilot-plant test runs have demonstrated S/C ratio down to 0.2.11 Combined reforming. The performance of a GTL plant can

be substantially improved by coupling the auto-thermal reformer with a gas-heated reformer (GHR).12,13 The concept of combined reforming (CR) is to use thermal energy of the ATR exit gas as a heat source for a steam-reforming reaction in a gas-heated reactor, instead of a conventional fired-reformer furnace.

One of the major costs in a GTL plant is the ASU, and the physical size of major rotating equipment sets the limits for the ASU capacity. Reducing oxygen consumption offers favorable

options. A GHR recycles the high-grade process heat of the ATR effluent directly back to the reforming process instead of using it to generate HP steam, thus reducing the oxygen requirement.

Moreover, heat recovered from the ATR process eliminates the need to generate large quantities of HP steam from the ATR effluent. Result: The energy system on the ATR is greatly simplified.

Low outlet temperature increases the H2/CO ratio; thus, higher CO2 recycling is required. Since part of the heat in the ATR effluent is used for steam reforming and feed preheating, the GHR is a heat-exchange type of reformer. The high level of steam reforming and lower oxygen consumption increases by itself the H2/CO ratio, and more CO2 must be recycled to obtain the target H2/CO ratio. Consequently, this increases the overall carbon efficiency of the plant.

There are principally two different ways to incorporate a GHR in combination with an ATR: a parallel arrangement and a series arrangement, as shown in Fig. 5.

In the parallel arrangement, the two reformers are fed independently, making it possible to optimize the S/C-ratio individually. However, the parallel GHR must operate at a higher temperature than in the series arrangement to obtain a low methane slip.

In the series arrangement, all gas passes through the series GHR and then to the ATR. Accordingly, current available SMR catalyst may set the lower limit for the S/C ratio. Even more for the ATR process, the main challenge in both the series and parallel arrangements is the risk of metal-dusting corrosion due to the cooling temperatures of the syngas in the heat-exchange reformer.

The phenomena are the same as those explained earlier. Consequently with greater justification, the mechanical design and the choice of materials are critical, because combined reforming process conditions with enriched-CO gases due to a reduced S/C ratio favor metal-dusting corrosion hazards.

Comparative studies of combined reforming process vs. the ATR process have been conducted. The results are presented in Tables 2 and 3 and show that due to a better understanding of the operating parameters and to new technology, a significantly higher single-train capacity can be expected. The cost reduction compared to present state of the art technology is substantial.

It must be underlined that the low S/C ATR technology is still competitive with the CR technologies.

A concept of combined reforming close to the previous one, has been developed.14 At present, it is proposed for methanol production. It is the combination of conventional SMR and ATR in a parallel arrangement. This SMR + ATR parallel scheme can yield several advantages: Process steam

Process steam

Natural gas

Natural gas O2

O2 Syngas

ATR

GHR

Parallel arrangement

FIG. 5 Select 156 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS 38

Syngas

ATR GHR Series arrangement

Schematics of combined reforming arrangementsâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;parallel and series arrangements.

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS • The amount of natural gas routed to the SMR is adjustable and allows adjusting the desired H2/CO ratio.

• The SMR operates with a lower temperature, which allows for higher pressure than in a conventional SMR. With this technology, it is expected to have halved steam demand compared to other CR processes in series.

The concept of combining ATR and heat-exchange steam reforming has also been developed by other technology licensors.

The new processes combine ATR and GHR in a single vessel; another design combines ATR and GHR in two vessels. However, these new processes have not been involved in syngas production for industrial GTL applications.

Fluidized-bed gas reforming. A newly developed syngas process uses a catalyzed fluid-bed reactor.15 In the catalyzed fluidbed reactor process, natural gas, oxygen and steam are separately injected into the bottom of a reactor containing a fluidized mixture of Ni-based catalyst and an alumina solid diluent. Although there is not exactly a burner but a “burning zone,” this concept is close to the ATR process. This process is claimed to control catalyst degradation by a balance between agglomeration, due to high temperature, and mechanical attrition, to maintain the fluidized characteristics of the bed. The process has been demonstrated over three years in a large-scale pilot unit.

The developers are confident for a commercial scale-up because the fluid-bed reactors are especially suited to POX and SMR reactions and are known to provide very good heat and mass transfers—the advantage for conducting both endothermic and exothermic reactions.

SPECIALREPORT

Advanced auto-thermal gasification process. A new syngas production process combines ultra-deep desulfurization of the natural gas feed gas with a new high-performance reforming catalyst. The exothermic oxidation reaction and endothermic reforming reaction occur simultaneously in the catalyst bed, with

TABLE 2. ATR vs. CR: Comparative key parameters22

ATR

ATR at lower S/C-ratio

ATR with parallel GHR

ATR with series GHR

S/C ratio

0.6

0.4

0.4/1.1

0.4/0.55

O2 consumption

100

92

82

81

Total LHV efficiency

100

105

108

109

Syngas unit investment

100

69

81

76

ASU investment

100

83

76

74

Syngas unit + ASU investment

100

76

79

75

Parameter

TABLE 3. CR process benefits23 Parameter O2 consumption, tpd ASU number

ATR

ATR + GHR

Change

16,400

12,300

–25% –25%

4

3

Natural gas, MW

8,243

7,751

–6%

Synfuel production, bpd

83,108

84,794

+2%

Energy consumption, GJ/b

8.57

7.90

–8%

CO2 emission, kg/bbl

121.0

82.6

–32%

Select 157 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS

HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 39

SPECIALREPORT

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

TABLE 4. Evaluation of various synthetic gas production technologies24 Important factors NG consumption volume, GJ/t-MeOH

SMR

POX

ATR

CR

CPO

32

31.56

30.6

30

29–30

530

460

280

270–300

Oxygen consumption volume, m3/t-MeOH CO2 emissions volume, 103 tpy

380

375

355

290

250–270

Relative costs

100

95

85–95

80–85

70–80

an entry reactor temperature below 300°C and without using burners. So, this process is more exactly in the range of a CPO + SMR concept than an ATR concept.

The new catalyst is a supported precious metal catalyst, has a high activity and high reaction rate—gas hourly space velocity (GHSV) over 20,000 h–1. Consequently, the amount of catalyst can be reduced to one fourth of that previously required by the conventional ATR processes and enables using a smaller reactor.

A 2,000 Nm3/h syngas pilot plant has demonstrated performance, safety and stability of the new process. Work is ongoing regarding engineering studies for a commercial plant.16 Unproven technologies: Catalytic partial oxidation.

The block diagram of a GTL complex based on catalytic partial oxidation (CPO) is the same as one based on an ATR, since the syngas is produced in a CPO directly by the same exothermic reaction as the noncatalytic POX process, but by a mechanism involving only surface reactions on the catalyst: 1 CH 4 + O2 CO + 2H 2 2

36 kJ/mol

The “true” CPO process does not involve a steam inlet. But, in practice, the H2/CO ratio needed for an FT process is > 2, and at least a small amount of water is added to the feed. Thus, the CPO reaction is always accompanied by steam reforming, shift and total combustion reactions, and, compared with the non-catalytic POX process, there is no generation soot or other byproducts.

The principal difference with the ATR process is that no burner is used in CPO and tall chemical reactions occur in a catalyst bed or monolith reactor. Catalysts based on Co, Ni or noble metals such as rhodium facilitate very rapid CPO reactions. Before 1992, the used space velocity corresponded to a residence time of around 1s, but, more recently, the residence time has decreased to 0.1 ms and 1 ms. Thus, the reactor operates at very high space velocity, and is consequently, extremely small so that a large reduction in costs can be expected. The product gas composition can be predicted from thermodynamics and assuming the same operating parameters, should not be different from the ATR process.

However, a short-contact time catalytic partial oxidation (SCTCPO) concept was described. The SCT-CPO process claims higher conversion and higher selectivity than those predicted by thermodynamic equilibrium at reactor exit temperature. This fact should be explained by an ultra-fast chemistry confined inside a very thin solid-gas interphase zone on the catalyst particles, and a very heterogeneous temperature of the gas phase.17 The absence of burner is an important feature, which causes difficulties. There is premixing of hydrocarbons and oxygen upstream from the catalyst bed, and it is not possible to preheat this feed to the same level as in an ATR due to the highly flam40

I APRIL 2010 HYDROCARBON PROCESSING

mable mixture. The auto-ignition temperature of this mixture will typically be about 250°C, depending on the feed-gas composition.

For safety reasons, the feed-gas temperature is kept low. This increases natural gas and oxygen consumption. In comparison with the ATR process, oxygen consumption could be increased by 15%–20% and natural gas consumption by 7%–9%. This is a severe drawback in the potential of CPO.18 Finally, as with ATR, the CPO process involves an oxygen feed.

Considering that the ASU investment is a large fraction of the GTL complex cost, and considering inherent safety constraints linked to the explosibility condition of the feed, it is not likely that the CPO process appears as an economical option.

Ceramic membrane reforming. Ceramic membrane

reforming (CMR) is based on the use of perovskite membranes, which allow ionic transport of oxygen from air to the reactive medium with a lower oxygen partial pressure.19 These ionic transport membranes (ITMs) are 100% selective for oxygen; the ASU and large air compressors are avoided. Air is introduced at one side of the membrane through which oxygen in the form of O2- ions is transported to the other side, where it reacts with hydrocarbons to produce syngas. The advantage of this concept is to cancel the capital-intensive ASU unit, which accounts for 40% off the capital investment for an ATR syngas production.

To obtain acceptable oxygen permeation rates, the ITM reactor will have to operate at temperatures greater than 700°C. This involves risks of carbon deposit on the membrane if C2+ hydrocarbons are present in the feed gas. The main problems are mechanical design and stability of the membranes. The development of a practical ITM is a severe challenge. The membrane should withstand syngas, which is a reducing agent, on one side and air on the other side. Present membranes are insufficiently strong and stable. A less ambitious option could be considered: using ITM technology for air separation could save more than 20% of a cryogenic ASU investment.

Although the CMR process appears promising, there is also a problem of scale-up for large-scale plants. The membrane area scales proportionally with capacity, as opposed to an ASU, in which an economy of scale exists. Thus, CMR is very promising in theory because oxygen is replaced by air. However, it is too early to evaluate if and when membrane technology will find a largescale application in syngas production, and to predict when this technology may be available for large-scale GTL plants.

Tentative economic aspects. From the economic angle, we have to consider on one hand the ease of upscaling, and conversely, the integration of the syngas production unit in the FT complex.

Concerning the first point, end products from the GTL plant are mainly high-quality fuels and feedstocks , which nevertheless must compete against crude-oil based products. Therefore, the largest possible plant should be erected, which means that large capacity syngas units are targeted to fulfill this requirement. Among the proven technologies (ATR, SMR and POX,) SMR presents the lowest economy of scale, while ATR and POX present the typical scale factor of 0.7. ATR is recognized as the best choice for natural gas.20 This also led the supplier of ASU technologies to increase the maximum size of their units (3,500 tpd of oxygen to 5,000 tpd) and perhaps 7,000-tpd unit in the near future.

As for the technologies under development, both improved ATR and GHR should have a favorable scale factor. The compact

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS steam reformer gets the main advantage from being modular and having a high scale factor. Unproven technologies are too far from validation at representative scale, and extrapolation is not possible yet. Air-based technologies have an unfavorable position for large scaleups.

Concerning the second point, economic optimization of syngas production in a GTL context must not be considered from a stand-alone perspective. As syngas production is part of the FT complex, its optimization is not separable from the whole integrated FT plant.

An optimum design must take into account all material and heat integrations. In particular, CO2 and light hydrocarbons recycling from FT tail gas to the syngas production unit feed is mandatory to comply with a good carbon yield.21 FT water could be also recycled as process steam in SMR or ATR units.

The energy integration of the ASU, if any, with syngas production processes that are energy exporters, is obviously important, and we must keep in mind that an FT plant remains always a global energy producer. So, the choice in the management of this energy export is a parameter that matters. Therefore, it must be stressed that this optimization work is complex and does not fit with the only local optimum of the syngas production unit.

Numerous economic evaluations of FT plants have been done by technology licensors. As this is in the context of promoting FT as an alternate solution to produce synfuels, these evaluations are probably too optimistic. However, we can mention an evaluation based on production similar to FT: methanol production (2,500 tpd of methanol). An economic evaluation of various available synthetic gas production technologies are summarized in Table 4.

SPECIALREPORT

Conclusion. The most attractive technology for syngas production in an FT complex today is the ATR process at a low S/C ratio.

It has been chosen for the latest projects at startup or realization stages (Oryx Qatar and Escravos Nigeria). The alternate technology, chosen by Shell in the well-proven industrial plant in Bintulu (Malaysia) or the Pearl project (Qatar), is the combination of noncatalytic POX and conventional SMR. This option, which offers a maximum flexibility with well-known processes, is certainly a more expensive solution than the ATR process.

ATR technology holds potential for further improvements, especially concerning lower S/C ratios. It will also be attractive for combinations in various arrangements with gas heated reforming.

These technologies are close to industrial demonstration and will probably be mature in the next decade.

Regarding possible future technologies, CPO does not seem to offer enough advantages to outweigh its drawbacks: the expected large downsizing of the CPO reactor vs. safety concerns is inherent in operating conditions.

Finally, among the new more radical technologies emerging, CMR, shows promising potentialities. However, it is in its early stage of development, and it is not yet possible to predict if and when it will be ready for commercial use. However, essential issues still remain to be resolved, and CMR is not considered as a serious competitor to the most recent versions of an ATR or the combined reforming concepts of an ATR + GHR within the foreseeable future. HP 1

LITERATURE CITED Rostrup-Nielsen, J. R., â&#x20AC;&#x153;Syngas in perspective,â&#x20AC;? Catalysis Today, Vol. 71, 2002, p. 244.

Select 158 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS

HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 41

SPECIALREPORT

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

2

Schlichting, H. and C. Erdmann, “MPG—Lurgi multi purpose gasification: a novel contribution to modern refinery technology,” Proceedings of the 16th World Petroleum Congress, Calgary, 2000, p. 279.

3 Eilers, J. and R. Schouwenaar, Patent WO 2007/101831A: Process to prepare a Fischer-Tropsch synthesis product Shell International Research Maatschappij BV. 4 Alstrup, I., B. S. Clausen, C. Olsen, R. H. H. Smits and J. R. RostrupNielsen,” Promotion of steam reforming catalysts,” Studies in Surface Science and Catalysis, Vol. 119, 1998, p. 5.

5 Christensen P. S., K. Aasberg-Petersen, M. Ostberg and T. S. Christensen, “Synthesis gas production,” AICHE Conference, Spring National Meeting, New Orleans, April 2004.

6 Souza, M. M. V. M., N. F. P. Ribeiro, O. R. Macedo Neto, I. O Cruz and M. Schmal, “Autothermal reforming of methane over nickel catalysts prepared from hydrotalcite-like compounds,” Studies in Surface Science and Catalysis, Vol. 167, 2007, p. 451.

7 Agee, M. A., “Convert natural gas into clean transportation fuels,” World Transportation Fuel Quality Conference, Washington, 1996.

8 Eastland, P. , D. Hensman and J. Swinney, “Intensive Reforming,” Hydrocarbon Engineering, December 2005, pp. 29–33.

9 Hirotani, K., “Metal dusting. severe problem in operation of syngas generation for GTL plant,” The 5th International Offshore and Polar Engineering Conference, Seoul, Korea, June 19–24, 2005.

10 Christensen, T. S., J. H. B. Hansen, P. S. Christensen, I. I. Primdahl and I. Dybkjaer, “Synthesis gas preparation by auto-thermal reforming for conversion of natural gas to liquid (GTL) products,” Second Annual Conference, Monetizing Stranded Gas Reserves, San Francisco, December 14–16, 1998.

11 Christensen, T. S., P. S. Christensen, I. Dybkjaer, J.-H. Bak Hansen and I. I. Primdahl, “Developments in auto-thermal reforming,” Studies in Surface Science and Catalysis, Vol.119, 1998, p. 883.

12 Bakkerud, P. K., “Update on synthesis gas production for GTL,” Catalysis Today, Vol. 106, 2005, pp. 30–33.

13 Loock, S., W. S. Ernst, S. G. Thomsen and M. F. Jensen, “Improving carbon efficiency in an auto-thermal methane reforming plant with gas heated exchange reforming technology,” World Congress of Chemical Engineering, July 2005, Glasgow.

14

http://www.lurgi.info/website/fileadmin/user_upload/1_PDF/2_ Technologie/englisch/07_Reforming-E.pdf.

15 Eisenberg, B., R. F. Bauman, L. L. Anselli and R. A. Fiato, “Advanced gas conversion technology for remote natural gas utilization,” GPA 73rd annual convention, New Orleans, 1994, pp. 126–33.

16 Watanabe, Y., Y. Yamada, S. Akira, K. Ikeda, N. Inoue, F. Noguchi and Y. Suehiro, “Advanced auto-thermal gasification process,” Studies in Surface Science and Catalysis, Vol. 167, 2007, p. 439.

17 Basini, L., “Issues in H and synthesis gas technologies for refinery, GTL and 2 small and distributed industrial needs,” Catalysis Today, 2005, pp. 37–38.

18 Culligan, M., “Commercialization of ConocoPhillips GTL technology,” IBC GTL 2003, London.

19 Shen, J., V. Venkataraman and D. Gray, “Applications of ceramic-membrane technology Fundamentals of Gas to Liquids,” Petroleum Economist, January 2003, pp. 24–26.

20 Dry, M. E. and A. P. Steynberg, “Commercial FT process applications,” Studies in Surface Science and Catalysis, Vol. 152, 1998, pp. 441–447.

21 Christensen, T. S. and I. I. Primdahl, “Improve syngas production using autothermal reforming,” Hydrocarbon Processing, March 1994, pp. 39–46.

22 Bakkerud, K., J. N. Gol, K Aasberg-Petresen and I. Dybkjaer, “Preferred synthesis gas production routes for GTL,” Studies in Surface Science and Catalysis, Vol. 147, p. 15.

23 Johnson Matthey Catalysts, World GTL Summit, London, April 2007.

24 Keshav, T. R. and S. Basu, Fuel Processing Technology, 2007, pp. 494.

Reynald Bonneau is a senior process engineer with IFP. He has over 30 years of process experience, with 20 years in the process department of Technip Engineering France, primarily in refining and polymer processes. At present, he is working in the process design department of IFP France. His main focus is directed to Fischer-Tropsch and CCS (CO2 capture and storage) processes. He is a graduate of the industrial chemistry department of INSA (Institut National des Sciences Appliquées) in Lyon, of IPSOI (Institut de Pétrochimie et de Synthèse Organique Industrielle, presently a department of the Ecole Centrale de Marseille) and obtained a Master of applied chemistry at Aix-Marseille III University.

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PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

SPECIALREPORT

Plastics enable better automobile designs High-quality advanced engineered polymers and new molding methods provide advantages in modern vehicle construction and manufacturing processes S. BAUER, KraussMaffei Technologies GmbH, Munich, Germany

A

utomotive manufacturers are increasing the usage of high-precision, high-quality plastics. In many applications, high-precision, high-quality plastics are well-suited in the construction of advanced automobiles. Advanced high-quality plastics can be successfully integrated into exterior, interior and under-the-hood parts.

Numerous possibilities are available via existing technologies based on viable injection molding and reaction molding processes.

There are a number of approaches that can be taken to achieve the overall product quality as well as the desired material properties. High-precision plastics can be used to improve product quality as shown through several presented examples in this article.

Innovation in manufacturing. The use of plastic components in the automotive market provides enhancements that could not be achieved via the use of other materials, including increased safety, reduced weight, energy savings, environmentally friendly materials and processes, expanded design freedom and simplification of the assembly/maintenance process. Modern plastic offers a variety of possibilities for efficient and economical component solutions. They have become a standard in todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s automotive market and cannot be substituted by other alternatives. Future vehicle development is significantly affected by the light-weight design; it is a pre-condition to the shift toward greater energy efficiencyâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;a must against the new mandates for energyefficient and corporate automobile fuel economy (CAFE) standards.

The main objective of current automobile manufacturer is lowering carbon dioxide (CO 2) emissions and reducing

consumption of fossil fuels. Light-weight construction of body parts is closer to the center of interest and is moving the automotive industry closer to its goal.

With the goal of reducing car weight, plastics are eliminating metal parts from unit designs. Modern plastic component parts are offering the same mechanical stability, compared to metal, while affording considerably greater design freedom, with the added advantage of being able to manufacture even more complex geometries. Thus, emerging complex composite parts are already prepared to reach future safety requirements. Plastic-oriented design could also integrate further functionalities such as optimum sealing properties or increased mechanical stability. The design freedom also enables easy and, therefore, cost-efficient individualization for different car models.

Within the plastics industry, a comprehensive method of resolution can provide an essential benefit for production. To recognize synergies at an early stage, comprehensively use them and quickly transfer visions into products, the technology partner needs to be able to handle the complete process chain.

Light-weight design advantages.

With similar mechanical characteristics, plastic partsâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;such as fenders, side covers and bumpersâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;can provide up to 50% weight savings in comparison to the same parts made from metal (Fig. 1). Besides the increased design freedom, the customer also receives the benefits of eliminated corrosion risk and the absorption capability in the event of a collision.

More functionality, less weight. The integration of functionalities within plastic components is more than ever requested.

Value-added chain for plastics and rubber processing Raw materials

Compounds/ blends

4FNJ mOJTIFE products

.aterials/ t 1PMZPMFmOT t 'JMMFE BOE products t &OHJOFFSJOH reinforced compounds thermoplastics t 51&T1 t 1PMZVSFUIBOF t 3VCCFS t 1PMZNFS CMFOET t /BOPDPNQPVOET t #JPQPMZNFST t /BUVSBM mCFS compounds .achine UFDIOPMPHZ

t 1FMMFUT t 'JMNT t 4IFFUT t 1SPmMFT t 1JQFT t 'PBN products

'JOJTIFE parts

End products

t *OKFDUJPO NPMEFE QBSUT F H o 1BSUT GPS DPNQMFY products o 1SFGPSNT â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Optical data carriers

t "VUPNPUJWF t $POTVNFS t &MFDUSJDBM electronics t .FEJDBM t 1BDLBHJOH t $POTUSVDUJPO t $IFNJDBMT plastics

&YUSVTJPO NBDIJOFSZ *OKFDUJPO NPMEJOH NBDIJOFSZ Reaction process

1

5IFSNPQMBTUJD FMBTUPNFST

FIG. 1

3FBDUJPO QSPDFTT NBDIJOFSZ )BOEMJOH BVUPNBUJPO

Value-added chain for plastics and rubber processing.

HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 43

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PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS TABLE 1. Exterior parts—molding materials and methods Product Fender for VW Touareg

Material 100% Polyurethane

Fender for Audi A6 Front-end assembling unit Golf V Engine hood Same Deutz

Polypropylene, EPDM*/talcum Polypropylene, 30% glass fiber D-LFT-IM 100% Polyurethane

*Ethylene,

Technology Reinforced reaction injection molding (RRIM) Polypropylene injection molding Injection molding compounding (IMC) LFI PUR In-mold painting

propylene diene monomer

Dependent upon the usage, the specification decision of the application is mainly if it is a horizontal or vertical part within the automobile. According to this, the integration possibility will be evaluated considering the potential weight reduction and safety aspects for the individual processes. According to the specification and production volume, the whole range of injection molding to reaction technologies, from standard injection molding to longfiber technology (LFI), reinforced reaction injection molding (RRIM) or resin transfer molding (RTM) may be necessary for an independent process evaluation.

Compounding vs. injection technologies to generate flexible materials. With the development of newly applied plastics that have defined properties, compounding technology plays a central role and realizes essential cost benefits for the automotive industry. With the help of customized compounded granulates, and depending on the component requirements—for example, fiber reinforcement—parts are manufactured, which replace metal completely and, therefore, enable cost savings.

The alliance of the compounding technology with the injection molding technology into an integrated process enables the production of flexible materials directly at the injection molding machine. The usage of injection molding compounder can offer excellent mechanical properties of the plastic along with an enormous economic advantage. Significant material cost savings can be achieved by incorporating compounding, extrusion and injection molding into a one-step process.

Multi-color without lacquer. With large horizontal components of an automobile, such as roof modules and hoods, or with vertical components, such as fenders, plastic fiber-reinforced parts are providing a wide range of solutions. With the flexible distribution of different glass fiber contents within the liquid reactive components such as polyurethane (PUR) parts, a light-weight molded unit with high resistance is possible.

As a vision, Class-A surfaces can be realized by integrating foils or an in-mold paint-

ing process. Both provide a color change from shot-to-shot. Independent painting and the subsequent logistics issues associated with an independent painting line can be eliminated with this solution, which has the added benefit of a resultant sustainable decrease in CO2 emissions from manufacturing of automobile parts (Table 1).

Interior—Comfort and safety.

With the interior, every detail counts. The in-cabin room needs to be functional, cleverly arranged and comfortably appointed.

Therefore, the interior design has specific requirements with regard to comfort and safety; technical requirements play an essential role too. Required are metering and mixing machinery equipment, tooling, mold carriers and complete post-trimming operations. As numerous as the criteria are, so are the possibilities of creating ambitious components from plastics.

Individualization with nearly no limits. Foils are the entrance into surface decoration. Dependent upon the configuration and specification, multi-layer foils for the interior design can be manufactured with an in-line extrusion process. This process offers a greater variety of finished possibilities in the design of instrument panels than by traditional processes.

The instrument panel gives significant distinction to the interior space. Modern instrument panel (IP) designs with complex geometrics are mostly decorated with PUR. Excellent surfaces are made with slush, casting or spraying for luxurious-appearing plastic skins. This adds importance for a premium ambiance within the interior room. The skin and carrier foaming technology is used to attain an additional soft-touch effect. A new process combines the advantages of injection molding and reaction technology. The benefit from such a manufacturing application is that complex thermoplastic components can be produced in a one-shot process with resultant new functionalities.

Wood, metal and leather—Best of all from plastics. The premium ambiance of Select 160 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS

SPECIALREPORT

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

the interior cabin is often supported by the use of real wood cover sheets. They are finished with clear coat molding (CCM) in a single production step. This creates a three-dimensional depth effect that

emphasizes the wood grain and, moreover, prevents the surface from scratching.

Further decor elements can be optically upgraded and with a surface texture by using decor and metal foils. An exquisite

TABLE 2. Interior parts—molding materials and methods Product Instrument panel and steering wheel BMW

Material 100% Polyurethane (surface, dash board carrier, back foaming, steering wheel) PC1/ABS2 + PUR

Test door panel for Skoda Roomster Center console Audi A6 100% Polyurethane (surface) Front seat BMW 100% Polyurethane PC polycarbonate ABS—acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (rubber)

Technology LFI PUR, back-foaming, CCM

Combine injection molding and reaction technology CCM Dual hardness

TABLE 3. Transparent parts—manufacturing options Product Side window Seat Ibiza Sun roof Smart Fourfour

Material PMMA1 Polycarbonate (PC)

Rear reflector VW Passat

PMMA, PMMA colored

Light body Audi A3

BMC

1

Technology Clean room technology, RRIM Multi-component injection molding with swivel platen technology and compression molding, window encapsulation Compression molding, multi-component IMM

HIGH ACCURACY FLOW METERS

FOR HIGH TEMPERATURES AND HIGH PRESSURES www.flexim.com usinfo@flexim.com FLEXIM AMERICAS Corporation Phone: (631) 492-2300 Toll Free: 1-888-852-7473

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Design freedom with high safety.

Parts for the interior are liable to various requirements like design, functionality at co-existent economical production and minimal emissions. But a central topic is still the aspect of passive and active safety.

This is not only for the decor and directly visible elements, but also primarily for support components.

Especially for these parts, which require structural elements as well as reinforcements, different fiber-reinforced materials are used. So, for example, plastics reinforced by natural fibers are compounded that do not require an energy-intensive drying of the raw material. Products made from this material can provide many advantages.

They are considerably lighter; the breaks occurring from a collision have less sharp edges in comparison to glass-reinforced materials; and they consume up to 60% less energy during the manufacturing process (Table 2).

Transparent parts—Esthetics and functionality. Transparent plastics allow

Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA)

– non-intrusive ultrasonic clamp-on technology – for temperatures up to 750 °F – independent of process pressure – multi-beam for high accuracy – wide turn down – installation without process shut down – no maintenance – no pressure loss – standard volume calculation

ambiance is generated with a combination of these processes—one with the look and feel of leather, wood or steel.

the substitution of glass—and that provides a higher design freedom in relation to the part geometries. Therefore, various modern designs can be realized for car components, such as illumination lamps and integration of supports or fixation points without any functionality compromises.

Plastics also as glass. Originally, glass was the only transparent material that was used in the automotive industry. However, plastic foils are making glass components safer. Accordingly, plastics entered this area with all its advantages already.

Face of the car. Light-emitting diode (LED) illuminations are a strong design element of the typical car style. The integration of new functionalities—such as swivel head lights, and Xenon or LED lights—is additionally defining the development of reflectors. Those applications have high-surface quality demands. Furthermore, criteria such as temperature resistance, impact strength, flow capability, de-molding characteristics, emissions and thermal expansion must be considered. Through a controlled mixing of thermoplastics with twin-screw extruders, so-called blending materials are generated that are able to meet a variety of requirements from the processing to the later usage properties.

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS Design and integration of functionality for windows. Roof modules made of polycarbonate in sizes up to 1.5 m² that provide a weight reduction of up to 9 kg in comparison to glass have already been realized. This requires a smooth material melting concept as well as a high-precision de-molding process, located in a cleanroom environment.

To make large, stress-relieved parts, a new stamping process has been based on experiences gained from the production of optical media such as CDs, and this know-how has been tranferred to large machine concepts.

Multi-injection processes open up vast number of injection molding options: molding movable parts, sandwiched or layered parts; and in-mold assembly or composite injection molding. Basically, the process involves linking two or more polymers to form a multi-functional or multi-color part in a single injection molding operation. This injection molding method makes it possible to achieve attractive or functional color combinations and enhanced material properties.

Many different molding technologies can be used, including splitting slides, indexing plates, transfer and turntable molds.

By linking the multi-component or multi-injection technology, functional elements such as rip walls, handles and fixings, or guidance elements can also be integrated into the design. Therefore, component variation, assembly effort and logistics issues are greatly reduced. Coatings, like an ultra-violet (UV) blocker, can be incorporated directly into the compounding process of the raw material, or special foils can be used.

High-tech foils for numerous functions and applications. Highly elastic foils have already saved many people from severe injuries due to breaking glass. Special foil with good adhesion properties to glass and polycarbonate has already served as a functional, elastic interlayer within the safety glass. It minimizes the glass shattering that can occur under the impact of a collision. This foil must fulfill demanding requirements in relation to flexibility and tearing, as well as transparency and light resistance (Table 3).

hood and under-body construction materials. The high temperatures for under the hood applications are continuously increasing the requirements of thermal and mechanical capacities of engineered plastics. More frequently, components of glass-reinforced plastics are used to fulfill these severe demands in the engine compartment. Extremely high requirements exist, including high stiffness, impact

SPECIALREPORT

strength and temperature resistance, as well as high dimensional stability and resistance to corrosion from motor oil, fuel, salt, etc.

In addition, manufacturing of such components must be cost-effective. Modern plastics and rubber technology do make it possible to meet these demands.

Better than metal. Polyamides and thermosets* hold a larger potential from modern processing technologies to substitute metal

TABLE 4. Under the hood—manufacturing options Product

Material

Vibration absorber Optibelt

EPDM mixture with underlay of fabric BMC- Wet polyester

Throttle valve housing Dodge Viper Fan module VW Passat Media supply VW

Technology — —

Polyamide, talcum, polypropylene/EPDM Polyamide 66 GF30, polyamide polyfort FPP FX 2020 E

Multi-component technology Multi-component technology, sandwich process combined with water inject technology

TABLE 5. Rubber extrusion—manufacturing options Product

Material

Technology

Tires

Natural and synthetic rubber fillers such as carbon black, silica and chalk

Multi-plex extrusion lines, role head plants

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0.020

0.040

0.060

0.080

0.100

0.120

0.140

Thermal Conductivity (W/m-K) at 600 °C Mean

C1676 ASTM Standard for Microporous

0.160 Data Per ASTM Testing Standards

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SPECIALREPORT

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

parts in the automotive industry. The process advantages and inexpensive price enable these plastics to be used for higher temperature and chemical resistance, with integrated functions, in the engine compartment.

With precise machine technology, thermosets are used to produce throttle flaps, breaking pistons and other elements that can be a substitute for metal components.

With simple machined post-processing, this approach provides an additional reduction in assembly and manufacturing costs.

Elastic specialties under the hood.

Many high-tech rubber products are doing their job in the automobile, largely invisible but elementally necessary. The requirements for the profiles, hoses or V-belts are constantly increasing because of the loading on the materials in the engine compartment. Also, rubber parts must resist extremely high temperatures and aggressive substances.

More components, more functions.

Multi-injection technology opens up new

Extend your temperature range and get capabilities like never before.

Paratherm GLT,™ HR™ and MG™ heat transfer fluids give you a host of new and unique benefits.

possibilities for the manufacturing of injection molded parts for the engine compartment. Whether in the manufacturing of chemical- or heat-resistant components, the multi-component technology utilizes these high-tech molding concepts. Hard—soft combinations or parts with integrated sealing areas are examples of production cells that apply multi-injection technology.

A new combination of material and process technology that combines three technologies—injection molding, extrusion and reaction processing. This process is designed for applications that currently use metal-rubber composites. Possible applications include covers for housings with integrated seals or engine mountings.

This method can be used in the production of thermoplastic components, which opens up a completely new range of applications for plastics. The process uses a new thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) that cross-links to TPU-X during cooling. Cross-linking takes place in an injection molding compounder where the cross-linking agent is mixed evenly with the TPU melt. The mix is then supplied, via a shot-pot, to the discontinuous injection process (Table 4).

Seals—Water management. Seal-

To prove it, one drum is free with your first order.

If you’ve never tried us out, this is your chance and we will give you one drum free (for any first order of more than one drum of Paratherm GLT, HR or MG).

Contact us by phone or on the web for details on how to order.

The GLT heat transfer fluid is an alkylated-aromatic based fluid for mainly closed-loop, liquid-phase heating systems to 550°F using fired heaters (and to 575° in waste-heat recovery systems).

The Paratherm HR heat transfer fluid is also an alkylated-aromatic based fluid formulated for liquid-phase heating to 650°F in fired heaters and 675°F in waste-heat recovery and full-convection heaters.

Paratherm MG is biodegradable, aliphatic-hydrocarbon based and runs at 550°F in fired heaters and at 580°F

in full-convection heater and electric immersion units.

For these fluids or any other of our nearly dozen fluids or cleaners pick up the phone and call one of our technical specialists. It’s part of our program called Immersion Engineering™ that insures you get the finest products and services for all your heat transfer fluid needs.

HEAT TRANSFER FLUIDS

4 Portland Road West Conshohocken PA 19428 USA

800-222-3611 610-941-4900 • Fax: 610-941-9191 info@paratherm.com

www.paratherm.com

Stocking & Sales Locations: USA • Canada • Mexico • Brazil • Argentina • Guatemala • Netherlands • Belgium • Denmark • United Kingdom • Australia • China • Japan • Thailand Copyright© Paratherm Corporation 2010.

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®

®

ing profiles are playing a main role in the so-called water management for the bodywork: rain water is not only kept away from the interior but is also transferred via precisely defined paths alongside the body. Modern profiles also accomplish, in addition to their main task, the drainage of water from the vehicle: principally, because of complex profile geometries, heavy doors of premium cars close silently by moving smoothly into the locking mode. Special material combinations are reducing the driving noise within the cabin.

Tires with optimal performance.

Tires must have a long life-cycle without losing safety. Properties such as low roll resistance and better adhesion to pavements changed the requirements for materials in tire production. Today, tires consist of up to four different layers for an optimal requirement profile. Tire manufacturers are trying to increase tire durability without losing any essential properties including wet slipping characteristics, aqua-planning behavior, dry adhesion, roll resistance, abrasion resistance, etc. Modern tires consist of various layers, and carbon black is being substituted with silica to reduce the roll resistance and improve wet slipping resistance. But the considerably abrasive

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS silica mix demands high performance from the extrusion lines.

Within the extrusion lines, specially coated screws are used to homogenize the material and to feed different blends to special profile extruding heads for forming. These heads combine two to four tire segments in one step accurately and free from air traps. This provides the possibility to arrange the different layers individually for each profile requirement of the tire. Subsequently, a specially-developed tooling system can form the profiles into a tread stripe with very low dimensional tolerances. The elements of such a system— extrusion line, profile extruding head and tool system—are optimally aligned to one another in a modular format. The result is a production process with minimized scrap and reduced set-up time, providing optimal economics (Table 5).

suppliers must be able to rely on the many years of know-how and experience with their parts and components partners to design and build optimal production solutions for automotive components. Plastics are able to be used in a wide cross-section of applications, illustrating the optimal scope of expertise and range of technologies necessary to prove that comprehensive process expertise provides unique synergistic effects. HP

SPECIALREPORT

ACKNOWLEDGMENT Revised and updated from an earlier presentation at the Polyurethanes 2009 Technical Conference, Fort Washington, Maryland.

Steffen Bauer studied mechanical engineering and economics in Munich, Germany. He has been working for KraussMaffei Technologies for 19 years, starting as a project engineer for injection molding machines. Since 2000, he has been working in the field of reaction technology as an area sales manager.

“See us at OTC Stand N. 4755 Reliant Center”

Automotive testing. Design studies are a perfect tool of the automotive industry to communicate internal trends within engineering and strategic groups at an early stage. To transfer these design studies or their individual elements into real production concepts, an efficient coordination between design, part-component construction, tooling and production is necessary.

Component testing is a central milestone in the development of new components up to the start of production.

Recognizing weak spots early. Car

components must be resistant to many environmental factors: frost in winter, blazing heat in summer, hundreds of thousands of miles on bad and good roads—often at the borderline of their physical capabilities.

Airbags, steering wheels, seating systems and instrument panels are subject to very high safety requirements.

Mechanical and climate component testing enables reliable statements about the durability and operational safeness of highly-stressed and security-relevant components at an early phase. Therefore, design studies are quickly transferred into serial production parts, and production advantages are secured. The earlier a potential weakness in the product design is recognized, the lower the cost, time and effort for the correction of the component design.

Future vehicle designs. A wide range

of machines, lines, systems and processes are available to produce plastic processing solutions that meet the requirements of the automotive market. Producers and Select 164 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS 49

)DEAS FOR GROWTH )DEAS FOR SUSTAINABILITY

!MMONIA &ERTILIZER s 3YNGAS s (YDROGEN s 2ElNING

/RGANIC #HEMICALS s /LElNS s #OAL 'ASIlCATION s #ARBON #APTURE 3TORAGE

KBR Technology specializes in developing and licensing process technologies worldwide. From refining to ammonia, from chemicals to coal gasification, from olefins to syngas, KBR Technology helps you accelerate profitability and sustain growth.

For more information, visit www.kbr.com/technology/HP or email technology@kbr.com © 2010 KBR All Rights Reserved K09062 04/10

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PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

SPECIALREPORT

Improve inerting practices at your facility The petrochemical/chemical industry relies on inerting methods to safeguard facilities and maintain product qualities H.-J. REINHARDT and H.-R. HIMMEN, Linde Gas, Munich, Germany

M

any processes and situations within the hydrocarbon processing industry (HPI) call for: • Preventing explosions • Interdicting undesired reactions • Keeping moisture away from products • Ensuring safety when maintenance is being performed.

These goals cannot always be achieved through technology and equipment design alone; accordingly, inert gases and special equipment are needed. Under these conditions, the key goals include maintaining oxygen (O2) levels and preventing O2 and/ or moisture coming into contact with reactive or adsorptive products. The principal technique for these purposes is inerting (inert-gas blanketing) with nitrogen (N2); less frequently carbon dioxide (CO2); or in exceptional cases argon (Ar). The most common function of the inert gas is to displace air, which contains O2 and often moisture as well, or to keep air away from products. Air displacement can be partial or complete. There are many situations in which inerting is the only way to meet safety standards in processing and maintenance. In other cases, inerting is used to uphold and improve product quality.

Survey of applications. Inline with

the variety of substances, technologies and processing equipment encountered in the HPI, there are many options for inerting with N2, CO2 and Ar. These include: • Reactors, stirred tanks, etc.

• Centrifuges and vacuum filters • Size-reduction and mixing equipment • Storage tanks and vessels • Dryers and bunkers • Charging systems • Oil and fuel pipelines • Industrial services.

Important requirements that favor using inert gases include: • Preventing the formation of explosive atmospheres in processing equipment such as reactors • Safely starting and shutting down entire plants and processing equipment • Suppressing explosion risks in the storage and transport of combustible substances • Safeguarding products against atmospheric oxygen when oxidation reactions would impair quality • Blocking atmospheric moisture, either to maintain product quality or to ensure optimal downstream processing • Avoiding safety and health hazards during maintenance of plant equipment and piping.

Inerting methods. Inerting techniques exist for many tasks: • Purging. An inert gas is admitted to a reactor, vessel or pipeline to displace process gas from the unit (Fig. 1).

• Blanketing. Blanketing is practiced when constant inert conditions must be maintained over a product, for example in a vessel, to prevent explosions, discoloration, polymerization and other undesirable changes in quality. The operation is monitored through the flowrate and pressure of the inert-gas stream and/or the O2 level in the gas exiting the vessel.

• Sparging. Sparging means passing finely dispersed gas through a liquid in the form of bubbles to improve mixing and increase the surface area for gas-liquid mass transfer. The technique finds use in chemical and biological reactions as well as stripping operations. For example, N2 is used to strip out O2 from oil, wastewater and other products.

Figs. 1–4 illustrate several variants of purging that are commonly applied in the HPI: Dilution purging. This process introduces gaseous N2 into an open reactor or vessel to dilute a dangerous or harmful gas, which is then discharged at the exhaust.

The method is used when the height/diameter (H/D) ratio is smaller. The N2 consumption is roughly 3.5 times the capacity of the vessel (Fig. 1).

Displacement purging. In displacement purging, vaporized N2 or gaseous N2 (GAN) is injected into an open reactor or Exhaust LIN

GAN FIG. 1

Displacement purging uses vaporized N2 to displace hydrocarbons and dangerous gases from a reactor or vessel.

Exhaust LIN

GAN FIG. 2

Dilution purging uses gaseous N2 to dilute hydrocarbons or dangerous gases in tanks, reactors, etc., to levels that are safe for maintenance or vessel entry.

HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 51

SPECIALREPORT

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

vessel to displace a dangerous or harmful gas. The method is used primarily where the H/D ratio is large. The quantity of N2 required is commonly of the order of 1.2 times the capacity of the vessel (Fig. 2).

Pressure-swing purging. In pressureswing purging, a closed reactor is pressurized with gaseous N2. The dangerous or harmful gas escapes first when the pressure is released. Four steps (closure, injection, opening and release) are continued until the desired exit concentration is attained.

This process can use overpressure or underpressure methods. Pressure-swing purging is practiced when the inlet and outlet ports are located close together (Fig. 3).

Exhaust GAN FIG. 3

Inerting of pipelines. Two methods are used to expel process gas from a pipeline and inert the system (Fig. 4): 1. The process gas is forced from the pipeline by a plug of inert gas.

2. A “pig” driven by N2 pressure displaces the process gas.

From the safety standpoint, the limiting O2 concentration (LOC) is a key criterion for inerting. For a specific fuel–air–inertgas mixture, this parameter is the highest O2 concentration at which no explosion will occur. The LOC must be determined by experiment. Table 1 lists selected examples with N2 and CO2 as inerting agents.

The LOC values for CO2 can be as much as 25% higher than for N2.

The exhaust from purification and inerting must be treated before discharged into the atmosphere. Treatment is often affected or aided by cryocondensation that utilizes the cold from the N2 for inerting.

The time and the amount of N 2 required for inerting depend not only on the method but also on the degree of

In pressure-swing purging, a closed reactor, tank or vessel is pressurized with gaseous N2 and the gas is released under a cycle to meet desired concentration levels in the reactor.

mixing (e.g., plug flow, ideal mixing and bypass). Other controlling conditions include the properties of the gas, the geometry of the space being inerted, the inlet and outlet port configuration, and flow velocity. An example of a geometrical parameter is the H/D ratio of the vessel and it applies to these rules: • H/D < 1—No plug flow (dilution purging) • H/D > 10—Predominantly plug flow (displacement purging).

As the H/D ratio increases, the flow approaches plug flow and fewer vessel capacity changes are needed. As a consequence, N2 consumption and inerting time drop, as shown in Fig. 5.

If the aim of inerting is to maintain a very low O2 concentration, high-purity N2 must be used. Fig. 6 shows that if the permissible O2 concentration is very low (< 1%), the N2 purity must be over 99%.

Using a higher purity makes it possible to reduce the number of volume replacements needed.

Properties of gases. The gases typically used are N2 and CO2; Ar is also used in some cases. Table 2 lists selected properties of these three gases.

TABLE 1. LOC levels for N2 and CO2 with various hydrocarbons

Inert-gas plug

Hydrocarbon N2 Benzene Pig (e.g. solid or foam pig) FIG. 4

Inerting of pipelines uses N2 to displace hydrocarbons or dangerous gases from the pipeline.

Butadiene Cyclopropane FIG. 7

Special expansion nozzle ensures CO2 is completely vaporized.

100 Max. permissible O2 concentration, vol %

Exit concentration, vol %

80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 0.0

FIG. 5

52

0.5

1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 Number of vessel volumes of purge gas

3.5

Purging cycles for varying H/D rations for a reactor, tank, etc.

I APRIL 2010 HYDROCARBON PROCESSING

9

11.4

11

13.3

10.8

13

Ethylene

6.9

9

Hexane

10

12.4

Purge gas N2 concentration, vol %

0

H/D = 3 H/D = 1 H/D = 1/3

90

LOC, vol% CO2

2 99.995 99.9

4

99.09 98.5

6

98.0

8

10 1.0

FIG. 6

1.5

2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5 4.0 4.5 5.0 Number of vessel volumes of purge gas

5.5

Influence of N2 concentration in purging gas on the number of cycles.

6.0

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

SPECIALREPORT

TABLE 2. Selected properties of gases used for inerting.

Property

N2

CO2

Ar

Detectability by senses

Colorless, odorless

Colorless, odorless

Colorless, odorless

Reactivity

Unreactive because of N ⬅ N

Unreactive because of O=C=O

Chemically inert

Fire hazard

Not combustible

Not combustible; extinguishes combustion

Not combustible

Molar mass

28 g/mol

44 g/mol

39.948 g/mol

Max. allowable workplace concentration

—

5,000 ppm

—

Density at 1 bar, 0°C

1.25 kg/m³; relative density in gas form (air) 0.97

1.977 kg/m³, relative density in gas form (air) 1.52

Relative density in gas form (air = 1): 1.380

Boiling point at 1 bar

–195.8°C

—

–185.86°C

Melting point at 1 bar

–209.86°C

–56.6°C (triple point)

–189°C

Sublimation point at 1 bar

Not applicable

–78.5°C

Not applicable

Critical point

–146.95°C (33.94 bar, 314 kg/m³)

–31.21°C (73.83 bar, 466 kg/m³)

–122.4°C

Solubility in liquids

In water: 20 mg/l

In water: 2,000 mg/l

In water: 61 mg/l

Health relevance

Suffocating at higher concentrations.

Hazardous to health at higher concentrations; lethal at > 8 vol%

Suffocating at high concentrations

Delivery forms

– Compressed, up to 300 bar – Cryogenically liquefied, down to –196°C

– Liquefied under pressure, around 55 bar, ambient temperature – Cryogenically liquefied, 20 bar, –20°C – Solid (dry ice), –78.5°C

– Compressed, up to 300 bar – Cryogenically liquified to –183°C

The properties of CO2 permit its use not only for inerting but also for extinguishing fires in waste pits and bunkers containing biomaterials. As shown in Fig. 7, a special expansion nozzle ensures that the CO2 is completely vaporized while remaining as cold as possible. In particular, this nozzle prevents the formation of CO 2 pellets.

The gas exits the nozzle at a low velocity so that a stable layer can form above the bulk material.

Equipment for inerting. In line with the needs of the HPI, special equipment has been designed, built and successfully applied for inerting: Measurement and metering stations for varying flowrates. Fig. 8 is a measuring and metering station for inerting mixers or reactors.

Inert-gas locks. In fine and specialty chemical manufacturing, some process stages—such as reactions in stirred tanks— involve not only liquids and gases but also solids. Inert-gas locks have been developed to ensure safe handling of solids and to suppress side reactions such as oxidation due to the admission of O2 when solids are charged into reactors and vessels. These devices also combat emissions and provide protection against moisture. Among their advantages are: • Admission of very little O2 when the vessel is opened and charged • Low N2 consumption

TABLE 3. O2 levels and potential dangerous conditions for employees and equipment Oxygen level in reactors, tanks, etc., vol%

Effects on human beings

Effects on inflammability of materials

8

Danger of death

Not combustible

10

Impaired judgment and pain sensitivity

Not combustible

12

Fatigue, increased respiratory volume, elevated pulse

Hardly inflammable

15

None

Hardly inflammable

21

None

None

• Ease of installation in the charging ports of existing vessels • Simplicity of routine operation • Low investment and operating cost • Design versatility allowing adaptation to specific applications.

Nozzles for injecting liquid N2 into a gas stream. With special nozzles, liquid nitrogen can be distributed in piping— over a wide range of flowrates—in such a way that the mixing zone is short and virtually no liquid N2 reaches the pipe wall or downstream equipment. The danger of embrittling the material of the pipeline or apparatus is greatly reduced as a consequence. The nozzle is used for injecting N2 into a stream of gas flowing in a pipeline to a reactor or other equipment.

Software for inerting. A wide variety of processing experience has been embodied into software programs for calculating explosion limits, N2 quantity required and

FIG. 8

Example of a metering station for inerting reactors.

also the inerting time. Software packages that have been applied with success to many inerting tasks include: • Safety system. For example, this software is a computer program for calculating and plotting explosion limits at standard pressure, as shown in Fig. 9.

It is applicable to gas mixtures of up to HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 53

SPECIALREPORT

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

Safety system–safety triangle (screenshot) At 25°C and 1.0 Bar (a) for mixture (fuel) (L) Lower flammability limit 3.3 vol% fuel (U) Upper flammability limit 14.8 vol% fuel (S) Min O2 for flammability 9.2 vol% O2 (3.7 vol% fuel) (C) Startup = Max 9.5 vol% O2 (B) Shutdown = Max 6.5 vol% fuel O2 concentration, vol%

20

Reactors

Bleed Inert gas: Nitrogen Fuel mixture vol% Methane 75 Propane 15 Isobutane 10

L U

15

Recycle compressor

10 C

S

LIN pumper

5 B

0 2

0

4

6

8 10 12 14 16 Fuel concentration, vol% (A safety factor is not included in the diagram)

18

LIN

20

Copyright Linde AG

FIG. 9

Graph of estimated flammability limits for inerting example.

Liquid N2 is used for inerting and cooling fixed-bed reactors.

FIG. 12

Plant process control system LIN

Tank

Evaporator

Measurement and control unit

On-site plant

Air access during opening Inert gas lock (Integrated in charging port)

Pig Pipeline

Illustration of how N2 can be supplied to a reactor mixer for solids charging.

FIG. 13

Gaseous N2 is used to move pigs through pipelines and prepare the pipeline for maintenance.

• Process application management.

This software system calculates, among other parameters, the quantity of N 2 required and the purging time. It also permits comparisons between other processing methods.

FIG. 11

Ethylene crackers use N2 as part of the inerting system for shutdowns and cooling.

99 components and to a range of temperatures as well as many inert gases. It uses the Design Institute for Physical Property Data (DIPPR) as the reference database for compounds and their specific qualities.

54

I APRIL 2010 HYDROCARBON PROCESSING

Tank farm

GAN

Central supply pipeline

FIG. 10

Refinery

LIN

O2 analysis

Safety in inerting. Safety is paramount for inerting. Accordingly, several identified hazards must be addressed when N2 is to be used: • Suffocation. When it is necessary for personnel to work in a partly inerted environment, for example during cleaning, the O2 level must be kept at a minimum of 15%. Table 3 lists key details regarding O2 levels for vessel entry situations.

• Contact with cryogenic liquid N 2 leads to cold burns and freezing.

• When low temperatures involved, liquid nitrogen (LIN) can diminish the ulti-

mate elongation and toughness of some materials so that they become embrittled and may fracture. Suitable materials include stainless steel, copper and aluminum.

Applications. Here are several key examples that apply inerting situations.

N2 supplied to a reactor for startup, shutdown and solids charging. As shown in Fig. 10, N2 can be supplied to a reactor or mixer. There are three options for N2 delivery. The system includes an instrumentation and control unit, an O2 analyzer for monitoring gas levels in the head space of the reactor and an inert-gas lock for charging.

Fig. 10 is an example drawn of a synthetic fiber manufacturing unit for polyamide.

Unfortunately, polyamide melts suffer marked oxidation by O2 and are accordingly handled under a protective N2 blanket.

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SPECIALREPORT

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

Industrial services. The preparation and execution of many shutdowns in the HPI industry call for large amounts of N2 to be used in a variety of steps. N2 is used to inert the system during shutdown and cooling, in pressure testing, in drying (of the catalyst in particular) and in preheating under inert conditions preparatory to startup. For example during the shutdown of an ethylene cracker N2 is used for inerting and under these conditions (Fig. 11): • Nitrogen consumption: 1,000-12,000 Nm³/h • Pressure: 9 bar, 40 bar • Temperature: ambient, +200°C. Fixed-bed reactor. Inerting and accelerated cooling of a fixed-bed reactor with liquid N2 leads to: • Inerting of the catalyst • Shorter cooling time • Cost savings because the piping does not have to be reconfigured (Fig. 12).

Pigging and other pipeline maintenance operations are often carried out under N2 inerting. N2 pressure pushes a pig through a pipeline or piping system.

Advantages of using N2 to move the pig include (Fig. 13): • Inerting

56

I APRIL 2010 HYDROCARBON PROCESSING

• Anti-corrosion action of dry gas • Wide range of volume flowrates, pressures and temperatures.

Exhaust gases from inerting and cleaning operations are often contaminated with hydrocarbons that can be removed by cryocondensation. This choice is especially advantageous because the cold of the inerting N2 is utilized. Cryocondensation is practiced above all for recovering chlorinated hydrocarbons from the inert gas.

Inert-gas production and supply. Several air-separation techniques are used to produce N2: • Cryogenic air separation has flow rates of e.g. 100 to 7,000 m³/h with low (< ppm O2) levels • Adsorptive air separation has flowrates of 10-5,000 m³/h with 98%– 99.99% N2 purity • Membrane methods have flowrates of 10–1,000 m³/h with 90% –99.5% N2 purity.

N2 is supplied as in cylinders or cylinder bundles; under various purities; or as blends with other gases, e.g., synthetic air (20% O2, 80% N2). Liquid N2 can also be supplied via tank trucks (3,000 l to 80,000 l), with a purity commonly 99.995 vol% N2.

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Also, N2 can be delivered in mobile tank with an evaporator. Nitrogen gas (GAN) can be transported via pipelines or from on-site systems. HP Hans-Jürgen Reinhardt received his doctorate in the field of chemical process engineering for the thesis “Research to the suspension polymerization of styrene,” at the Technical University Leuna- Merseburg in 1970. During his long-standing career in the chemical industry, he was active as project manager, head of department process engineering, and manager of an engineering office before moving to to the Gas Division of Linde AG in 1996. In the Linde Gas Division, he was department head responsible for the development and introduction of processes and hardware for the application gases in refineries and in the chemical industry. Dr. Reinhardt’s main interests are applications using nitrogen and oxygen processes.

Hans-R. Himmen is a senior project manager at Linde AG, Unterschleissheim, Germany. He studied process engineering at the Technical University of Braunschweig and joined the Linde Group in 1987. Mr. Himmen is involved in the development, introduction and improvement of gas applications for the chemical process industries and for industrial services. His most important fields of work include liquid and gaseous nitrogen applications.

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

SPECIALREPORT

Upgrade low-value refinery streams into higher-value petrochemicals New catalytic olefin cracking process yields more propylene over ethylene from stranded refining materials M. J. TALLMAN, KBR Technology, Houston, Texas

M

any refiners must cope with stranded streams such as coker naphtha and fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) C4s and C5s, which have little value as fuel-blending stock or recycle material. This problem will be aggravated as more cokers come onstream to convert additional resid material and as FCC units increase severity. It is possible, however, to upgrade such olefin-containing streams to high-value petrochemicals using a catalytic olefins process—a commercialized FCC process that can convert olefin-containing C4–C8 streams predominantly to propylene, with large quantities of ethylene and aromatics also produced. These petrochemical products have much higher values than current uses of these streams.

Steam crackers produce approximately 60% of the world’s propylene, as a byproduct of ethylene production. The ethylene market is expected to grow at a slower pace than that of propylene; in addition, many new steam crackers are being built to use ethane as a feedstock (which does not produce any significant amounts of propylene). Due to both trends, propylene supply from ethylene expansion is not expected to meet demand.

Similarly, FCC operations are driven by fuel demands, and new FCC units will not fill growing propylene demand either, although some refiners will consider higher severity operations to increase production and fill a portion of this need. Therefore, new sources of propylene will be necessary to meet the expected future demand, and refiners will have an ongoing incentive to expand propylene production via conversion of low-value, olefin-rich streams.

Upgrading low-value refinery streams. Tighter integration between

refining and petrochemical production produces new opportunities for the refinery material balance. Stranded olefin-con-

taining streams that often have little value for blending or as fuels are ideal for selective cracking into higher-value light olefin products by a new commercially available FCC process. This method converts olefincontaining C4–C8 streams predominantly to propylene, with large quantities of ethylene and aromatics also produced. Unlike other “propylene-on-purpose” processes, this process integrates well into a refining environment, and uses a reactor technology that is familiar to refiners.

Many refiners must cope with stranded (orphan) streams such as coker naphtha and FCC C4s and C5s that have little value as fuel-blending stock or recycle material.

This problem will be aggravated as more coking units come onstream to convert additional resid material from heavier crudes and as FCC increases in severity.

These orphan, olefin-containing streams can be upgraded to high-value petrochemicals (propylene and ethylene).

To conserve feed costs, many refiners are gravitating to processing heavier crudes.

This is expected to result in added coker capacity to handle the increased amount of heavy residues. However, the naphtha byproduct from the coker has low octane and high olefins as well as high levels of unstable diolefins that make it unsuitable for blending into the gasoline pool.

The high olefin, diolefin and nitrogen contents require more processing steps, high severity and high hydrogen consumption in hydrotreating that must be done for further utilization of the coker naphtha.

The ability of the catalytic olefins technology to handle this coker naphtha directly while yielding high amounts of olefins is a tremendous advantage over conventional utilization of this naphtha.

There are also situations where the potential motor gasoline supply may exceed demand, and refiners would rather produce petrochemicals such as propylene, benzene, toluene and xylene (BTX) rather than motor gasoline from their FCC units.

In these cases, refiners can also process light FCC naphtha via a catalytic olefins process Reactor effluent to recovery

To flue gas system

Catalyst fines

CW Steam

Fuel oil

BFW

Oil-wash tower

Reactor/ regenerator Catalyst storage and handling

Recycle

Fresh feed Regeneration air

FIG. 1

Flow diagram of the catalytic olefins cracking process.

HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 57

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H[]_ij[h jeZWo Wj dfhW$eh]%hcY eh YWbb ki Wj (&($*+-$&*.& \eh ceh[ _d\ehcWj_ed$

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JeZWoÊi h[Ód_d] WdZ f[jheY^[c_YWb Xki_d[ii[i$

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45 40 Ultimate yield, wt%

35 30

FCC C4 TAME C5s FCC LCN Coker LN

25 20 15 10 5 0

FIG. 2

Fuel gas

Ethylene

Propylene

Propane

Gasoline

Pilot-plant test result for the catalytic olefins cracking process using various orphan refinery product streams.

to produce more of the desired propylene as well as a remnant of naphtha with superior octane and high BTX content.

Catalytic olefins technology. This

method is a catalytic cracking process that produces propylene from C4â&#x20AC;&#x201C;C8 olefinic feeds.1 Feeds for a catalytic olefins cracking process can be sourced from nearly any cracking and steam cracking processes or from various refinery cracking processes.

Such streams include, for example, C 4 byproducts (hydrogenated or non-hydrogenated C4s, raffinate-1 or raffinate-2, FCC C4s, etc.), recovered C5s, light FCC and coker naphthas and tertiary amyl methyl ether (TAME) feeds or raffinates from refineries. As with other FCC technologies, in this process, the disengager is stacked above the regenerator rather than side-byside. This configuration is less costly and requires less plot space (Fig. 1).

No feed pretreatment is required due to the robust catalyst system applied. Accessory systems for the reactor are standard FCC systems and include catalyst storage, air supply, flue gas handling and heat recovery.

Commercialization. The first commercial unit was started up for Sasol in South Africa in 2006. This unit converts a highly olefinic C6/C7 stream to propylene and ethylene, with a propylene capacity of approximately 250,000 tpy (250 Mtpy).

The feed also contains a high concentration of oxygenates, but is processed directly in the unit converter with no pretreatment.

The recovery section is designed to also process various olefins-rich streams from the complex, with final polymer-grade production rates of approximately 500 Mtpy of propylene and 200 Mtpy of ethylene.

JiHua is the second licensee, located in Jilin City, China. The capacity of that unit will be 200 Mtpy of propylene from C4 and C5

feeds. Basic engineering for this facility has been completed.

Pilot-plant test results for typical refinery streams. Fig. 2 summarizes the pilot-plant test results using various refinery product streams. Typical ultimate yields are given on a recycle-to-extinction basisâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;i.e., including recycle to extinction of the C4 and C5 products from the reactor (Fig. 1).

Low-valued olefinic refinery streams, such as FCC C4s/C5s and light FCC and coker naphthas, can be upgraded to highvalue propylene, ethylene and aromatics by the catalytic olefin cracking process.

Hydrotreating for diene and/or nitrogen removal is not required, which is an important advantage. The reactor uses the same state-of-the-art FCC technology that has been proven in many operating FCC installations. The FCC operation is familiar to refiners, and, thus, the catalytic olefin cracking process is an on-purpose propylene technology that will have a very short learning curve for refinery operators. The yield data for this process (Fig. 2) shows that lowvalue olefinic refinery streams can be economically upgraded to 52 wt% to 60 wt% propylene plus ethylene, with some optimization and control of actual yields and product ratios allowable through adjustment of process conditions. HP NOTES catalytic olefins cracking process was originally developed by LyondellBasell (formerly ARCO Chemical Co.), which owns the process patents. In 1998, KBR signed an agreement with LyondellBasell, obtaining exclusive worldwide licensing rights to the technology.

1 The

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Leading Technology for Innovative Solutions Pressure Vessels and Heat Exchangers Reciprocating and Centrifugal Compressors Membrane Technology e.g.

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BORSIG GROUP Michael J. Tallman is manager, catalytic olefins technology, for KBR. His duties include developing, marketing and licensing KBR proprietary catalytic technologies for olefins (including ACO and SUPERFLEX). Mr. Tallman has 29 years of experience in the engineering and construction industry. Mr. Tallman holds a BS degree in chemical engineering from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, and holds four US patents. He is a registered professional engineer in the state of Texas.

Egellsstrasse 21 D-13507 Berlin/Germany Phone: +49 (30) 4301-01 Fax: +49 (30) 4301-2236 E-mail: info@borsig.de www.borsig.de Member of KNM Group Berhad

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PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

SPECIALREPORT

Update: Spent caustic treatment Better operating practices and prevention methods reduce problems in handling ‘red oil’ C. MAUGANS, and M. HOWDESHELL, Siemens Water Technologies, Rothschild, Wisconsin; and S. DE HAAN, Lummus Technology, Bloomfield, New Jersey

C

austic towers at ethylene plants remove acid gases, hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and carbon dioxide (CO2) from ethylene gas. The spent caustic from these towers contains mercaptans and sulfides, which are reactive and odorous.

Accordingly, the spent caustic requires special handling and treatment before being discharged to a conventional wastewater treatment plant.

Often, the spent caustic is most commonly treated in an oxidation reactor. Also known as wet air oxidation (WAO), this process converts the sulfides into oxidation products such as sulfate ions. Other components and contaminants present in the spent caustic can affect the WAO systems. Field observations conducted at multiple ethylene facilities over the years have helped this industry to identify typical contaminants, discover how they form and affect system operation, and provide mitigation strategies to eliminate negative effects.

Spent caustic composition and treatment. Table

1 summarizes the composition of typical ethylene plant spent caustic. Sulfides are highly odorous, even at the ppb level. A typical spent caustic stream also has a high chemical oxygen demand (COD), usually in the tens of thousands mg O2/l. Also, the spent caustic is highly alkaline, with a pH near 14. In addition to the composition shown in Table 1, there is sometimes entrained polymer which, at times, can be at very high concentrations.

Ethylene plant operations staff often refers to this polymer oil as “red oil.” When present, red oil can greatly increase the total organic carbon (TOC) and, thus, the COD of the spent caustic.

This can create operational issues with the spent caustic treatment system, i.e., the WAO system.

WAO: Purpose and design. The WAO system treats the spent caustic by oxidizing the sulfides and mercaptans and most

of the COD. Effluent is typically sent to a conventional biological treatment plant for polishing. Fig. 1 shows a typical WAO process flow diagram. A feed pump increases the liquid pressure to about 28 barg (400 psig), and the liquid is combined with compressed air. The fluid is heated in an exchanger or with direct-contact steam. The hot fluid is held in a reactor for a onehour residence time, at 200°C (392°F).

As the reactions are liquid-phase based, oxygen (O2) must transfer from the gas to the liquid phase to satisfy reaction demands. The process is operated with excess O2 in the offgas, to maintain sufficient surplus O2 to protect the metallurgy and satisfy the reactions. Reactions at 200°C (392°F) are shown here: NaHS + NaOH + 2 O2 Na 2 SO4 + H 2O

(1)

NaSR + NaOH + O2 Na 2 SO4 + RCOONa

(2) (unbalanced)

R + NaOH + O2 CH3 COONa

(3) (unbalanced)

R + NaOH + O2 NaOOCCOONa

(4) (unbalanced)

R + NaOH + O2 Na 2 CO3 + H 2 O

(5) (unbalanced)

The dissolved O2 reacts with the sulfide compounds to produce sodium thiosulfate, which further oxidizes to form sodium sulfate, as shown in Reaction 1. As shown in Table 1, over 1,000 ppm of TOC may be present. At 200°C (392°F), organic compounds are partially oxidized, as shown in Reactions 3 and 4, which lowers the COD loading. TOC concentration is not affected much, with only 0–10% mineralized (Reaction 5). The nature of the TOC is changed, which makes for lower COD, lower fouling rates and improved bio-treatability.

TABLE 1. Compounds commonly present in spent caustic from ethylene plant operations.

Compound

Concentration range, wt%

NaHS

0.5%–6%

Na2C03

1%–5%

NaOH

1%–4%

NaSR

0%–0.2%

Soluble oil

50–150 ppm

TOC

50–1,500 ppm

Benzene

20–100 ppm

Oxidizable waste

Heat exchanger

Oxidation offgas Reactor

PCV Separator Oxidation effluent

Air compressor FIG. 1

Block flow diagram of WAO system.

HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 61

SPECIALREPORT

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

Effects of red oil on WAO operations. The composition

of the ethylene gas stream, the way the caustic tower is operated and how the spent caustic is stored can result in oil contamination of the spent caustic. This can cause pockets of pure oil (oil slugs) to enter the WAO system—greatly exceeding the design maximum. Oil slugs have high COD and a slug will quickly exceed the capacity of the air compressor, causing the system to become O2 deficient. When this happens, the offgas oxygen monitoring safety interlock (located at gas discharge piping from the WAO system separator) should switch the WAO unit from caustic to water, to prevent system damage. Since there is some delay before the trip, frequent oil excursions will result in coking, plugging and possible corrosion of heating equipment, i.e., the feed/effluent heat exchanger.

Sulfides above 120°C (248°F) are highly reactive. Should oxygen-deficient conditions persist, such as by neglecting the oxygen offgas monitoring system or frequent slugs of red oil, then the reactive sulfides will consume oxygen from the metallurgy. In a system with poor oxygen sensor reliability or frequent red oil excursions, corrosion will occur around the middle section of the first heat exchanger, and may extend downstream into the reactor.

Sometimes the corrosion is isolated to just a small section in the middle of the exchanger, in what is called a “light off ” zone.

This zone exists in all WAO systems, and is where the temperature is warm enough that the sulfides begin to oxidize at a rapid rate, approaching the mass transfer replenishment rate for oxygen transfer from the entrained gas, into the liquid phase. This is usually well below the 200°C (392°F) operating temperature, and so occurs in the heat transfer equipment prior to the reactor. Transfer from

62

I APRIL 2010 HYDROCARBON PROCESSING

the gas into the liquid can be inhibited when there is a high TOC content (i.e., red oil) present.

After this zone, the sulfides are sufficiently oxidized, and the O2 mass transfer rate increases. Under normal operations, this zone does not corrode because the O2 transfer rate is sufficient for the COD loading and reaction rate. However, when high oil content is present, either as a regular stream of small intermittent oil slugs, or by large doses of oil, then it is theorized that the O2 transfer rate is inhibited, and/or the dissolved O2 is consumed by the TOC rather than by the sulfides. High organic loads (red oil excursions) can also create saponification conditions and result in foaming in the separator.

Organic polymer sources and effects on WAO unit.

Polymer formation is the most common cause of fouling in caustic towers. Entrained oils formed from polymerization can upset the WAO operations as well.

Red oil: Polymerization and fouling. The polymerization reaction is due to the aldol condensation reaction of acetaldehyde. Acetaldehyde and vinyl acetate (an acetaldehyde-forming compound) are formed in the ethylene process and are adsorbed into the caustic. Contaminated cracker feedstocks that result in the formation of these compounds have the undesirable side effect of producing more polymer within the tower. The polymerization reaction can generally be written as: CH3COH + Na OH

Na + (CH 2 COH)–

Na + (CH 2 COH)– +CH3COH

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polymer

Results

Linde has built a history of proven results with over 250 synthesis gas plants installed worldwide.

As a world class supplier of synthesis gas technology, Linde Engineering and its subsidiary, Selas Fluid, provide single source responsibility for engineering, procurement and construction of complete synthesis gas plants: • Hydrogen • Carbon monoxide • H2/CO synthesis gas

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Modularized designs enable us to deliver plants on time - regardless of geographical location or challenging project schedules.

Selas Fluid Subsidiary of The Linde Group Headquarters: Five Sentry Parkway East • Blue Bell, PA 19422 USA • Tel: 610-832-8797 • Fax: 610-834-0473 Texas Ofļce: 16225 Park Ten Place • Suite 250 • Houston, TX 77084 USA • Tel: 281-717-9090 • Fax: 281-717-9091

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PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

The rate of reaction increases as temperature and acetaldehyde concentration increases. The initial, smaller polymer remains soluble in the caustic. As the polymer grows, it forms a light, insoluble oil that floats on top of the aqueous phase. In this form, it can be separated by a simple skimming step. Some residual will remain, and that portion will continue to react and to form heavier polymers, eventually forming solids that may become entrained or suspended within the caustic. The larger polymers are more difficult to remove because they do not float and may adhere to metal surfaces.

Depending on the extent of polymerization, dehydration and other contaminants, the polymer can appear to be red, yellow, green or other colors. Typically, it is red, and so the oil layer is usually referred to as “red oil.” The red oil will absorb other organics from the cracked gas as well as corrosion products from the tower, and increase in volume. Some heavy organic compounds in the cracked gas will condense and remain in the tower. These compounds also make up the total composition of red oil.

Red oil can be managed by solid upstream practices to reduce the organic load on the tower, through chemical addition to reduce the reaction rate for aldol formation and/or by effectively isolating the red oil from the spent caustic. Red oil that is not well controlled or managed in the tower will exit with the spent caustic. If not removed, this oil can ultimately pass to the WAO system as high COD slugs.

Ethylene handling. Ethylene gas contains CO 2 , H 2 S, mercaptans and other organic molecules. The caustic scrubbing tower is used to adsorb and remove these contaminants. Before

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entering the tower, the ethylene gas is compressed and cooled to condense hydrocarbons from the gas. Any hydrocarbons that condense are separated from the vapor. The vapor feed to the caustic tower is then reheated by about 5°C to 10°C (9°F to 18°F), to reduce organic compound condensation in the tower.

Insufficient reheating can result in excessive condensing of organic compounds in the tower, which increases the volume of red oil present in the spent caustic that must be handled. Excessive reheating is inefficient. Indicators of insufficient pre-tower temperature control include high oil purge rates or fouling in the caustic tower, high red oil content in the spent caustic and/ or foaming in the separator.

Caustic tower scrubbing. The caustic tower is a vertical gas/liquid contactor that is pressurized and operated between 30°C and 50°C (86°F and 122°F). The typical caustic tower (Fig. 2) has three to four stages, starting with the top (waterwash) stage, the second (strong-caustic) stage, and then the bottom (intermediate- and weak-caustic) stages. Each stage has a liquid reservoir at the bottom. Gas/liquid contacting is enhanced by recirculating the caustic from the reservoir to the top of that stage. Part of the reservoir is cascaded down to the next stage. In the bottom stage, most of the free caustic has been consumed, and the weak caustic is loaded with sulfides, carbonates and hydrocarbons. A portion of the weak liquor is recirculated in the bottom stage, and the remainder is discharged as spent caustic.

A layer of hydrocarbon oil may float on top of each caustic reservoir. The caustic tower should be designed to avoid retaining this red oil since higher residence time increases polymerization.

The intermediate section sumps may be designed with a standpipe for down flow to the next section. The standpipe allows the oil floating on the caustic to exit to the next stage, thus minimizing residence time. The bottom section sump is designed to allow skimming of the oil by the operators. Oil removed on a routine and frequent basis is typically light, easy to separate and less prone to fouling than aged oil. The polymerization reaction is temperature dependent, so the warmer the tower, the faster the red oil formation rate. This is another reason that excessive reheating of the feed should be avoided.

To CG 4th stage suction drum CW Caustic tower From CG Preheater compressor QW

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Makeup caustic

Oil/caustic separator

MisterMesh® and MultiPocket® are registered trademarks and Plate-Pak™ and MaxCap™ are trademarks of ACS Industries, LP or its affiliates.

The MaxCap™ mist eliminator is generally used for replacing conventional mesh pads and is recommended only for vertical flow services. The MaxCap™ mist eliminator is currently only used separately; not in a mesh-vane combination.

Fresh caustic storage

Gas Spent caustic degassing drum

Oil

Weak Inter- Strong Wash mediate water Caustic circulation pump pumps Waste water

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FIG. 2

Caustic scrubbing tower process flow diagram.3

BFW makeup

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS Some towers do not have reservoirs with circulation pumps between the stages. Without the reservoirs, the red oil cannot be removed from within the tower. This can lead to a heavier hydrocarbon load on the tower and in the spent caustic.

After the lowest stage, the spent caustic collects in the bottom of the tower. In some towers, a separate tap in the bottom is used to remove the floating red oil layer, so that it does not continue to polymerize. Others may drain the bottom completely on a periodic basis. Most towers also send the mixed spent caustic to a gravity-separation drum to skim the oil.

Spent caustic handling and gasoline washing. As shown in Fig. 2, the discharged spent caustic passes to a separation drum where caustic, entrained gases and entrained oils are separated by gravity. The spent caustic then passes through a depressurization valve and into a degassing drum where the evolved gases from depressurization are removed. The spent caustic is then routed to a gasoline washing step or to a storage tank.

The â&#x20AC;&#x153;gasolineâ&#x20AC;? wash is usually pygas (from the quench water tower), steam cracked naphtha (SCN, from the primary fractionator), or some other stream or combination. Fig. 3 shows a gasoline wash configuration, although the location and configuration of gasoline washes can vary.

The gasoline wash removes entrained oils as well as some dissolved organic compounds. The loaded gasoline from the wash may also be contaminated with some caustic, which is removed by a separate water-wash step. The used gasoline can be disposed by burning for fuel value or blending into one of the liquid streams from the primary fractionator or quench tower. Pure naphtha is the most effective gasoline wash, as, sometimes, quench tower

SPECIALREPORT

bottoms or other distillate cuts (pygas) can contain contaminants that will actually accelerate red oil formation.

Spent caustic storage. After the separation step, spent caustic is transferred to a storage tank. Residence time in the storage tank is typically 24 hours or longer. This tank serves as an equalization tank and is the feed tank for the WAO system. The configuraSpent caustic from tower

Static mixer

Aromatic gasoline

FI

Vent De-oiling drum

Static mixer

FI

Gasoline wash drum

Wash water Spent caustic to tower FIG. 3

Water

Spent gasoline

Example gasoline washing step configuration.

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I 65

SPECIALREPORT

PETROCHEMICAL DEVELOPMENTS

tion and operation of this tank can have an impact on the WAO system operations.

Even after a gasoline wash, the spent caustic may contain some red oil precursors. These compounds will continue to polymerize in the storage tank and form more red oil. Oxygen at ambient temperature can promote these reactions, so the storage tank should be kept under an inert gas atmosphere. If the oil layer is not removed, it will continue to polymerize and form denser layers that may become entrained in the spent caustic. This will cause oil slugs to enter the WAO system and result in plant upsets. Red oil slugs entering the feed line pose a definite hazard to WAO operations.

Spent caustic tanks are equipped with a provision for removing the floating oil layer. Most common is a floating skim line, which floats on top of the caustic phase to skim the oil, but floating skimmers are not always reliable. The flexible piping may degrade after years of use, ultimately reducing its flexibility.

Eventually, the floating line may be abandoned and fixed side taps on the tank can be used instead. This can be effective but may lead to channeling where red oil is only removed locally and not from the entire tank diameter. “Floating cover” style tanks are thought to be the most effective form of skimming, where a skim line is attached to the bottom of the floating cover.

Over several years of operation, a heavy organic sludge that is formed from the aged red oil will build in the bottom of a non-agitated tank and can have a depth of up to one meter (3 feet) or more. As this depth increases, slugs of the oily sludge might be drawn into the WAO feed tap. The location of tank

Bartlett-Snow™ Rotary Calciners for Catalyst Processing Custom designed to meet your processing requirements, Bartlett-Snow™ Rotary Calciners provide a highly effective and efficient means for the continuous processing of various catalyst powders and shapes at high temperatures.

The calciner consists of a cylindrical rotating tube, housed in a gas or electrically heated furnace, and positively sealed to provide for specific atmospheric requirements. Product quality is optimized with a design that establishes and maintains the temperature profile required for the process.

Special internal flight design promotes gentle tumbling action and provides for uniform exposure to the internal atmosphere and efficient heat transfer.

inlet ports can also have an effect, as the risk of drawing an oil slug increases if an inlet stream disturbs the bottom oil sludge.

Typically, the spent caustic draw line is located a short distance from the bottom of the tank. Periodically cleaning the tank to remove the sludge build-up will reduce the risk of heavy oil slugs entering the WAO system.

Optimize WAO operations. WAO systems are both a reliable and effective means of treating spent caustic. However, WAO reliability can be hampered by off-spec feed, which is affected by the upstream processing and handling of the spent caustic. For maximum up-time, spent caustic management should be done in accordance with these recommended practices: • The ethylene gas is cooled and then reheated prior to entering the caustic tower.

• Skim loops and/or antifoulant additives are used in the caustic tower to control red oil formation or manage it once formed.

• A gasoline wash is used with the fresh spent caustic to remove entrained oils and red oil precursors.

• The spent caustic is stored in a nitrogen-blanketed storage tank; the liquor is skimmed daily to remove freshly formed oils; the tank is periodically drained and the accumulated sludge is removed from the bottom; and the feed tap to the WAO system is at least 1 meter (3 feet) above the floor of the tank.

• Boiler feedwater or other low-mineral water is used for all dilution and flush streams. HP ACKNOWLEDGMENT Revised and updated from an earlier presentation, titled “The Effects of Caustic Tower Operations and Spent Caustic Handling on the Zimpro Wet Air Oxidation (WAO) System of Ethylene Spent Caustic,” that was presented at the AIChE’s 21st Ethylene Producers Conference, Tampa, Florida, April 2009.

BIBLIOGRAPHY C., R. Lawson and B. Brandenburg, “Wet Air Oxidation of Ethylene Plant Spent Caustic,” 6th Annual Ethylene Producers Conference, 1994.

2 Grover, R. and H. Gomaa, “Proven technologies manage olefin plant’s spent caustic,” Hydrocarbon Processing, September 1993, pp. 61–69.

3 Reid, J., “Introduction to Sulfur Compounds and Sulfur Removal as Applied to Olefin Unit Design and Operation,” AIChE 10th Ethylene Producers Conference, pp. 713–755, 1998.

4 Matthews, R., “Performance update: Low Pressure Wet Air Oxidation unit at Grangemouth, Scotland,” Environmental Progress, Vol. 16, No. 1, pp. 9–12, 1997.

1 Ellis,

Clayton Maugans, PhD is a hydrothermal research specialist at Siemens Water Technologies in Rothschild, Wisconsin. He has been with Siemens for more than 10 years, where he specializes in wet air oxidation. He has BS and PhD degrees in chemical engineering from the Texas A & M University in College Station, Texas.

Mike Howdeshell, PhD is the R&D director for oil and gas products and systems at Siemens Water Technologies, Rothschild, Wisconsin. In his 4.5 years with Siemens, he has specialized in treating wastewater from the oil and gas industry. Dr. Howdeshell has BA degrees in mathematics and chemistry from Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois, and a PhD degree in analytical chemistry from Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana.

Steve De Haan is the vice president of olefins technology at Air Preheater Company Bartlett-Snow Thermal Products

4525 Weaver Pkwy., Warrenville, IL 60555 Toll Free: 877.661.5509 Tel: 630.393.1000 • Fax: 630.393.1001 Email: info@airpreheaterco.com

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Lummus Technology in Bloomfield, New Jersey. He has worked in the olefins business for 40 years. At Lummus, he continues to be involved in ethylene as well as olefins conversion unit, methanolto-olefins, butene production and hexene production. Mr. De Hann holds a MS degree in chemical engineering from the Newark College of Engineering in Newark, New Jersey.

SAFETY/LOSS PREVENTION

What every manager should know about layers of protection analysis New methods ‘quantify’ the frequency of risky events in a facility G. C. SHAH, Mustang Engineers, LP, Houston, Texas

A

fter a hazard and operability (HAZOP) study has identified risks in a project, the Layers Of Protection Analysis/ Safety Integrity Level (LOPA/SIL) analyses are conducted to quantify risk. However, some managers choose not to commit funding for LOPA/ SIL analyses. Instead, they prefer to mitigate risks by installing additional controls and provide more operator training and testing. These well-intentioned decisions are based on some the following excuses: • Tight project schedules. In very rare cases, a manager has adequate time and resources to commit funding for LOPA/SIL analyses. However, LOPA/SIL analyses, if managed properly, should not take an unjustifiably long time.

• LOPA/SIL analyses are exotic and we don’t really need them. A manager may say, “I don’t know or understand these acronyms and, much less, their benefits . . . I choose not to commit resources to the activities that don’t make economic sense.” Unfortunately, the true economic value of the LOPA/SIL analysis can be obscured in techno-babble associated with LOPA/SIL analysis and Safety Instrumented Systems (SISs). Busy managers have limited time to wade through the myriad details of LOPA/SIL analysis or its terminology—they want actionable information quickly.

• Additional controls should mitigate risk. In choosing additional controls, a tacit assumption is that these controls will supplement the existing controls and would improve reliability and in turn safety. Although this is an intuitively appealing argument, additional controls, in some cases, may NOT achieve the desired risk reduction. In other situations, the risk reduction may not be warranted, and thus you will have wasted financial resources. The key value of the LOPA/SIL analysis is that it enables you

to allocate resources (safeguards) that are proportional for risk reduction.

Managerial perspective on LOPA/ SIL. Simply put, LOPA/SIL analyses are

derived from event-tree analysis and are based on probability considerations. LOPA helps quantify the frequency of risky events that have been qualitatively identified by a HAZOP. Results from LOPA are used in conjunction with the acceptable frequency of risky events to assign required risk reductions. After risk reduction has been quantified the selection and design of additional safeguards for reducing risk to acceptable levels can begin.

Consider, for instance, that a HAZOP has identified, as a “high risk,” a runaway reaction that could result in the rupture of a reactor, with a fire following. To quantify the expected frequency of this event’s occurrence, LOPA examines the sequence of events (failure of the installed safeguards).

The underlying logic behind LOPA is that of “fault propagation” in which the

expected frequency of an event can be estimated from failure probabilities of all the relevant safeguards, as shown in Fig.1.

Obviously, ALL safeguards would have to fail for the fire to occur. And safeguards, which are highly reliable and independent, would tend to reduce the expected frequency of occurrence for the fire event.

Yet, no system is “fool proof,” as illustrated by the following: • ALL safeguards that could prevent the event should be identified. Failure to identify one or more relevant safeguards will cause the estimate for the expected frequency (of the occurrence of the fire) to be much higher than that with consideration of ALL safeguards.

• Failure probability for each safeguard at your plant or in your project should be available. If not, then data for the safeguards in a SIMILAR service may be used, e.g., Center Chemical and Process Safety (CCPS) databases on equipment reliability; OREDA Handbook on equipment reliability; and others.

Fire; 1.6 x 10-4/yr Ignition probability; 0.4 Pressure-relieving system failure; 0.1 Failure of operator response; 0.1 Failure to activate alternate cooling; 0.1 Loss of cooling; 0.4/yr

No event

Expected frequency of a fire event/yr = (0.4/yr) x (0.01) x (0.1) x (0.4) = 1.6 x 10-4 Acceptable frequency = 10-4 Risk Reduction Factor = Expected frequency/acceptable frequency = 160; (SIL = 2) FIG. 1

LOPA analysis of a cooling system failure.

HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 67

SAFETY/LOSS PREVENTION TABLE 1. Risk reduction factors and assigned SIL levels SIL assignment

Risk reduction factors

1

10 →100

2

100 →1,000

3

1,000 →10,000

4

10,000 →100,000

After the expected frequency of a risky event is determined, it is compared with the acceptable frequency (of occurrence for that event) assigned by your organization. As shown in Fig. 1, the ratio of the expected frequency of an event to the acceptable frequency is called the Risk Reduction Factor (RRF). The range of the RRF is used to determine the required SIL, as shown in Table 1.

The SIL is then used to develop the appropriate SIS required for achieving the required risk reduction. Design and implementation of the SIS, as well as the operation, maintenance and decommissioning of SIS follows a life-cycle approach (safety lifecycle) as discussed in ANSI/ISA-84.01 and IEC61511 for process industries. Thus, the

LOPA/ SIL analysis will help in achieving the desired risk reduction—not too much and not too little—and this ensures costeffectiveness.

Cautionary note. As discussed earlier,

careful consideration of ALL safeguards is required. If plant data on the failure probabilities—also called Probability of Failure on Demand (PFD)—is not available, then failure data on SIMILAR equipment under similar service conditions should be used. The need for SIMILAR equipment under SIMILAR service can’t be over-emphasized. As some experts say, one can have GIGO syndrome—Garbage In; garbage out).

LOPA/SIL is an initial step in a systemic framework for enhanced reliability of the SIS, the safety life cycle (SLC). The key point of SLC is that reliability of instrumented safety systems is an ongoing process, NOT a one-time deal. ISA-84.01 and IEC 61511 discuss details of SLC. Effective LOPA management.

Consider these points for a cost-effective program:

• Although OSHA 1910.119 does not mandate the use of LOPA/SIL analysis, it (the use of LOPA/SIL) demonstrates a greater degree of due diligence on your part.

• Select experienced personnel for the LOPA/SIL team. ISA-84.01 and IEC 61511 offer guidance in selection of “competent” persons.

• Keep all the required documents and data within easy access of the LOPA team.

• If the project is large, try dividing the project into segments so that progress can be done simultaneously with the LOPA/ SIL analysis.

• Review instrument reliability as a continuing process and not as a one-time program. HP

G. C. Shah is employed by Mustang Engineers, LP, in Houston, Texas. The company is a subsidiary of International Energy services company John Wood Group, PLC. Mr. Shah is involved in safety (HAZOP, LOPA and SIL) analyses/facilitation, environmental permitting and industrial hygiene. He has 38 years of experience in health, safety and environmental (HSE) matters, and process engineering/management. Mr. Shah has published 45 papers in regarding HSE issues and several books on plant operations and quality. He is a CFSE, CSP, PE and CIH.

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I APRIL 2010 HYDROCARBON PROCESSING

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2010

PROCESS ANALYZERS

Looking for improved diesel yields?

Consider using spectro-molecular control to maximize profits P. J. GIAMMATTEO, Process NMR Associates, Danbury, Connecticut; and G. WINTER, TTC Labs, Inc., Fond du Lac, Wisconsin

Distillate products. Fig. 1 illustrates

the 24-hour distillation predictions from one NMR-monitoring process stream from two separate crude distillation units (CDUs) and a hydrotreater. Linked in with the control loops, this NMR/control system exploits the price differentials by providing feedback control to the crude units as well as both feed-forward and feedback control to the kerosine hydrotreater.

Fig. 2 illustrates the refinery flow diagram for one NMR analyzer being utilized in clean diesel manufacturing. The single NMR analyzer monitors six process streams from the crude unit, coker and hydrocracker using a single set of predictive parameter models for the six streams.

300–500+ bpd of recoverable diesel in the gasoil. Leaving these barrels in the gas oil negatively impacts a fluid catalytic cracking unit (FCCU) performance and yields with a combined margin loss approaching $25 - $35 per barrel. The economic losses from such under-cutting are between $2,000 and $10,000 per day.

Fig. 3 summarizes current and planned

online control strategies for molecular control at the CDU. Downstream from the crude unit, most refiners remain constrained at the hydrotreater with respect to sulfur content, and more specifically, with respect to dibenzothiophene content. The dibenzothiophene class represents some of the most difficult molecules to hydrotreat

24-hour NMR data on five crude unit rundown streams T10 (blue), T50 (magenta), T90 (yellow)

°F

O

ver the past 14 years, online nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) analyzers have proven useful in extracting additional profits by reducing the: • Loss of diesel into gasoil • Loss of gas oil into resid • Coke pre-cursors in reformer feed • Product quality give-away in gasoline, jet and diesel.

Integrating NMR with regulatory and advance process control will improve yields, decrease energy consumption and reduce analytical loads to improve margins by $2,000 to $10,000 per day for the average 100,000-bpd refinery.

800 750 700 650 600 550 500 450 400 350 300

D C A

E

B

A. Kero (CDU1), B. Kero (CDU2, C. Diesel (CDU2), AGO (CDU2), E. Kero product (hydrotreater) FIG. 1

Multiprocess unit, multi-parameter and NMR distillation results.

Hydrocracker feed

CU diesel

Ultra-low-sulfur diesel (ULSD) production. Extremely low sulfur

requirements for gasoline and diesel have resulted in refiners now being more constrained at the hydrotreaters. Since the penalty for exceeding the sulfur specification is a tank of unsellable product, refiners typically under-cut the raw diesel so that they can ensure the effective hydrotreating meets final product specifications. Depending on a refinery’s crude supply, a 100,000-bpd CDU usually has

SHS Coker diesel

FIG. 2

SHS

Density Distillation Flash point Cetane number Cloud point Pour point

Clean diesel manufacturing using NMR throughout the whole process.

HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 69

PROCESS ANALYZERS Fuel gas Integrated control Immediate payback through improved diesel and kerosine yields.

LPG and naphtha Kerosine

SHS

NMR parameters Kerosine T5, T10, T50, T90, Pt, Naphthalenes Kerosine PA T5, T95, cetane Diesel T5, T10, T50, T90, T95 Cetane, cloud pt, pour pt Diesel PA T5, T95, cetane Gas oils T5, T10, T50, T80 (D2887)

NMR

Gas oils

ATB

FIG. 3

Conventional NMR measurement and control strategy in diesel production.

Conclusion. Clean diesel production

0.09 0.08

C18

0.07 0.06 C20 0.05 0.04

C22

0.03 0.02 C24 0.01 00.0 12 FIG. 4

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0

13

14 15 16 17 Retention time, min

18

19

10

8

6

4

2

0

Comparison of simulated distillation chromatograms (left) and NMR spectra (right) on a wide variety of diesel samples including crude unit diesel, coker diesel, hydrotreated and hydrocracked diesels and finished diesel blends.

the CDU diesel rundown streams.

Spectro-molecular control improves the online control of dibenzothiophene breakthrough by combining NMR and a simulated distillation gas chromaDiesel 1 Diesel 2 Diesel 3 tography program to monitor the carbon FIG. 5 NMR-predicted carbon number distributions for three number distribucrude unit diesel samples. tions in diesel distilfor effective sulfur removal. Total sulfur lation. A multidetector program for diesel measurements, usually by x-ray based analysis enables the simultaneous meaanalyzers, are typically applied on vari- surement of carbon number, sulfur and ous process streams. However, they are nitrogen species. These techniques have not “perfect” in their application online. confirmed that the dibenzothiophene Further, even more difficult analytical component’s retention times correspond challenges arise if one attempts to specifi- to the C19/C20 region of the distillation cally measure the dibenzothiophenes in program’s chromatogram. One can cor70

relate an individual carbon number content from the distillation program with NMR diesel spectra (Fig. 4) to predict the carbon number distributions (Fig. 5).

This unique NMR measurement strategy enables crude unit operations to cut and control crude unit diesel production as closely to the dibenzothiophene distillation limit as possible without a direct compound measurement.

Fig. 5 illustrates the NMR predictions for three diesel rundown samples in the corresponding dibenzothiophene carbon number range, C17 – C24. With carbon number measurement, one can continually monitor the C19 – C20 distribution as a means of controlling the “bump-over” distillation point of the dibenzothiophenes.

C17 C18 C19 C20

C21 C22 C23 C24

I APRIL 2010 HYDROCARBON PROCESSING

requires strategic measurement and control throughout the entire process (crude unit distillation through product blending) to maximize diesel yields without exceeding sulfur breakthrough limits.

For online diesel analyses, NMR delivers real-time accuracy, thereby enhancing and enabling proven control and economic benefits. Strategic implementation at the crude unit mid-section enhances the recovery of an additional 200–500 bpd of critical distillate products from a typical 100,000-bpd CDU with a daily benefit of up to $10,000. Similar benefits can be found by optimizing the coke pre-cursors to continuous catalyst regeneration and semi-regen reformers, minimizing the yield loss of other cuts and reducing the manpower loads in the laboratory. HP

Dr. Paul J. Giammatteo is co-founder and co-owner of Process NMR Associates (PNA), a company that provides consulting and analytical services in Infra-Red, Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, and, Electron Spin Resonance spectroscopies. Dr. Giammatteo is also co-founder of NMR Process Systems (NPS), a company that markets, installs and supports process NMR and other on-line technology solutions for control and optimization in the refining, petrochemical, pharmaceutical and food industries. Prior to forming PNA and NPS, Dr. Giammatteo was employed at Texaco’s Beacon, New York Research facility holding various positions in process analytical research, organic, spectroscopic, and compositional analyses.

George Winter is founder and owner of TTC Labs, inc., a company that provides process expertise and process designs to the oil refining and aromatics industries. Prior to starting TTC in 1988, Mr. Winter worked at UOP for 24 years.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT

The six sigma green belt training program: An in-depth look Implementing this program improves competition P. B. DESHPANDE, Six Sigma and Advanced Controls, Inc., Louisville, Kentucky

S

ix sigma programs are implemented with the help of professionals who are suitably trained in the six sigma framework, tools and techniques. Champions serve as mentors who arrange for resources, help tackle bottlenecks and ensure progress. Master black belts teach six sigma. Black belts lead six sigma teams of green belts executing six sigma projects.

The green belts are assembled from various divisions or departments as appropriate and have other job duties.

Dr. Jack Welch stated in his book, Straight from the Gut, that he expected future chairmen of General Electric to be black belts. That level of commitment may not be realistic across the board, but at a minimum, champions are expected to have a sound understanding of the what, why, and how of six sigma including what makes six sigma possible, without being bogged down in statistics. Green belts may or may not have leadership capabilities or teaching skills. Black belts need leadership skills since they lead project teams. Master black belts must additionally possess written and oral communication skills since they teach six sigma. These needs mean that black belts and master black belts tend to be professionals that are more experienced.

Interpersonal skills are always helpful in all situations. Sound background in basic statistics is essential for six sigma success and so all six sigma professionals need to have had a first course in statistics while in college.

Six sigma professionals typically have engineering, science or business degrees.

Watering down green belt training for non-engineering participants may appear to be tempting but is unwarranted. Thus, six sigma can be used to improve the performance of all repetitive work processes— manufacturing or transactional (service), linear or nonlinear, static or dynamic.

The green belt training program.

In the scheme outlined, six sigma green belt training is composed of four components that include: • Six sigma overview, six hours • In-class training, 10 sessions at four hours each • Three to four months of six sigma project execution and presentation • In-class examination.

1. Six sigma overview. Six sigma can

make entire nations globally competitive not just corporations. Of course, companies have greatly benefitted from six sigma. Six sigma was founded on three natural laws: The law of cause and effect (India, ~1500 BC)—For every effect (outcome of work processes), there must necessarily be a cause or causes.

The law of natural variability (Germany, 19th century)—There will always be a certain amount of inherent variability (common-cause variability) in the outcomes of work processes no matter how well they are designed. This variability occurs due to a host of uncontrollable causes, rendering the notion of zero defects ad-infinitum untenable.

The law of assignable causes (US and Japan, 20th century)—The inherent variability in the outcomes of work processes is worsened by causes that are discoverable.

Tracing and then setting these causes at the correct values or eliminating them as appropriate means that the process or transaction is retuned to its natural state.

It is possible to group emerging nations and developed nations into two distinct categories. Emerging nations are characterized by high defect levels, while developed nations are characterized by low defect levels in their respective products and services.

Given that six sigma is the way to reduce defects in all products and services, nations

really have no choice but to embrace six sigma if they want to remain globally competitive or to join the ranks of developed nations. Also, they can remain globally competitive so that the standard of living of their societies is not compromised.

At first glance, it may appear as though emerging nations would have to benefit at the expense of developed nations or vice versa. This is where the author’s theory of rise and decline becomes relevant. It posits that societies rise and decline due to the transformation of the mindset that naturally occurs over time. Furthermore, the theory suggests that the phenomenon of rise and decline is cyclical. Evidence suggests that societies in decline for 2,000 years or more have recently risen (Japan, South East Asia) or are rapidly rising (China, India), while the Western societies (Western Europe, the US) have not yet declined.

The presence of risen societies and rapidly rising societies on the scene at the same point in time is arguably a rare event, giving rise to tremendous opportunities for the growth of both groups of societies, and six sigma programs are the vehicle with which to realize benefits. The theory of rise and decline also points to which societies are apt to adopt six sigma in large measure—societies in the state of decline do not possess the mindset necessary for transformational movements such as six sigma. Rise and decline need not always be a zero-sum game.

• Based on the six sigma overview, instructors must convince participants that six sigma is really for life and so everyone must think, work and live the six sigma way.

• While the rewards of following six sigma are as tremendous as the penalties of not following it, instructors must convince participants that six sigma can only return the outcome of a work process to its HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 71

SECURE SUSTAIN SUPPLY Energy is a must for prosperity and a better quality of life. Energy for more people is thus the main theme of the 19th ONS to be held on 24 – 27 August 2010.

Can we combine increased energy consumption with sustainability? Can we secure both our prosperity and our future?

Since 1974 ONS has involved itself in challenges, innovation and inventive solutions. Today ONS is regarded as one of the world’s leading energy meeting places, where delegates and visitors from almost one hundred countries present their ideas and know-how to the energy world.

This year the focus will be on environmentally sound and energy efficient production methods, enhanced resource use and accessibility, and the search for new, renewable sources. ONS is the only arena that showcases the complete energy picture from fossil to renewable resources.

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PROJECT MANAGEMENT natural state wherein it is influenced only by uncontrollable causes, nothing more and nothing less. If the defect levels in the state of natural variability turn out to be excessive vis-à-vis competitive needs, one would have to go back to the drawing board and look at many other issues such as suppliers, better technology or equipment, different business models, etc., spelling the need for innovation. The debate on six sigma hampering innovativeness is unwarranted.

cepts have been covered and the projects are successfully completed. The projects are typically executed by teams of four to five participants undergoing training with one member among them serving as the project leader. While solving world hunger might be a laudable goal, the goal here is to limit the scope of each project such that it can be completed in three to four months. The projects need not be complex but should illustrate how five-phase 11-step six sigma methodology is applied. Wherever pos-

sible, the projects selected should be a mix of manufacturing and service applications.

Upon successful completion of the projects, the teams will make a 30-minute presentation on their projects.

4. Green belt test and certification. At the conclusion of training and

project execution, an in-class examination is administered to test how well the various concepts have been understood and internalized. The green belt training being on par

2. Six sigma green belt training.

Signs of enlightenment ought to be visible in the trainees faces if the overview program achieves its objectives. The main body of green belt training will then move smoothly.

Participants undergoing green belt training may have been out of college for many years and so it is useful to begin with a review of statistics. Furthermore, the approach to reinforce six sigma concepts is through illustrative examples, and a great way to achieve this objective is with statistical software. Six sigma projects involve repetitive calculations and the use of software avoids the drudgery of repetitive calculations. There are several user-friendly statistical software products available in the market and a four-hour session is adequate to teach the basic ideas. Of course, practice makes perfect.

The instructor then might begin formal six sigma training by emphasizing the importance of knowing who the customer is and what the customer’s critical to quality characteristics (CTQs) are. Participants are then trained in quality function deployment which is used to translate the often-fuzzy customer CTQs into design parameters amenable for six sigma implementation. The project charter for each outcome on which six sigma is sought to be implemented is the next topic to cover.

This is followed by the five-phase, 11-step methodology for six sigma implementation. A discussion of possible corporate deployment strategy and implementation plan rounds out the in-class portion of the training program.

3. Six sigma projects and presentation. An essential component of

green belt training is project execution.

Depending on circumstances, there are two approaches to project execution. One is to complete in-class training and then take up projects for execution. The other is to cover certain topics in the classroom and then apply the concepts learned to the projects.

This practice is continued until all the con-

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PROJECT MANAGEMENT with a graduate-level course, a passing score of 80 is prescribed for success. Students who fully participate in the program, and then successfully complete the project and make an effective presentation, and pass the test, are awarded a green belt certification. The certificate validity is three years from the date of completion of training.

Green belt program at the University of Kentucky. Six sigma green

belt training for MBA students at Gatton

College of Business and Economics, University of Kentucky has been in place for the past four years. The MBA curriculum has three modules: New product development, supply chain, and mergers and acquisitions. The green belt program is a part of the supply chain module. In the program, students receive two weeks of in-class six sigma instruction that includes training in statistical software for six sigma projects followed by project executions.

In the academic year 2008–2009, 16 cor-

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porations provided six sigma projects for the student teams to work on. At the program’s conclusion, students make team presentations on the projects and take a test. Students who fully participate in the program, successfully complete the projects, make an effective presentation, and pass the test will be given Six Sigma and Advanced Controls (SAC)-certified six sigma green belt certificates. Companies have found the six sigma projects component to be very useful since this gives them an opportunity to tackle a project of commercial interest while getting to know the students. The program has also given some companies who have not yet embraced six sigma an exposure to the what, why, and how of six sigma. Many students have joined the sponsor companies as full-time employees upon graduation. Since its inception, the program has been a mandatory component of the MBA curriculum. The enrollment in the program has increased from over 45 students in the first year to over 75 during the 2008–2009 academic year. Graduating students derive a sense of special satisfaction from the fact that the dean takes the time to personally sign SAC’s green belt certificates.

Conclusion. A perspective on six sigma

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green belt training was provided. Green belt training is at the core of how six sigma can be spread to large sections of the society. Business Week reported that 35% of US businesses had embraced six sigma by 2006. To ensure continuing global competitiveness, the rest of US businesses, government departments, and universities and colleges should consider embracing it as well. HP

Pradeep B. Deshpande is a professor emeritus and former chair for the department of chemical engineering at the University of Louisville and a visiting professor of management at Gatton College of Business and Economics at the University of Kentucky. Dr. Deshpande is a founding president and chief executive officer of Louisville-based Six Sigma and Advanced Controls, Inc. (SAC). He was among the first to introduce six sigma training in corporate India and in engineering and MBA programs in the US, Greece, Kuwai and India. During his 30 years on the faculty at the University of Louisville, he published or presented six textbooks and 100 refereed papers and supervised 20 doctoral graduates and 50 master’s graduates. Dr. Deshpande is a fellow of ISA and a recipient of numerous awards for research and teaching. He is listed in Who’s Who in the World and has served at the Indian Institutes of Technology in Kanpur and Madras, along with the University of Bombay department of chemical technology and India’s National Chemical Laboratory in Pune.

PIPING/RELIABILITY

Solve liquid-hammer problems Here are several options F. SALEHI, Dalan Farayand Engineering Co., Tehran, Iran

L

iquid hammer is the destructive ■ Pipe characteristics such a valve in less time than it takes for the force, pounding noises and vibrapressure surge to travel to the end of the tion in a piping system when liquid as the materials used in pipeline and back is called “sudden valve flowing through a pipeline is stopped construction, wall thickness closure.” Sudden valve closure will change abruptly. When sudden changes in flow velocity quickly and can result in a presoccur, the energy associated with the and the pipe temperature all sure surge. The pressure surge resulting flowing liquid is suddenly transformed affect the elastic properties from a sudden valve opening is usually into pressure at that location. This excess not as excessive. pressure is known as surge pressure and of the pipe and how it will 4. Improper operation or incorpois greater with large changes in velocity. respond to surge pressures. ration of surge protection devices can Pipe characteristics such as the materials do more harm than good. An example used in construction, wall thickness and the pipe temperature all is over-sizing the surge relief valve or improperly selecting the affect the elastic properties of the pipe and how it will respond vacuum breaker-air relief valve. Another example is to try to to surge pressures. incorporate some means of preventing liquid hammer when it The thicker the pipe wall and the stronger the pipes and fitmay not be a problem. tings the faster the shock wave. Thin-walled plastic pipe will only bounce a shock wave back at 914 m/s while heavy-wall steel pipe Manual load calculation: will bounce a shock wave back at 2,438 m/s. Liquid does not dp = c dv actually travel down a pipe line at these speeds. For example, 1.5 to 2 meters per second is very fast for water to flow in a pipeline. where: A pressure or shock wave in liquid happens when one liquid dp = Pressure rise due to the fluid’s “instantaneous” stopping molecule pushes on another liquid molecule and the second ␳ = Fluid density molecule pushes on a third and so on. If you have a 1,000-m c = Speed of sound in the fluid long pipeline full of water, injecting a thimble full of water in dv = Change in velocity of the fluid one end of the pipe will cause another thimble of water to almost The speed of sound in the fluid can be estimated from: instantaneously come out of the other end of the pipe. The non0.5 compressible nature of most liquids is what transmits a shock c = E f / + (E f / E )( d / t )

wave through pipelines at such unimaginable speeds. Stronger or thicker-walled pipe and fittings are better able to withstand where: the repeated impacts of liquid hammer but, as the strength of Ef = Bulk modulus of the fluid the pipe and fittings increases, the shock wave velocity increases E = Pipe modulus of elasticity causing more damage. d = Pipe mean diameter t = Pipe wall thickness Liquid-hammer causes. Liquid hammer causes are varied. ␳ = Fluid density There are, however, four common events that typically induce large changes in pressure: 400 1. Pump startup can induce the rapid collapse of a void space 200 that exists downstream from a starting pump. This generates 2 4 high pressures.

Force 2 3 30m 4m Force 3 2. Pump power failure can create a rapid change in flow that 60m Valve closes causes a pressure up-surge on the suction side and a pressure Force 1 in 4 sec.

300 down-surge on the discharge side. The down-surge is usually the major problem. The pressure on the discharge side reaches vapor pressure, resulting in vapor column separation.

1 3. Valve opening and closing is fundamental to safe pipeline FIG. 1 Water hammer happens when the stop valve closes in four operation. Closing a valve at the downstream end of a pipeline seconds. creates a pressure wave that moves toward the reservoir. Closing

(

)

HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 75

PIPING/RELIABILITY

Label

4

Specification

Yes

Specification type

Information

Time function

Power ramp

Start time

0

Start value

1

Stop time

4

Stop value

0

Exponent

1

sec.

Y

sec.

Z

X

The support loads and maximum stress are acceptable.

FIG. 4

Information

1.0 0.8

Label

4

0.6

Specification

Yes

Specification type

Information

0.4

Time function

Power ramp

0.2

Start time

0

Start value

1

Stop time

6

Stop value

0

Exponent

1

0.0 0

3

6 9 Time, seconds

12

15

Valve closure specification.

FIG. 2

sec. sec.

1.0 0.8

Simple/directed pipe force applied at 200-300 Information

20,000

Force, newtons

15,000 10,000 5,000

0.6 0.4 0.2

0 -5,000

0.0

-10,000

0

-15,000 -20,000 0 FIG. 3

2

4 6 Time, seconds

8

10

Dynamic force due to the pressure surge.

The unbalanced load magnitude can be computed from: F = dp area An example problem. In the Fig. 1 piping system, the water

hammer phenomenon happens when the stop valve closes in four seconds. Instead of the manual calculation, fluid transient analysis software is used to simulate pressure surge in the piping system. The part of the piping system shown in Fig. 1 is our interest for analysis.

This is a 10-in., std. WT, A106-B pipe. Water is flowing through the pipe at 11.2 bar and 20°C. Suddenly, the valve closes in four seconds. Fig. 2 illustrates the specification applied to valve closure with a power-ramp time function.

The best candidate for water hammer load is segment 200–300 (force 2), shown in Fig. 1. The magnitude of applied dynamic 76

I APRIL 2010 HYDROCARBON PROCESSING

FIG. 5

2

4 6 Time, seconds

8

10

Valve closure time is changed to six seconds.

force due to the pressure surge in the elbow-elbow pair 200–300 is illustrated in Fig. 3.

Applying fluid transient load to the piping system.

After creating the same piping model in pipe stress analysis software and performing the static analysis shown in Fig. 4, we see that the support loads and the maximum stress are very low and acceptable.

Performing dynamic calculation. After performing dynamic analysis, we’ll see stress failure and excessive forces on some of the pipe supports shown in Table 1.

The fix.

1. In long pipelines, surge can be relieved with a tank of water directly connected to the pipeline called a “surge tank.”

When surge is encountered, the tank will act to relieve the pressure, and can store excess liquid, giving the flow alternative stor-

PIPING/RELIABILITY TABLE 2. Restraint report, loads on restraints Simple/directed pipe force applied at 200-300

(OCC) combination # 1

10,000 8,000 6,000 4,000 2,000 0 -2,000 -4,000 -6,000 -8,000

Forces, N

Force, newtons

0

2

4 6 Time, seconds

8

10

TABLE 1. Restraint report, loads on restraints (OCC) combination # 1 Forces, N Node

FY

FZ

MX

MY

MZ

100

1,991

2,063

701

2,063

10,648

18

Rigid ANC

250

0

9,607

0

0

0

0

Rigid +Y

410

0

8,885

0

0

0

0

Rigid +Y

600

6,844

6,824

584

680

FX

4,230 5,943

Rigid ANC

B31.3 -2006, May 31, 2007 Code stress check failed Highest stresses, KPa

Increasing the valve closing time reduced the water hammer.

FIG. 6

Moments, Nm

FX

Node

Moments, Nm

FY

FZ

MX

MY

MZ

100

4,140

2,063

1,451

2,063

21,443

23

Rigid ANC

250

0

14,733

0

0

0

0

Rigid +Y

410

0

10,935

0

0

0

0

Rigid +Y

600

13,618

7,591

1,164

1,308

8,335 7,723

Rigid ANC

Code stress, %:

57.0

@Node 298

Stress:

104,517.9

Allowable: 183,401

Bending stress:

94,708.5

@Node 298

Torsional stress:

2,521.1

@Node 300

Axial stress:

10,331.8

@Node 399

3D max. intensity:

110,781.1

@Node 299

Farhad Salehi is a project manager with Dalan Farayand Engineering Co., Tehran, Iran. He has 20 years of experience in piping design and engineering in the oil & gas industries. Mr. Salehi holds a BS degree in mechanical engineering from Tehran Azad University.

B31.3 -2006, May 31, 2007 Code stress check failed Highest stresses, KPa Code stress, %:

106.1

@Node 298

Stress:

194,578.8

Allowable: 183,401

Bending stress:

183,613.0

@Node 298

Torsional stress:

5,011.1

@Node 300

Axial stress:

11,947.4

@Node 298

3D max. intensity:

201,337.9

@Node 299

age better than that provided by pipe wall expansion and fluid compression. Surge tanks can serve for both positive and negative pressure fluctuations.

2. Air chambers are installed in areas where water hammer is encountered frequently, and are typically seen behind sink and tub fixtures. Shaped like thin, upside-down bottles with a small orifice connection to the pipe, they are air-filled. The air compresses to absorb the shock, protecting the fixture and piping.

3. In this situation, the best form of water-hammer prevention is to have automatically controlled valves, which close slowly.

Closing the valve slowly can moderate the rise in the pressure when the down-surge waveâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;resulting from the valve closingâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; returns from the source or reservoir.

Going back to the fluid model and changing the valve closure time to six sec. (Fig. 5) will cause less water hammer-loads (Fig. 6).

Note: Lower exponent values cause most flow cutoff to occur at the end of closure, while larger closure exponent values cause most flow cutoff to occur at the beginning of closure.

Now dynamic analysis is performed for this model again with new valve closure time results. At this time, supports loads are far better than the previous situation and code stress also passed as shown in Table 2. HP Select 174 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS 77

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ROTATING EQUIPMENT/WASTEWATER TREATMENT

Blower selection for wastewater aeration* Use these guidelines to understand the many factors that differentiate different designs Compiled by the staff of Aerzen USA, Coatesville, Pennsylvania

A

s the main electricity consumers in a wastewater treatment plant, aeration blowers greatly influence overall plant operating cost. The most energy-efficient solution must be based on actual conditions that, in reality, are far from static. In fact, energy efficiency alone may not be the governing factor in optimized blower selection and neither are comparisons made at one hypothetical operating point only.

This article provides overview information that will help engineers understand the importance of more closely looking at the many factors that separate different designs and deserve far more detailed evaluation to arrive at the best selection.

Economics and matching aeration blowers. In a wastewater treatment plant, control design must interact with aeration demand. Subsystem selection and thoughtful integration are of paramount importance, as is the overall facility operating philosophy. All of these influence total ownership cost and must guide the selection process.

Many plants are oversized because projected population growth did not materialize. As an example, a rotary-lobe blower package sized originally for 3,000 cfm/8.5 psi might use 179 bhp when equipped with a traditional belt drive and standard-efficiency motor. Suppose this represented oversizing by 30%, in which case replacing the unit should certainly be considered. A more efficient, modern rotary-lobe blower package with automatic belt tensioning and a premium-efficiency motor would produce 20% more cfm per hp than the old machine! Both energy and maintenance outlays would be saved.

A normal operating point should be defined as the point at which usual operation is expected and optimum efficiency is desired. This point is usually the certified point. In other words, if a plant is designed to operate at 80% of its peak, aeration blower performance should be optimized for that point. Optimization is facilitated by machines designed with a plug-in-and-run concept in mind. While this represents an efficient and attractive proposition, keep in mind that flexibility is required to meet actual needs. For example, electricians prefer working on motor starters and variable-frequency drive (VFD) controls (if needed) located in a clean and air-conditioned electrical room rather than in a noisy machinery room. In general, blowers installed outdoors * Based on a comprehensive manuscript available from Aerzen USA, Coatesville, Pennsylvania.

eliminate the need for an enclosed locationâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;a substantial cost avoidance. Temperature control in a machine room must be achieved without raising the operating costs for air conditioning; in addition to OSHA noise limits within the plant, continuous and transient noise** emissions may cause problems in close proximity to residential areas. Initial installed equipment cost is a poor indicator of life cycle cost. Energy cost and expenditures for typical maintenance, condition monitoring, spare parts, repair time and overhead are key contributors and yet, there are other factors to weigh as well.

Unfortunately, the costs used to compare proposals are frequently based on hypothetical conditions. Some less-obvious aspects are sometimes completely neglected but are, nevertheless, important ingredients of the ownership cost. To mention a few: balanced and stable power supply, unused pressure reserves or air flow, air filter maintenance/replacement frequency, number of machines, etc.

Blower technologies compared. Four parameters: site condition, aeration system type, instantaneous air mass flow and related system variables both upstream and downstream, are of obvious importance in blower selection. Available blower configurations are generally classified as either positive displacement

FIG. 1

X-ray view of a rotary-lobe blower stage.

** Transient noise is generated by antisurge control valves and pressure safety or unloading valve opening.

HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 79

ROTATING EQUIPMENT/WASTEWATER TREATMENT (rotary lobe, Fig. 1, also dry screw, Fig. 2) or dynamic (centrifugal) machines. Dynamic blowers incorporate either a rotor with stepup gearing (Fig. 3) or a driver that can generate the requisite high speeds. Special-purpose, high-speed single-stage centrifugal blowers (Fig. 3) incorporate inlet guide vanes and outlet diffuser vanes to achieve wide turndown at constant operating speed. These

machines can be operated with a VFD to provide additional flexibility while maintaining highest efficiency. They are also offered as a self-contained package (Fig. 4).

A standardized high-speed, single-stage turbo blower is depicted in Fig. 5. These recently introduced machines are directdriven by a high-speed permanent magnet motor and always require a VFD to accommodate varying air densities and/or air pressure requirements. Impellers are either precision cast or fully machined. No adjustable diffuser vanes are used and the machines rely on a well-integrated, elaborate control system to accommodate changing conditions.

Standardized, high-speed single-stage turbo blowers make use of the most current technology involving magnetic or air bearings.

Continuous vibration monitoring is possible with magnetic bearings but not with air bearings. A packaged assembly is shown in Fig. 6.

Again, each of these blower technologies is further described in a comprehensive white paper available from the authors.

Site conditions. Site elevation above sea level determines the

FIG. 2

Dry-screw compressor rotors with timing gears.

FIG. 3

Centrifugal blower section with inlet guide vanes and diffuser vanes (Source: Dresser Industries).

FIG. 5

Turbo blower section with permanent magnet motor and airfoil bearings (Source: K-Turbo).

Single-stage centrifugal blower package (Source: Siemens).

FIG. 6

Turbo blower package (Source: Neuros).

FIG. 4

80

atmospheric pressure and, therefore, the inlet pressure and air density. As a result, the compression ratio (defined as the ratio of the absolute discharge to the absolute inlet pressures) and the compressed-air discharge temperature will vary accordingly.

I APRIL 2010 HYDROCARBON PROCESSING

ROTATING EQUIPMENT/WASTEWATER TREATMENT Considerable diligence must go into evaluating the full impact of site conditions, as seen in Fig. 7 and Table 1. Note the variation in oxygen content per unit of volume of ambient air. Going from the warmest and coldest conditions at constant relative humidity, the oxygen content in Miami is 14% vs. 31% in Denver.

Aeration system type and operating pressure. Please

recall that it is not the purpose of this article to discuss the most efficient aeration system. Instead, the write-up is intended to provide an overview of how aeration system components affect blower operation and to highlight the implicit role of competent manufacturers in bringing all pertinent factors to the attention of discerning operating facilities and buyers.

Aeration blowers must overcome diffuser submersion. Submersion depth determines hydrostatic head; submersion typically ranges from 10 ft (3 m) to 26 ft (8 m) in municipal wastewater treatment plants. In contrast, industrial systems may require 33 ft (10 m) to 66 ft (20 m). Municipal systems would be best served by aeration blowers capable of pressures under 15 psig (~1,000 mbar) while single-stage, oil-free screw or high-speed centrifugal compressors should be considered for most industrial systems. In either case, the pressure losses indicated in Fig. 8 must be added to the aeration depth.

It should be noted that piping and associated check valves, isolating valves, elbows or other piping components will engender restrictions that, at maximum flow, can easily reach, or even exceed, 1.0 psi (70 mbar). Also, the head loss across the diffuser system— typically 0.4 to 0.8 psi (30 to 60 mbar)—needs to be considered.

It is appropriate to add a safety margin in the range of 0.5 to 1.0 psi (35 to 70 mbar) to account for diffuser aging and/ or fouling. Operating experience also demonstrates an elevated stagnation pressure needs to be overcome for a short period.

Moreover, condensate that may have appeared in the pipe must be displaced.

All these pressure losses and reserve margins must be considered for dependable and stable operation. While this pressure reserve margin can easily reach and even exceed 15% of the submersion head at full flow, it will decrease to only a small amount at minimum flow with a clean system. Therefore, a plant can directly benefit from reduced pressure losses if the blower power demand decreases in direct proportion.

FIG. 7

TABLE 1. Example of the effects of location on compression ratio and air flow Example: If the system pressure to overcome is 8 psi (550 mbar), considering a constant relative humidity of 36% (data source: weatherbase.com) Location examples

Miami, Florida

Denver, Colorado

Atmospheric pressure

14.7 psia (1.013 bar abs)

12.2 psia (0.84 bar abs)

Discharge pressure

22.7 psia (1.56 bar abs)

20.2 psia (1.39 bar abs)

1.544

1.655

Compression ratio @ 8 psid (550 mbar) Average temperature

76ºF (24ºC)

55ºF (13ºC)

Lowest temperature

30ºF (–1ºC)

–17ºF (–27ºC)

Highest temperature

98ºF (36ºC)

115ºF (46ºC)

Air density at lowest temperature

0.081 lb/ft3 (1.297 kg/m3)

0.076 lb/ft3 (1.225 kg/m3)

Air density at average temperature

0.074 lb/ft3 (1.184 kg/m3)

0.065 lb/ft3 (1.046 kg/m3)

Air density at highest temperature

0.071 lb/ft3 (1.134 kg/m3)

0.059 lb/ft3 (0.937 kg/m3)

14%

31%

Oxygen content variation per unit of volume of ambient air between the warmest and coldest conditions at constant relative humidity

The effect of the relative humidity must also be taken into account; a rise in humidity results in a lower air density, all other conditions being equal. Example: at the maximum temperature, air with 100% RH will have a 3% lower density in Miami, and 2% in Denver, than 36% RH air.

Impact of geographic location and altitude on the operating conditions.

Select 175 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS 81

ROTATING EQUIPMENT

Not the length is important … …but the technique ■

Abstain from drive shafts being long and susceptible to troubles

■

Spare needless shaft and guide bearings

■

Forget complex and cost-intensive seal technology

■

Require best available technology for a long service life and high availability

Typical system pressure curve

System pressure, psi

HERMETICALLY SEALED SUBMERSIBLE PUMPS

9.5 9.0 8.5 8.0 7.5 7.0 6.5 6.0 5.5 5.0

Aging, fouling and stagnation margin Diffuser head Piping losses Submersion head

10

FIG. 8

20

30

40 50 60 Total air flow, %

70

80

90

Typical system pressure diagram in relation to air flow and to aeration system condition.

TABLE 2. Air mover typical rotor tip speed and rpm range Typical maximum tip speeds

High-speed centrifugal/turbo

Rotary-lobe blowers

Oil-free screw machines

ft/sec

1,150

140

400

m/sec

350

45

120

20,000 to 65,000

1,000 to 5,000

3,000 to 15,000

Typical operating speeds, rpm

TABLE 3. Drive systems for the various blower types Special-purpose, high-speed Rotary-lobe blowers centrifugal Standardized highScrew compressors blowers speed turbo blowers

if 2 or 20 meters – we are flexible Motor type

support and cable pipe pressure / discharge line

extremely short drive shaft

HERMETIC-Pumpen GmbH P.O. Box 1220 D-79191 Gundelfingen info.hp@lederle-hermetic.com www.lederle-hermetic.com Select 176 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS 82

Standard induction

Standard induction

Drive

Belt drive

Gear

Permanent magnet Direct

VFD

VFD optional

VFD optional

VFD always required

Blower control schemes and turndown capability.

The system turndown capability is determined by the number of blowers, their individual turndown capability and the operating mode (variable flow or on/off cycling operation). Turndown capability is largely a function of the blower and its associated drive technology. For an entire system, a wide turndown range is often required to meet varying oxygen demand. With overall systems often demanding turndown capabilities from 4:1 to 10:1, multiple blowers and/or well-thought-out blower control schemes are required.

The purpose of the control system is to match instantaneous air output to the actual air demand in the most efficient manner.

This, of course, implies running the least number of machines and operating them at or near their respective best efficiencies.

A large turndown means that the system will be able to meet the lowest air requirements without wasting energy by idling or bleeding off excess discharge air to the atmosphere. Large turndown also provides additional flexibility and enables the blower system to meet the air requirements in a step-less manner with the minimum number of machines and lowest number of frequency inverters or VFDs. The turndown of each machine must allow for some overlapping (preferably ≥ 5% of the flow of an individual machine). Therefore, a 55% turndown is required for a stable control system, avoiding step-like output strategies or wasting

ROTATING EQUIPMENT/WASTEWATER TREATMENT

Other system variables: upstream and downstream.

impact on power usage and actual flow than the same pressure drop on the discharge side.

It is preferable that the filter be the last element contacted by the inlet air before entering the blower. This is most important in the case of very-high-speed machines such as the turbo and centrifugal blowers. The authors found that most suppliers do not pay much attention to this detail. Yet, there is danger that loose particles from the silencers (or, in the case of standardized turbo +2 x VFD driven +1 x fixed rpm

Power

+1 x VFD driven +1 x fixed rpm 2xVFD 1xVFD

10%

Flow, %

FIG. 9

Example of a 10:1 turndown with three rotary-lobe blowers, two of which are VFD-driven and one driven at fixed speed.

6,000 5,000 4,000 3,000 2,000 1,000 0 1

100%

Typical aeration airflow requirements

scfm

power by blowing-off air to which pressure (energy) has already been imparted.

The number of blowers required depends on the turndown capabilities of each machine and, if a system requires a 4:1 turndown ratio, this can be accomplished with two machines each incorporating only a 2:1 turndown. For ease of control, each machine should be capable of a flow range from 45% to 100% under the most severe conditions, i.e., highest pressure ratio and lowest air density combined.

Example: A 10:1 system turndown can be achieved in two ways (Fig. 9): three blowers, of which at least two have an operating range from 30% to 100% while one can have a constant flow, or five blowers would be required, of which at least two must have a safe operating range from ~ 45% to 100% while three could have constant flow.

In wastewater aeration applications, depending on the aeration control system, the operating pressure will drop slightly as airflow decreases. The main portion of this operating pressure corresponds to the hydrostatic pressure, which remains as constant as the water level. As the machine flow is regulated down, its efficiency will vary. At pressure ratios of 1.5 to 1.7 that are frequently encountered in wastewater aeration, efficient rotarylobe blowers and oil-free screw machines can offer turndown capabilities up to 4:1 of the machine’s flow capability, while special-purpose, high-speed centrifugal blowers offer a turndown up to about 2.2:1 at constant pressure. Standardized high-speed turbo blowers may have a turndown as high as 2.2:1 at constant pressure, but this largely depends on the impeller characteristics, the size fit and the pressure ratio. For all the machines included in our comparison study, the higher the pressure ratio, the smaller the turndown capability.

In virtually all cases, aeration requirements vary in the course of a year (Fig. 10) and turndown capability must be considered in the selection process.

Max. Average Min. 2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

7 to 10 psid

10 to 12 psid

12 to 15 psid

> 15 psid

Continuous operation *** Used for comparison: Aerzen VML and GM blower packages (provided by manufacturer); K-Turbo and Siemens Turbo (based on Website information).

< 7 psid

Inlet air filtration and filter location. Filter cleanliness has Month an important impact on energy consumption. Likewise, filter FIG. 10 Typical wastewater treatment plant air flow variations maintenance frequency affects the maintenance budget. To proover a year. tect both blower rotor and downstream diffuser system, the filter must be fine. But TABLE 4. Quick selection guide fine filters require a large filtration area and/ or more frequent cleaning or replacement. Selection criteria based on standard Machines with high tip speeds, such as high- conditions at blower inlet and flow per individual machine: speed centrifugal blowers and turbo blowers T = Standardized turbo blower (Table 2), are particularly sensitive to par- C = Special-purpose centrifugal blower ticles and droplets in the air stream; they, L = Rotary-lobe blower S = Dry-screw compressor therefore, require very fine filtration.

L LS LST ST ST Although the pressure loss of a clean fil- Flow per machine < 1,000 cfm/30 m3/min L L TS TSC TSC ter may be negligible, dirty filters can easily Flow per machine 1,000 to 8,500 cfm cause an additional 0.5-psi (35-mbar) drop. (30 to 250 m3/min.) with significant In that instance, and at sea level, the result- pressure reduction at partial load L TS TS TSC SC ing increase in compression ratio would be Flow per machine 1,000 to 8,500 cfm in the vicinity of 3%. There would also be (30 to 250 m3/min.) with narrow discharge a similar increase in energy demand. Inlet pressure band L L L L S pressure losses have a much more important Low operating hours/intermittent operation L

LST

TSC

TSC

TSC

Turndown capability for each machine > 55%

L

LS

LS

S

S

Turndown capability for each machine ≤ 55%

L

LS

TLSC

TSC

TSC

Simplicity of controls

L

LS

LS

S

S

HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 83

ROTATING EQUIPMENT/WASTEWATER TREATMENT blowers, from the acoustic enclosure) could enter the blower.

Cleanliness is particularly crucial for high-speed machines and machines with high tip speeds. A few particles can damage an air bearing or cause damage when coming into contact with impellers rotating at tip speeds of 1,000 ft/sec and more. If the filter element is such that dust particles can fall off during the filter change, it is recommended to pay particular attention to dust removal prior to installing the clean filter element. Particles that find their way into the downstream piping will ultimately restrict the air flow in fine bubble diffusers.

Inlet piping and air preheating. For various reasons, engineers often prefer to manifold multiple blower external air inlet piping. Air is thus pulled in from outside a blower room and the incremental inlet pipe pressure losses need to be accounted for in loss calculations. Moreover, inlet air noise abatement may require additional acoustical treatment.

Performance curves: positive-displacement vs. centrifugal-turbo-type blowers 40%

70%

80%

90%

100%

PD @ ...% of maximum speed 100%

Pressure, %

100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 20

90% 80% 70%

30

40

50

60

70 80 Flow, %

90

turbo @ ….% of full speed

100 110 120 130

Centrifugal vs. positive displacement—comparative diagrams of pressure vs. flow characteristics.

FIG. 11

TABLE 5. Energy costs comparison at constant operating pressure 14 psig

11 psig

W2W, kW

Yearly

8 psig

W2W,kW

Yearly

W2W, kW

Yearly

Air flow, icfm

3,300

2,640

1,980

energy,

3,300

2,640

1,980

energy

3,300

2,640

1,980

% operating time

10%

60%

30%

kWh/yr

10%

60%

30%

kWh/yr

10%

60%

30%

energy, kWh/yr

Low-pressure screw

164

129

99

1,072,905

141

107

80

891,765

116

87

64

723,862

Rotary-lobe blower

212

176

140

1,468,798

165

135

107

1,130,507

119

97

76

805,864

Standardized turbo (optimized)

167

134

102

1,108,135

136

112

89

938,428

104

83

65

693,502

W2W includes VFD losses and motor losses for all machines as well as transmission losses for the rotary-lobe blower and the low-pressure screw compressor.

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ROTATING EQUIPMENT/WASTEWATER TREATMENT Some blower packages use the intake air to cool the electric-drive motor and some of the power electronics. The result is a higher amount of energy being used for the same amount of oxygen; the higher air inlet temperature results in lower air density and proportionally lower oxygen mass per unit of air volume. For example: a 20°F increase in inlet temperature results in about 4% lower oxygen mass per cubic foot of air, a 4% lower density, higher discharge temperature, higher air velocity and higher pressure losses.

Discharge check valve and additional flow control valve.

While nearly always required, the discharge check valve is rarely included in a blower package. Whether the pressure loss caused by the check valve has been accounted for is not always clear. The TABLE 6. Data points for the evaluation Data points

Total flow, scfm

Flow per Pressure, Inlet Time machine, scfm psig conditions operating

1

5,100 (maximum) 2,550 (2 units)

9.43

99°F and 78% RH

10%

2

1,900 (minimum) 1,900 (1 unit)

7.72

-5°F and 0% RH

10%

3

4,080 (80%)

2,040 (2 units)

9.43

66°F and 78% RH

20%

4

4,080 (80%)

2,040 (2 units)

7.72

47°F and 0% RH

20%

5

3,060 (60%)

1,530 (2 units)

9.43

66°F and 78% RH

20%

6

3,060 (60%)

1,530 (2 units)

7.72

47°F and 0% RH

20%

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check valve pressure loss should be less than 0.15 psi (10 mbar).

Check valves must have low opening pressure and operate without chatter at reduced flows.

Some control systems—in particular ones used with centrifugal or turbo blowers—make use of a discharge pressure control valve.

This valve receives its signal from the dissolved oxygen (DO) control. Should less oxygen be required, the control valve will restrict total airflow, thereby increasing its upstream pressure. The blower flow control, being set to maintain a constant discharge pressure, will reduce blower flow until the set pressure is reached again. The pressure drop across such a control valve is not negligible (0.3 to 0.5 psi or 20 to 35 mbar). Also, with such a control system, the pressure generated by the blowers remains constant. The process may thus be unable to take advantage of any drop in system pressure at partial flow.

Performance characteristics. Fig. 11 shows how dynamic

compressing machines depend on speed to produce pressure and how pressure relates to the capability of controlling flow. As flow is lowered, the resulting pressure rise becomes progressively less.

In other words, near the left extreme of a flow-versus-pressurerise curve, small changes in pressure might indicate significant changes in flow.

The graph also illustrates how, while there is a pronounced relationship between speed and flow in positive-displacement machines, the influence that speed has on discharge pressure capability is relatively minor.

Efficiency diagram.*** Fig. 12 shows the efficiency vs. flow diagrams at a constant 10 psig pressure for the various types of blowers compared in this article.

Efficiency range for various manufacturers of the same equipment type. There is a relatively wide spread of energy efficiency values—as high as 15%—among products of the same type but from different manufacturers.

Positive-displacement machine efficiency depends largely on the operating clearances between rotors and between rotors and housing. Screw compressors that are designed for higher pressures will also work at low pressure but they will not be as efficient and their vibration level will be higher than screw compressors designed specifically for low pressure.

There are also differences in the efficiency of the standardized turbo blowers, depending on the specific fit of a standardized

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Typical overall efficiency graphs for various blower types at constant pressure

Standardized turbo Rotary-lobe blower 40

50

Low-pressure screw Special-purpose centrifugal

60 70 Full volume flow

80

90

Efficiency vs. flow at constant pressure for the various blower types.

100

ROTATING EQUIPMENT/WASTEWATER TREATMENT impeller to a given set of conditions. The package design also greatly influences energy usage. In some cases, the intake air is preheated by the heat rejected by the motor or even the entire package, resulting in a drop in performance. Belt-drive tension can be maintained by manual, partially automatic or fully automatic means. Fully automatic belt tensioners are the only ones that will maintain peak equipment efficiency without frequent maintenance intervention.

Regardless of blower technology, the engineer must know that not every manufacturer includes all pressure losses across the various accessories. While it should be evident that mechanical and/or electrical drive losses should be reflected in the stipulated performance data, some manufacturers forget to account for these losses.

ties become high, plants usually consider adding capacitors to correct (i.e., increase) the power factor. VFDs allow power-factor corrections approaching unity.

Single-stage, high-speed centrifugal blowers feature a speedincreasing gear with their high-speed shafts on hydrodynamic bearings. These require pressure lubrication. The oil pump power needs to be added to the blower power.

The power required to drive cooling fans is not included, but needs to be added. Some manufacturers do not include a check valve in their standard package. Its pressure loss must TABLE 7. Power required for each blower type for each data point

PD blower

BHP per Machine Screw compressor

Standardized turbo blower

155

137

132

Drive system. In addition to the machine thermodynamic

characteristics, the drive system needs to be considered.

Drive efficiencies. Much is said about drives. Here are some facts: • Narrow, cogged V-belt drives: a. 98% to 97% efficient when optimally sized, constantly properly aligned and tensioned b. Worst case: 90% efficient, resulting from over-sizing, poor design, lack of tension or poor alignment c. Advantage: speed selection and motor sizing flexibility for best efficiency • Speed-increasing gears: a. 97 to 99% efficient b. Advantage: speed selection and motor sizing flexibility for best efficiency; reliable and low maintenance • Frequency inverter: a. 95% to 98% efficient average; however, the efficiency is not constant over the entire operation range. The total drive efficiency will vary with speed and load. b. Moreover, the inverter and the motor influence each other, as mentioned in research papers. c. Some VFD types and applications may limit the distance between the VFD and the motor.

• Asynchronous induction motors: a. > 95% for premium efficiency motors at 100 hp and above b. Efficiency drops as the load drops c. Power factor drops as the load drops, however, the power factor is corrected with the use of a frequency inverter.

• Permanent-magnet motors: a. Permanent-magnet motors used on high-speed turbo blowers are custom. Their efficiency is slightly better than that of premium-efficiency asynchronous motors. Only little information is available on their performance. b. Magnetism may be affected at higher temperatures and exposure to magnetic fields; sufficient cooling is critical: Some manufacturers require air conditioning of the blower enclosure; some require motor water cooling above a certain power rating. c. Distance between VFD and motor is limited.

Power-factor issues and other points to consider.

For induction motors, power factor drops with decreasing load and speed; synchronous motors (for example with permanent magnets) operate at improved power factors. An electric utility may assess a power-factor penalty if the plant operates at a power factor that is less than some predefined limit. The power-factor penalty is usually billed as an additional demand charge. If penal-

Data points 1 2

71

68

67

3

111

100

98

4

85

81

80

5

85

76

75

6

65

61

62

TABLE 8. Energy costs comparison Rotary-lobe blower

Screw compressor

Standardized turbo blower

$207,569

$184,117

$181,493

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ROTATING EQUIPMENT be included. The power loss of integral-gear drives are usually included in the blower performance data, while belt-drive losses often need to be added.

Finally, the applicable testing codes and procedures differ for the various blower types and invoking the wrong one has introduced serious inaccuracies. Working with a competent blower manufacturer will prove of great value in avoiding inaccuracies and misunderstandings.

Larger flow per machine > 8,500 cfm/250 m3/min can best be compressed with a special-purpose centrifugal blower or, if the pressure is low or the turndown requirement is low, a multistage centrifugal blower.

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Energy usage example for three blower types. Table

5 compares energy costs at constant operating pressure.

Evaluation in a typical application with multiple machines.

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System Submersion: Piping pressure loss: Diffuser head loss: Allowance (diffuser fouling and reserve for emergencies): Inlet filter pressure loss clean/contaminated: Allowance for stagnation Discharge check valve pressure loss Design pressure:

15 ft (6.63 psi) 0.5 psi 0.5 psi 0.75 psi 0.1/0.75 psi 0.75 psi 0.2 psi 9.43 psig

Discharge control valve pressure loss 0.5 psi Design compression ratio: 1.73 Operating pressure new/clean system: 7.72 psig Operating compression ratio new/clean system: 1.55 Lowest normal air density (99°F/60% RH): 0.069 lb/ft3 Extreme low air density (115°F/36% RH): 0.068 lb/ft3 Highest normal air density (–5 °F/36% RH): 0.086 lb/ft3 Maximum annual airflow requirement: 5,100 scfm Minimum annual airflow requirement: 1,900 scfm Two operating units and one standby unit are desired.

Each blower unit should be designed to handle 2,550 scfm at 9.43 psig during the worst-case site ambient conditions.

Annual energy costs Assumptions: • Electricity cost = $ 0.12 per kW-hour • Motor efficiency = 95% for all machines • VFD efficiency = 97% for all machines • Belt-drive efficiency = 97% for the PD blower Notes. The Office of Industrial Technologies of the US Department of Energy has published a useful guide for calculating the life cycle costs of pumps (http://www.eere.energy.gov/industry).

We believe that the guide can be adapted to aeration blowers as well. HP

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ADVERTISERS in this issue of HYDROCARBON PROCESSING Company Website

Page

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(64)

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Maxon Corporation . . . . . . . . . . . . .45 (160)

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Linde AG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

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(87)

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Curtiss-Wright Flow Control Corp . . . 6-7

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Altair Strickland. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14

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For information about subscribing to HYDROCARBON PROCESSING, please visit www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com HYDROCARBON PROCESSING APRIL 2010

I 93

HPIN CONTROL PIERRE R. LATOUR, GUEST COLUMNIST sr2@msn.com

Process control practice renewal 2010 Allan Kern, Zak Friedman and I have offered numerous ideas to strengthen the practice of process control.1-4 Allan Kern inaugurated a fundamental assessment of process control engineering practice in the HPI since 1990.2 His experience maintaining control systems in multiple refineries reveals that many challenges remain. He offered an excellent summary of what we have learned.2 He reports the base layer, Field in Fig. 1, is healthy but not sufficiently functional. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It is clearer every year that focus on the base layer is the most urgent and promising strategy, and greatest opportunity, to bring about fundamental improvements in operation and reliability going forward.â&#x20AC;? The only way to build is from the bottom up.

Kern may be right, but identifying and curing the root cause of failure is fundamental. I hope to supplement Kernâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s recommendations with my own, as a consultant to many refineries for short periods since 1966. I see an opportunity to renew the practice of process control engineering in the new decade by analyzing the primary causes of the disappointing performance shortfalls across all layers of Fig. 1 and correcting basic flaws in the engineering approach from the top-layer DSS down.1 Kern and I will try to strengthen our profession and HPI operations.

I place much blame on flawed logic used to quantify the financial value of all process control and associated operationsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; IT since 1970 that caused crippling disconnects between the layers. I shall promote the view of an architect before construction begins beyond after the house has been lived in, an engineer before a bridge is built beyond after the bridge is used, a chef before dinner is prepared beyond after guests have dessert. I shall emphasize identifying, capturing and sustaining significant value from any process operation tool, technology or solution. The span of Fig. 1 is from basic measurements and actuators to refinery IT economics. Proper goals, measurable performance, risks and costs, including manpower, will count every step of the way. This is not quite a top-down approach; itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s holistic.

insufficient tangible value (because it costs too much to fix and maintain or doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t do much good) or engineers have failed to properly quantify that value to justify maintenance and improvement while piling on more layers. When the base layer is too far removed from the DSS to run the plant properly and influence its financial performance, people often resort to simple Faith Theory3 claims that have worn thin long ago. When they do attempt to relate base-layer activity to process performance, they use flawed logic,4 losing credibility. In other words, if the financial case for the healthy field layer Kern desires is clear and compelling, it should be made and confirmed regularly.

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s like justifying tires without considering the value of the car, lettuce without considering the salad and entrĂŠe. As Kern affirms,2 it cannot be done in isolation.

Engineering practice renewal approach. The engineering practice renewal approach starts at the beginning, combining all layers. â&#x20AC;˘ Agree on how to operate HPI processes properly. All we can do is select appropriate CV/KPI response variables, measure them and modify their means and variances (distribution) to suit our purposes. â&#x20AC;˘ Agree on the purpose of HPI operations: maximum expected value profit rate. â&#x20AC;˘ Define the economic tradeoff sensitivity for every CV/KPI, to allow alignment with the plantâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s economic environment. â&#x20AC;˘ Relate the main process control functions, components and layers to CV mean or variance changes, and those changes to average profit rate.

It is clear that focus from the top DSS layer is a promising strategy to bring about fundamental improvements in operation and reliability going forward, with all layers. Analysis before synthesis, always. In the end, Kern and I will unite to provide guidelines for renewing the practice of process control engineering during refinery golden ages and struggles. HP

Why the base layer has been weak. First, consider why the base layer has been so weak for so long. Either it adds 1

DSS

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MPC

t .VMUJWBSJBCMF QSFEJDUJWF DPOUSPM

DCS/SIS Field FIG. 1

94

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Automation layers.

I APRIL 2010 HYDROCARBON PROCESSING

2 3

4

LITERATURE CITED Kern, Allan, â&#x20AC;&#x153;More on APC designs for minimum maintenance,â&#x20AC;? HP, Dec. 2009.

Kern, Allan, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Back to the Future: A Process Control Strategy for 2010,â&#x20AC;? HP, Feb. 2010.

Latour, P.R., â&#x20AC;&#x153;Demise and keys to the rise of process control,â&#x20AC;? HP, March 2006, pp. 71â&#x20AC;&#x201C;80 and Letters to Editor, Process Control, HP, June 2006, p.

42.

Latour, P.R., â&#x20AC;&#x153;Process control: CLIFFTENT shows itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s more profitable than Expected,â&#x20AC;? HP, December 1996, pp. 75â&#x20AC;&#x201C;80. Republished in Kane, Les, Ed., Advanced Process Control and Information Systems for the Process Industries, Gulf Publishing Co. 1999, pp.31â&#x20AC;&#x201C;37.

The author, president of CLIFFTENT Inc., is an independent consulting chemical engineer specializing in identifying, capturing and sustaining measurable financial value from HPI dynamic process control, IT and CIM solutions (CLIFFTENT) using performance-based shared riskâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;shared reward (SR2) technology licensing.

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CONTENTS Advertising Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30â&#x20AC;&#x201C;31

BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

Cheryl Willis

Visit the Software Reference Website: www.gulfpub.com/gpc/

Refining, Petrochemical and Gas Processing . . . . . . . . . .19 SIS/Safety Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 Training . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

Budgeting, Capital Allocation & Planning . . . . . . . . . . . .4 Business Integration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 Enterprise Operations Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

MIDSTREAM Estimating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

Land and Leasing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 Plant Lifecycle and Performance Monitoring . . . . . . . . . .5 Regulatory Compliance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

UPSTREAM Alarm Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22

Risk Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 Asset Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22

DOWNSTREAM Alarm Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

Data Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23 Data Visualization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

Asset Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Collaboration and Knowledge Capture . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 Design, Construction and Engineering . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

Design, Construction and Engineering. . . . . . . . . . . . . .24 Exploration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

Dynamic Simulation and Optimization . . . . . . . . . . . . .11 Field Data Capture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25 Energy Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11 Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26 Enterprise Portal Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11 Online Monitoring & Optimization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Process Control and Information Systems . . . . . . . . . . .26 Process Engineering and Simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27

Planning, Scheduling and Blending . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 Predictive Maintenance and Repair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Production Accounting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28

Process Control and Information Systems . . . . . . . . . . .16 Production Optimization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 Process Engineering and Simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17 Well Log Data Access and Management . . . . . . . . . . . . .29

S P R I N G 2010

SOFTWARE REFERENCE

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Business Management BUDGETING, CAPITAL ALLOCATION AND PLANNING

U PSTREA M / D OWN STREA M SOFTWA RE REFERENCE

Company Bio m:pro IT Consult is a project services and software products company which enables petroleum refining, petrochemical and other industries to achieve total integration of information sources and applications, from business systems, ERP and supply chain management through to plant information, production planning, scheduling and operations decision support.

Products:

3esi #200, 1601 Westmount Road N.W. Calgary, Alberta T2N 3M2 Canada Phone: 403-270-3270 Fax: 403-270-3343 E-mail: info@3esi.com www.3esi.com

Company Bio: 3esi is an international E&P, Software and Services Company committed to serving the Oil and Gas industry by creating Integrated Business Planning and Capital Management Software Solutions designed to increase efficiency by streamlining all of the processes associated with the Oil and Gas Value Chain.

Products: esi.manage™ is an Integrated Business Planning and Capital Management solution that supports the E&P processes focused on managing the portfolio of opportunities (projects) from the planning stages through execution and lookbacks. esi.manage™ allows companies to collect and analyze opportunities, perform portfolio analysis in order to create Long Term Plans and Budgets. esi.manage™ offers the capability of importing actuals from 3rd party applications to allow companies to prepare variance reports and perform look-backs analysis. esi.manage™ improves an E&P companies business results through superior decision making due to enhanced corporate agility and improved data quality; by entrenching best practices and key business processes and by improving workforce effectiveness. www.info.hotims.com/30874-401

BUSINESS INTEGRATION

m:pro IT Consult GmbH Kirchgasse 47 65183 Wiesbaden Germany Phone: +49 611 39843 0 Fax: +49 611 39843 12 E-mail: info@mpro-it.com www.mpro-it.com 4

SOFTWARE REFERENCE

m:pro delivers enterprise wide or point solutions - easy and fast to implement - which truly integrate the production and business applications required to manage the overall assets. m:pro enables, consult and assists business process improvements, especially for refining supply chain management (SCM).

The m:pro Integration Platform (m:ip) provides the total integration of information sources and applications including ERP, planning, scheduling, functional databases, plant information systems, forecasting in a phased justified approach. The m:ip enables and improves the use of best-in-class software, plant and business applications = asset maximization.

The m:pro object warehouse (m:owh) is our integration, data storage/management, and business intelligence back-end. The m:owh is based on standard and open relational database technology.

The m:pro explorer (m:exp) is our feature rich, fully web-enabled common graphical user interface including build and administration tools. The m:exp can run as the portal or can seamlessly be embedded in popular web portal environments. m:pro provides standard applications/interfaces for: • Production planning, scheduling and blending • Performance monitoring and dashboards • Data and process quality • Information analysis, visualization, flowsheeting, trending and reporting Featured applications/interfaces are: • Analyzer Monitoring • Blend Monitoring and Reporting • Crude Composition Tracking • Crude Scheduling • GRTMPS Planning Interface • Heat Exchanger Monitoring • KPIs, Operating Envelops, Plan vs Actual • Lab Interface and Reporting • LP Data Collector • Oil Movement Logging • ORION Scheduling Interface • PIMS Planning Interface • Quality Tracking • Tank Calculation System www.info.hotims.com/30874-402

ENTERPRISE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT

Oildex 1999 Broadway, Suite 1900 Denver, Colorado 80202 Phone: 303-863-8600 Toll Free: 888-922-1222 Fax: 303-863-0505 E-mail: info@oildex.com www.oildex.com Other Oildex Office Locations: 11777 Katy Freeway, Suite 350 Houston, Texas 77079 Phone: 281-741-6300 Fax: 281-741-6296

Company Bio: Oildex is the energy industry’s leading provider of ePayables, digital data, workflow, and spend analysis solutions. With Oildex, companies can do more in less time, and managers can get upto-the-minute data to help them make well-informed decisions. That’s why today, more than 8,400 companies depend on Oildex to receive and process their electronic invoices, check stubs, and joint interest bills.

Service products & descriptions: Oildex provides software solutions to companies looking to get the most out of their resources, so they can quickly and accurately process, track, and manage critical business information. Oildex is the energy industry leader when it comes to supplying digital data, workflow, and spend analysis solutions to companies that want to boost productivity and cut costs.

Proven Technology to Transform the Business of Energy: Spendworks™ - Oildex’s ePayables (EIPP) system for simplifying the way companies manage invoices and track spending.

Checkstub Connect™ (CDEX) – The industry’s largest eRevenue data exchange which speedsup the processing of check stub data.

JIB Connect™ - Oildex’s ePayables, joint interest bill exchange for automating JIB processing and eliminating routine monthly data entry.

CDEX Complete™ - The industry’s only eRevenue solution to address time-consuming check stub detail. It eliminates hand-keying and converts paper check stub data into a digital, uploadable format.

Owner Relations Connect™ - Oildex’s eInformation, owner-relations tool for providing se-

SPRING 2010

UPS TR EAM / D OW N S T R E A M S OF T WA RE REFEREN CE cure web access to monthly statements of revenue, production, gas balance, JIBs, frequently asked questions, and more.

Oildex Helps Energy Companies: • Save time & work smart • Spot opportunities • Cut up to 70% of processing costs • Track revenue & expenses • Collaborate via the Internet

Business Management

profitable decisions about petroleum plays.

From reserve and production data through to full-cycle economics, petroCUBE gives you immediate access to a full spectrum of current geostatistical, technical and financial information and comprehensive analytical tools. petroCUBE instantly delivers the data engineers and geologists need to accurately assess risk and justify exploration and development proposals before wells are drilled. www.info.hotims.com/30874-404

www.info.hotims.com/30874-403

LAND AND LEASING

PLANT LIFECYCLE AND PERFORMANCE MONITORING

geoLOGIC systems ltd.

m:pro IT Consult GmbH

900, 703 6 Avenue SW Calgary, AB Canada T2P 0T9 Phone: 403 262-1992 Fax: 403-262-1987 E-mail: sales@geologic.com www.geologic.com Andrea Hood, VP Business Development & Sales

Kirchgasse 47 65183 Wiesbaden Germany Phone: +49 611 39843 0 Fax: +49 611 39843 12 E-mail: info@mpro-it.com www.mpro-it.com

Company Bio: m:pro IT Consult is a project services and software products company which enables petroleum refining, petrochemical and other industries to achieve total integration of information sources and applications, from business systems, ERP and supply chain management through to plant information, production planning, scheduling and operations decision support.

Products: m:pro delivers enterprise wide or point solutions easy and fast to implement - which truly integrate the production and business applications required to manage the overall assets. m:pro enables, consult and assists business process improvements, especially for refining supply chain management (SCM).

The m:pro Integration Platform (m:ip) provides the total integration of information sources and applications including ERP, planning, scheduling, functional databases, plant information systems, forecasting in a phased justified approach. The m:ip enables and improves the use of best-in-class software, plant and business applications = asset maximization.

The m:pro object warehouse (m:owh) is our integration, data storage/management, and business intelligence back-end. The m:owh is based on standard and open relational database technology.

The m:pro explorer (m:exp) is our feature rich, fully web-enabled common graphical user in-

Company Bio: geoLOGIC systems ltd. provides well data and integrated software solutions to the energy and production industry. The company is an innovator in supplying data in more accessible and usable forms so clients can make better decisions - from the well head to senior levels of accounting and administration.

Products: geoSCOUTTM is a fully integrated, Windowsbased exploratory system that combines presentation-quality mapping and cross-section tools with data handling and analysis software. It integrates public and proprietary data on wells, well logs (Raster and LAS), land, pipelines and facilities, fields and pools, and seismic studies. It includes powerful, easyto-use tools for searching, viewing, mapping, reporting, graphing, analysis and managing information.

The gDCTM (geoLOGIC Data Center) is an online exploration information system that gives users instant access, through their choice of software, to high quality data in the open Public Petroleum Data Model. Extremely fast and reliable, the gDC gives access to general well data, including geoLOGIC Tops, Original Operator data, DST and other well test data, directional well data, land data, and LAS and Raster log data. petroCUBETM is an innovative suite of products that provide unbiased, consistent statistical insights that can help you make more Select 402 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS 5

Business Management PLANT LIFECYCLE AND PERFORMANCE MONITORING, CONT. terface including build and administration tools. The m:exp can run as the portal or can seamlessly be embedded in popular web portal environments. m:pro provides standard applications/interfaces for: • Production planning, scheduling and blending • Performance monitoring and dashboards • Data and process quality • Information analysis, visualization, flowsheeting, trending and reporting Featured applications/interfaces are: • Analyzer Monitoring • Blend Monitoring and Reporting • Crude Composition Tracking • Crude Scheduling • GRTMPS Planning Interface • Heat Exchanger Monitoring • KPIs, Operating Envelops, Plan vs Actual • Lab Interface and Reporting • LP Data Collector • Oil Movement Logging • ORION Scheduling Interface • PIMS Planning Interface • Quality Tracking • Tank Calculation System www.info.hotims.com/30874-402

REGULATORY COMPLIANCE

U PSTREA M / D OWN STREA M SOFTWARE REFERENCE

Section VIII, Division 1 pressure vessel calculations. This includes the U.S. Customary and Metric Editions of Section II, Part D as well as a selection of Building Codes and related Engineering Standards.

To tailor COMPRESS to your needs, the following optional modules are available: • ASME Section VIII, Division 2 • Heat Exchangers (includes TEMA Standard, ASME UHX rules, tube field layout capability and bi-directional interface with HTRI’s Xchanger Suite) • Drafter (converts COMPRESS files into AutoCAD drawings) • Coster (creates Excel compatible vessel cost estimates) COMPRESS generates both detailed and abbreviated reports, the former suitable for use as a calculation audit trail. COMPRESS also generates ASME U forms and NBIC R forms.

Once finalized, forms can be saved in PDF or EDT compliant format. EDT compliant files can be directly submitted to the National Board electronically. To simplify document management, a new “Project” feature allows users to organize, view and backup files of any type from within COMPRESS. Visit www.codeware.com to download your complimentary COMPRESS trial software today. www.info.hotims.com/30874-405

RISK MANAGEMENT Codeware, Inc. Codeware, Inc. 5224 Station Way Sarasota, FL 34233 United States Phone: (941) 927-2670 Fax: (941) 927-2459 E-mail: inquiries@codeware.com www.codeware.com

Company Bio: Since 1985, Codeware has focused exclusively on providing the most comprehensive software for the design and analysis of ASME vessels and exchangers. Codeware’s Austin, Texas based development team has the expertise needed to understand the complexities of the Code rules and the practical experience required to implement an effective solution.

Products: Let COMPRESS be your expert assistant.

From individual components to complex multiple diameter towers, COMPRESS can model virtually any geometry.

The standard functionality of COMPRESS includes everything needed to perform ASME

6

SOFTWARE REFERENCE

SPRING 2010

The Equity Engineering Group, Inc. 20600 Chagrin Blvd., Suite 1200 Shaker Heights, OH 44122 Phone: 216-283-9519 Fax: 216-283-6022 E-mail: gcalvarado@eng.com www.equityeng.com Greg Alvarado, VP Sales and Client Service

Company Bio: The Equity Engineering Group, Inc. is a recognized leader on aging infrastructure fixed equipment service and support for the oil and gas industry. Equity helps plants manage risk and improve profitability with cutting-edge software and consulting strategies that maximize equipment operational availability, control inspection costs and avoid costly shutdowns.

Products: API RBI Software is the industry standard for plant risk management, developed through the

API consensus standards process and documented in API 581. It provides risk values and metrics for equipment, enabling plants to identify areas of potential failure and prioritize inspection dollars based on measured risk. Modules include fixed equipment, heat exchanger bundles, atmospheric storage tanks, and pressure relief systems.

VCESage™ is a collection of modules providing an easy-to-use computerized design/analysis resource consistent with the new API 579-1/ ASME FFS-1 standard. The modules enable users to review and/or analyze existing and new equipment for structural integrity, code compliance, re-rating and remaining life evaluations.

VCEDamage Mechanisms™ is a quick reference guide to identify the potential damage mechanisms that can cause equipment failure.

It guides users through the damage mechanism identification process, helps in selecting the best inspection method for each damage type, and provides simplified Process Flow Diagrams showing where damage will likely occur.

VCEIntelliJoint™ offers a total solution to bolted joint leakage with the latest advanced bolted joint technology, including assembly procedures and gasket test results. The program provides industry best practice gasket specifications and incorporates knowledge in areas required to effectively identify the root cause of a leakage problem.

Training: Equity Engineering offers software training for the API RBI and VCESage™ programs, as well as training in other engineering disciplines. The software courses, designed to help both the novice and experienced user make more effective use of the software, emphasize both hands-on training and in-class example problems. Public courses are held at E2G offices in Cleveland and Houston, or private courses can be held at your site. To find out more about E2G training courses, go to www.equityeng.com. www.info.hotims.com/30874-406

UPS TR EAM / D OW N S T R E A M S OF T WA RE REFEREN CE

ALARM MANAGEMENT Yokogawa Electric Corporation World Headquarters 9-32, Nakacho 2-chrome, Musashino-shi, Tokyo 180-8750, Japan www.yokogawa.com

Suite improves operator performance by minimizing nuisance alarms and providing timely notification of only necessary alarms, thereby preventing alarm flooding and enabling safe, stable and cost effective plant operations. www.info.hotims.com/30874-407

ASSET MANAGEMENT

Yokogawa Corp. of America 12530 West Airport Blvd, Sugar Land, TX 77478 www.yokogawa.com/us

Yokogawa Europe B.V. Databankweg 20 3821 AL Amersfoort, The Netherlands www.yokogawa.com/eu

Yokogawa Engineering Asia PTE. LTD. 5 Bedok South Road, Singapore 469270, Singapore www.yokogawa.com/sg

Yokogawa Electric China Co., LTD. 22nd Floor Shanghai Oriental Centre 31 Wujiang Road (699 Nanjing West Road) Jing’an District, Shanghai 200041, China Phone: 86-21-5211-0877 Fax: 86-21-5211-0299

Company Bio: Yokogawa Corporation of America is the North American unit of US $4 billion Yokogawa Electric Corporation, a global leader in the manufacture and supply of instrumentation, process control, and automation solutions. Headquartered in Newnan, GA., Yokogawa Corporation of America serves a diverse customer base with market-leading products including analyzers, flow meters, transmitters, controllers, recorders, data acquisition products, meters, instruments, safety instrumented systems, distributed control systems and more.

Products: CAMS - Yokogawa’s Consolidated Alarm Management System (CAMS) is an alarm management software designed on the innovative concept of acquiring real-time alarms and events from a variety of various automation systems - not only from Distributed Control Systems (DCS) but also Safety Instrumented Systems (SIS), Supervisory and Data Acquisition Systems (SCADA and DAQ) and Plant Asset Management Systems (PAM); then to sort and deliver only essential alarms to the right person at the right time.

Important information such as the root cause of alarm occurrence and role-based guidance are also added to the displayed message.

AAASuite - AAASuite is a comprehensive alarm management system that optimizes and enhances process alarms issued by control systems. AAA-

The Equity Engineering Group, Inc.

Downstream provides industry best practice gasket specifications and incorporates knowledge in areas required to effectively identify the root cause of a leakage problem.

Training: Equity Engineering offers software training for the API RBI and VCESage™ programs, as well as training in other engineering disciplines. The software courses, designed to help both the novice and experienced user make more effective use of the software, emphasize both hands-on training and in-class example problems. Public courses are held at E2G offices in Cleveland and Houston, or private courses can be held at your site. To find out more about E2G training courses, go to www.equityeng.com. www.info.hotims.com/30874-406

20600 Chagrin Blvd., Suite 1200 Shaker Heights, OH 44122 Phone: 216-283-9519 Fax: 216-283-6022 E-mail: gcalvarado@eng.com www.equityeng.com Greg Alvarado, VP Sales and Client Service

Company Bio: The Equity Engineering Group, Inc. is a recognized leader on aging infrastructure fixed equipment service and support for the oil and gas industry. Equity helps plants manage risk and improve profitability with cutting-edge software and consulting strategies that maximize equipment operational availability, control inspection costs and avoid costly shutdowns.

Products: API RBI Software is the industry standard for plant risk management, developed through the API consensus standards process and documented in API 581. It provides risk values and metrics for equipment, enabling plants to identify areas of potential failure and prioritize inspection dollars based on measured risk. Modules include fixed equipment, heat exchanger bundles, atmospheric storage tanks, and pressure relief systems.

VCESage™ is a collection of modules providing an easy-to-use computerized design/analysis resource consistent with the new API 579-1/ ASME FFS-1 standard. The modules enable users to review and/or analyze existing and new equipment for structural integrity, code compliance, re-rating and remaining life evaluations.

VCEDamage Mechanisms™ is a quick reference guide to identify the potential damage mechanisms that can cause equipment failure.

It guides users through the damage mechanism identification process, helps in selecting the best inspection method for each damage type, and provides simplified Process Flow Diagrams showing where damage will likely occur.

VCEIntelliJoint™ offers a total solution to bolted joint leakage with the latest advanced bolted joint technology, including assembly procedures and gasket test results. The program

KBC Advanced Technologies, Inc. (Regional Office in AMERICAS) 15021 Katy Freeway, Suite 600 Houston, TX 77094 Phone: 281-293-8200 Fax: 281-616-0900 E-mail: answers@kbcat.com www.kbcat.com/Products-and-Services/ Software/Simulation-Software/ KBC Regional Office Locations EMEA: + 44 (0)1932 242424 ASIA:+ 65 6735 5488

Company Bio: Since 1979, KBC consultants have provided independent advice and expertise to enable leading companies in the global energy business and other processing industries manage risk while maximizing the value from their assets.

In times of economic uncertainty and increasing environmental pressure, the KBC proprietary methodologies and innovative tools guide clients’ key strategic decisions, prioritize and implement initiatives that maximize return on investment, and improve operational performance. For more information, visit www.kbcat.com.

Products: KBC offers a wide range of software and associated services, from detailed reactor unit modeling to refinery-wide simulation. At the operations level, KBC SIM models are used in performance monitoring, troubleshooting and optimization, such as cycle-length optimization.

Petro-SIM® and Petro-SIM Express are the full-featured, KBC graphical process simulators, featuring industry-proven process models. Petro-SIM and Petro-SIM Express include S P R I N G 2010

SOFTWARE REFERENCE

7

Downstream ASSET MANAGEMENT, CONT. general-purpose unit operations, an extensive component library, a range of thermodynamics packages, and innovative methods to fully integrate the software with plant information systems, databases, Excel, and the LP. KBC offers unsurpassed model breath and depth that lets you truly model any part of the refinery.

Our industry-leading KBC SIM Suite reactor models include: FCC-SIM™ (Fluid Cat Cracking), HCR-SIM™ (Hydrocracker), REF-SIM™ (Reformer), HTR-SIM™ (Hydrotreater Series), DCSIM™ (Delayed Coker), ALK-SIM™ (Alkylation unit) and VIS-SIM™ (Visbreaker). New additions include ISOM-SIM™ (C6 Isomerization), AROM-SIM™ (Xylene Isomerization and Aromatics Transalkylation) and Olefin-SIM™ (for pyrolysis furnace modeling). www.info.hotims.com/30874-409

Yokogawa Electric Corporation World Headquarters 9-32, Nakacho 2-chrome, Musashino-shi, Tokyo 180-8750, Japan www.yokogawa.com

Yokogawa Corp. of America 12530 West Airport Blvd, Sugar Land, TX 77478 www.yokogawa.com/us

Yokogawa Europe B.V. Databankweg 20 3821 AL Amersfoort, The Netherlands www.yokogawa.com/eu

Yokogawa Engineering Asia PTE. LTD. 5 Bedok South Road, Singapore 469270, Singapore www.yokogawa.com/sg

Yokogawa Electric China Co., LTD. 22nd Floor Shanghai Oriental Centre 31 Wujiang Road (699 Nanjing West Road) Jing’an District, Shanghai 200041, China Phone: 86-21-5211-0877 Fax: 86-21-5211-0299

Company Bio: Yokogawa Corporation of America is the North American unit of US $4 billion Yokogawa Electric Corporation, a global leader in the manufacture and supply of instrumentation, process control, and automation solutions. Headquartered in Newnan, GA., Yokogawa Corporation of America serves a diverse customer base with market-leading products including analyzers, flow meters, transmitters, controllers, recorders, data acquisition products, meters, instruments, safety instrumented systems, distributed control systems and more.

8

SOFTWARE REFERENCE

SPRING 2010

U PSTREA M / D OWN STREA M SOFTWARE REFERENCE

Products: PRM™ - Plant Resource Manager (PRM) is a real-time instrument device maintenance and management software package that provides a platform for advanced instrument diagnostics. PRM is an integrated software solution that unifies the monitored data from intelligent and non-intelligent field devices running within Yokogawa’s CENTUM VP and STARDOM control systems or as a stand-alone solution. The key feature of PRM is that it provides easy access to automatically collected data from field networks such as Foundation Fieldbus, and HART allowing integration, management and maintenance these devices using a common database.

PRM provides integrated plant and device performance data, maintenance records, audit trails, device configuration with auto-device detection, historic data management, parameter comparison, advanced device diagnostics information, and access to on-line documentation such as device drawings, parts list and manuals in a client server architecture that provides information to multiple users within a plant facility. It provides the ability to adjust the parameters of intelligent devices online and allows comparison of the current data to historical data of a device.

Fieldmate™ - FieldMate™ is an asset management software developed for portable laptop computers that provides configuration and maintenance of intelligent field devices. Fieldmate™ supports the use of open interface Field Device Tool (FDT) technology to facilitate the configuration and adjustment of field devices such as sensors and valves at production sites, regardless of the manufacturer or the communication protocols. Fieldmate™ also supports Electronic Device Description Language (EDDL) interface technology.

With its device navigation and device maintenance information management features, this software relieves users of the difficulties with dealing with a variety of communication protocols and configuration methods from multiple manufacturers which used different configurators and/or multiple configuration procedures. www.info.hotims.com/30874-407

COLLABORATION AND KNOWLEDGE CAPTURE Yokogawa Electric Corporation World Headquarters 9-32, Nakacho 2-chrome, Musashino-shi, Tokyo 180-8750, Japan www.yokogawa.com

Yokogawa Corp. of America 12530 West Airport Blvd, Sugar Land, TX 77478 www.yokogawa.com/us

Yokogawa Europe B.V. Databankweg 20 3821 AL Amersfoort, The Netherlands www.yokogawa.com/eu

Yokogawa Engineering Asia PTE. LTD. 5 Bedok South Road, Singapore 469270, Singapore www.yokogawa.com/sg

Yokogawa Electric China Co., LTD. 22nd Floor Shanghai Oriental Centre 31 Wujiang Road (699 Nanjing West Road) Jing’an District, Shanghai 200041, China Phone: 86-21-5211-0877 Fax: 86-21-5211-0299

Company Bio: Yokogawa Corporation of America is the North American unit of US $4 billion Yokogawa Electric Corporation, a global leader in the manufacture and supply of instrumentation, process control, and automation solutions. Headquartered in Newnan, GA., Yokogawa Corporation of America serves a diverse customer base with market-leading products including analyzers, flow meters, transmitters, controllers, recorders, data acquisition products, meters, instruments, safety instrumented systems, distributed control systems and more.

Products: Exapilot - Exapilot is a patented Advanced Operation Efficiency Improvement software package that plant operators use to develop a structured methodology of operating certain standard procedures. Exapilot makes it possible to incorporate the know-how and plant operation expertise of experienced operators in automated plant operation procedures that ensure standard and uniform plant operation. By enforcing a common and structured operating methodology, Exapilot helps plants run more efficiently and safely. www.info.hotims.com/30874-407

UPS TR EAM / D OW N S T R E A M S OF T WA RE REFEREN CE

DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION AND ENGINEERING

Chemstations, Inc. 2901 Wilcrest, Suite 305 Houston, TX 77042 Toll Free: 800-243-6223 Phone: 713-978-7700 Fax: 713-978-7727 E-mail: sales@chemstations.net www.Chemstations.net Steve Brown, V.P. Sales/Marketing

Company Bio: With offices worldwide, Chemstations is a leading global supplier of process simulation software for the following process industries; Oil & Gas, Petrochemicals, Chemicals, and Fine Chemicals, including Pharmaceuticals. We currently offer several individually licensed, and tightly integrated, technologies to address the needs of the chemical engineer, whether doing new process design or working in the plant.

Products: CC-STEADY STATE Chemical Process Simulation Software - Includes database of chemical components, thermodynamic methods, and unit operations to allow steady state simulation of continuous chemical processes from lab scale to full scale.

CC-DYNAMICS Dynamic Process Simulation Software - Takes your steady state simulations to the next level of fidelity to allow dynamic analysis of your flowsheet. The combination of two pieces of software, CC-ReACS and CCDCOLUMN make CC-DYNAMICS the dynamic simulator of choice.

CC-BATCH Batch Distillation Simulation Software - As an add-on or stand alone program, CC-BATCH makes batch distillation simulation and design easy with intuitive, operation step based input.

CC-THERM Heat Exchanger Design & Rating Software - As an add-on or stand alone program, CC-THERM makes use of multiple international standards for design and materials to make sizing your next heat exchanger faster and more accurate.

CC-SAFETY NET Piping & safety relief Network Simulation Software - A subset of CCSTEADY STATE, this program allows rigorous analysis of any piping network.

CC-FLASH Physical Propertieis & Phase Equilibria Calculation Software - A subset of the CHEMCAD Suite (all of the CHEMCAD Suite products include CC-FLASH capabilities), this program allows rigorous calculation of pure component and mixture physical properties and phase equilibria (VLE, LLE, VLLE).

Codeware, Inc. Codeware, Inc. 5224 Station Way Sarasota, FL 34233 United States Phone: (941) 927-2670 Fax: (941) 927-2459 E-mail: inquiries@codeware.com www.codeware.com

Company Bio: Since 1985, Codeware has focused exclusively on providing the most comprehensive software for the design and analysis of ASME vessels and exchangers. Codeware’s Austin, Texas based development team has the expertise needed to understand the complexities of the Code rules and the practical experience required to implement an effective solution.

Products: Let COMPRESS be your expert assistant.

From individual components to complex multiple diameter towers, COMPRESS can model virtually any geometry.

The standard functionality of COMPRESS includes everything needed to perform ASME Section VIII, Division 1 pressure vessel calculations. This includes the U.S. Customary and

Downstream Metric Editions of Section II, Part D as well as a selection of Building Codes and related Engineering Standards.

To tailor COMPRESS to your needs, the following optional modules are available: • ASME Section VIII, Division 2 • Heat Exchangers (includes TEMA Standard, ASME UHX rules, tube field layout capability and bi-directional interface with HTRI’s Xchanger Suite) • Drafter (converts COMPRESS files into AutoCAD drawings) • Coster (creates Excel compatible vessel cost estimates) COMPRESS generates both detailed and abbreviated reports, the former suitable for use as a calculation audit trail. COMPRESS also generates ASME U forms and NBIC R forms.

Once finalized, forms can be saved in PDF or EDT compliant format. EDT compliant files can be directly submitted to the National Board electronically. To simplify document management, a new “Project” feature allows users to organize, view and backup files of any type from within COMPRESS. Visit www.codeware.com to download your complimentary COMPRESS trial software today. www.info.hotims.com/30874-405

www.info.hotims.com/30874-408 Select 408 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS 9

Downstream DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION AND ENGINEERING, CONT.

Heat Transfer Research, Inc. Worldwide

150 Venture Drive College Station, TX 77845 USA Phone: 979-690-5050 Fax: 979-690-3250 E-mail: HTRI@HTRI.net www.HTRI.net Claudette D. Beyer, President and CEO Fernando J. Aguirre, VP, Sales and Business Development

Asia - Pacific World Business Garden Marive East 14F Nakase 2-6, Mihamaku Chiba 261-7114 Japan Phone: 81-43-297-0353 Fax: 81-43-297-0354 E-mail: HTRI.Asia@HTRI.net Hirohisa Uozu, Regional Manager

EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa) The Surrey Technology Centre 40 Occam Road Guildford, Surrey GU2 7YG U.K. Phone: 44-(0)1483-685100 Fax: 44-(0)1483-685101 HTRI.Europe@HTRI.net Hans U. Zettler, Regional Manager

U PSTREA M / D OWN STREA M SOFTWARE REFERENCE Xhpe—Designs, rates, and simulates the performance of hairpin heat exchangers.

Xist—Designs, rates, and simulates single- and two-phase shell-and-tube heat exchangers, including kettle and thermosiphon reboilers, falling film evaporators, and reflux condensers.

Xjpe—Designs, rates, and simulates jacketedpipe (double-pipe) heat exchangers.

Xphe—Designs, rates, and simulates plate-andframe heat exchangers. A fully incremental program, each plate channel is calculated individually using local physical properties and process conditions.

Xspe—Rates and simulates single-phase spiral plate heat exchangers.

Xtlo—Graphical standalone rigorous tube layout software; also integrated with Xist.

Xvib—Performs flow-induced vibration analysis of a single tube in a heat exchanger bundle.

It uses a rigorous structural analysis approach to calculate the tube natural frequencies for various modes and offers flexibility in the geometries it can handle.

Xchanger Suite Educational—Customized version of Xchanger Suite with the capability to design, rate, and simulate shell-and-tube heat exchangers, air-coolers, economizers, and plateand-frame heat exchangers. Available to educational institutions only.

R-trend—Calculates and trends fouling resistances for shell-and-tube heat exchangers in single-phase service. Uses Microsoft Excel as working environment with optional link to Xist. www.info.hotims.com/30874-411

India C-1, First Floor, Tower-B, “Indraprasth Complex” Near Inox Multiplex, Race Course (North) Vadodara 390007, Gujarat, India Phone: +91 (982) 514-7775 HTRI.India@HTRI.net Rajan Desai, International Coordinator

Company Bio: HTRI operates an international consortium founded in 1962 that conducts industrially relevant research and provides software tools for design, rating, and simulation of process heat transfer equipment. HTRI also produces a wide range of technical publications and provides other services including contract research, software development, consulting, and training.

Products: HTRI Xchanger Suite—Integrated graphical user environment for the design, rating, and simulation of heat transfer equipment.

Xace—Designs, rates, and simulates the performance of air-cooled heat exchangers, heat recovery units, and air preheaters.

Xfh—Simulates the behavior of fired heaters.

Calculates the radiant section of cylindrical and box heaters and the convection section of fired heaters. It also designs process heater tubes and performs combustion calculations.

10

SOFTWARE REFERENCE

SPRING 2010

KRC Technologies 6637 Covoy Ct. San Diego, CA 92111 Toll Free: 888-467-2127 Phone: 858-490-0028 Fax: 858-777-5462 E-mail: support@engineering-software.com www.engineering-software.com Mike Stephenson, President

Company Bio: KRC Technologies provides engineering software solutions. The company sells hundreds of commercial engineering software applications from the company’s website. KRC Technologies also develops custom engineering solutions and has delivered software for the design and analysis of heat exchangers, on-line six sigma, factory automation and valve tray design software.

Products: KRC Technologies develops, sells and distributes software to engineers. Our mission is to provide software solutions to increase the productivity of engineers. For this reason, our products transcend most engineering disciplines. You can find software on our website to solve a multitude of

engineering tasks. Some of these include: Design programs: • Shell and tube heat exchangers • Waste heat boilers • Cooling towers • Steam heaters • Heat recovery steam generators • Fluid mixers and atmospheric tanks • Mixer designs in vertical tanks • Vertical and horizontal storage tanks • Plate-fin heat exchangers • Compact heat exchangers • Heat transfer in process vessels and fermenters Physical properties: • Steam tables (IFC-97) • Gas compressibility calculators (AGA-8) • Psychrometrics • Combustion analysis • Thermodynamic and transport properties of over 600 common organic and inorganic compounds Economic evaluation: • Cogeneration • Flash tanks • Insulation Transport: • Piping pressure loss • Pipe Networks • Duct design • Flow calculation (nozzle, orifice, venturi) Structural: • Wind Load analysis • Snow load analysis • Single or multiple span beams • Rods • Self supported stacks • Guy wire supported stack • Analysis of horizontal vessels supported on two saddles KRC Technologies also creates custom software to various industries, including oil and gas.

These have included: • Factory automation • On-line leak testing with six-sigma on-line analysis • Mist eliminator design • Valve tray design • Compact heat exchanger design Many products have demo versions that can be downloaded from the website, www.engineering-software.com. www.info.hotims.com/30874-410

UPS TR EAM / D OW N S T R E A M S OF T WA RE REFEREN CE

DYNAMIC SIMULATION AND OPTIMIZATION

Chemstations, Inc. 2901 Wilcrest, Suite 305 Houston, TX 77042 Toll Free: 800-243-6223 Phone: 713-978-7700 Fax: 713-978-7727 E-mail: sales@chemstations.net www.Chemstations.net Steve Brown, V.P. Sales/Marketing

Company Bio:

ENERGY MANAGEMENT

Heat Transfer Research, Inc. Worldwide 150 Venture Drive College Station, TX 77845 USA Phone: 979-690-5050 Fax: 979-690-3250 E-mail: HTRI@HTRI.net www.HTRI.net Claudette D. Beyer, President and CEO Fernando J. Aguirre, VP, Sales and Business Development

Asia - Pacific

Products:

The Surrey Technology Centre 40 Occam Road Guildford, Surrey GU2 7YG U.K. Phone: 44-(0)1483-685100 Fax: 44-(0)1483-685101 HTRI.Europe@HTRI.net Hans U. Zettler, Regional Manager

www.info.hotims.com/30874-408

heaters. It also designs process heater tubes and performs combustion calculations.

Xhpe—Designs, rates, and simulates the performance of hairpin heat exchangers.

With offices worldwide, Chemstations is a leading global supplier of process simulation software for the following process industries; Oil & Gas, Petrochemicals, Chemicals, and Fine Chemicals, including Pharmaceuticals. We currently offer several individually licensed, and tightly integrated, technologies to address the needs of the chemical engineer, whether doing new process design or working in the plant.

CC-STEADY STATE Chemical Process Simulation Software - Includes database of chemical components, thermodynamic methods, and unit operations to allow steady state simulation of continuous chemical processes from lab scale to full scale.

CC-DYNAMICS Dynamic Process Simulation Software - Takes your steady state simulations to the next level of fidelity to allow dynamic analysis of your flowsheet. The combination of two pieces of software, CC-ReACS and CCDCOLUMN make CC-DYNAMICS the dynamic simulator of choice.

CC-BATCH Batch Distillation Simulation Software - As an add-on or stand alone program, CC-BATCH makes batch distillation simulation and design easy with intuitive, operation step based input.

CC-THERM Heat Exchanger Design & Rating Software - As an add-on or stand alone program, CC-THERM makes use of multiple international standards for design and materials to make sizing your next heat exchanger faster and more accurate.

CC-SAFETY NET Piping & safety relief Network Simulation Software - A subset of CCSTEADY STATE, this program allows rigorous analysis of any piping network.

CC-FLASH Physical Properties & Phase Equilibria Calculation Software - A subset of the CHEMCAD Suite (all of the CHEMCAD Suite products include CC-FLASH capabilities), this program allows rigorous calculation of pure component and mixture physical properties and phase equilibria (VLE, LLE, VLLE).

Downstream

World Business Garden Marive East 14F Nakase 2-6, Mihamaku Chiba 261-7114 Japan Phone: 81-43-297-0353 Fax: 81-43-297-0354 E-mail: HTRI.Asia@HTRI.net Hirohisa Uozu, Regional Mgr.

EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa)

India C-1, First Floor, Tower-B, “Indraprasth Complex” Near Inox Multiplex, Race Course (North) Vadodara 390007, Gujarat, India Phone: +91 (982) 514-7775 HTRI.India@HTRI.net Rajan Desai, International Coordinator

Xist—Designs, rates, and simulates single- and two-phase shell-and-tube heat exchangers, including kettle and thermosiphon reboilers, falling film evaporators, and reflux condensers.

Xjpe—Designs, rates, and simulates jacketedpipe (double-pipe) heat exchangers.

Xphe—Designs, rates, and simulates plate-andframe heat exchangers. A fully incremental program, each plate channel is calculated individually using local physical properties and process conditions.

Xspe—Rates and simulates single-phase spiral plate heat exchangers.

Xtlo—Graphical standalone rigorous tube layout software; also integrated with Xist.

Xvib—Performs flow-induced vibration analysis of a single tube in a heat exchanger bundle.

It uses a rigorous structural analysis approach to calculate the tube natural frequencies for various modes and offers flexibility in the geometries it can handle.

Xchanger Suite Educational—Customized version of Xchanger Suite with the capability to design, rate, and simulate shell-and-tube heat exchangers, air-coolers, economizers, and plateand-frame heat exchangers. Available to educational institutions only.

R-trend—Calculates and trends fouling resistances for shell-and-tube heat exchangers in single-phase service. Uses Microsoft Excel as working environment with optional link to Xist. www.info.hotims.com/30874-411

ENTERPRISE PORTAL SYSTEMS

Company Bio: HTRI operates an international consortium founded in 1962 that conducts industrially relevant research and provides software tools for design, rating, and simulation of process heat transfer equipment. HTRI also produces a wide range of technical publications and provides other services including contract research, software development, consulting, and training.

Products: HTRI Xchanger Suite—Integrated graphical user environment for the design, rating, and simulation of heat transfer equipment.

Xace—Designs, rates, and simulates the performance of air-cooled heat exchangers, heat recovery units, and air preheaters.

Xfh—Simulates the behavior of fired heaters.

Calculates the radiant section of cylindrical and box heaters and the convection section of fired

m:pro IT Consult GmbH Kirchgasse 47 65183 Wiesbaden Germany Phone: +49 611 39843 0 Fax: +49 611 39843 12 E-mail: info@mpro-it.com www.mpro-it.com

Company Bio m:pro IT Consult is a project services and software products company which enables petroleum refining, petrochemical and other industries to achieve total integration of information sources and applications, from

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Downstream ENTERPRISE PORTAL SYSTEMS, CONT. business systems, ERP and supply chain management through to plant information, production planning, scheduling and operations decision support.

U PSTREA M / D OWN STREA M SOFTWARE REFERENCE

ONLINE MONITORING AND OPTIMIZATION

Products: m:pro delivers enterprise wide or point solutions - easy and fast to implement - which truly integrate the production and business applications required to manage the overall assets. m:pro enables, consult and assists business process improvements, especially for refining supply chain management (SCM).

The m:pro Integration Platform (m:ip) provides the total integration of information sources and applications including ERP, planning, scheduling, functional databases, plant information systems, forecasting in a phased justified approach. The m:ip enables and improves the use of best-in-class software, plant and business applications = asset maximization.

The m:pro object warehouse (m:owh) is our integration, data storage/management, and business intelligence back-end. The m:owh is based on standard and open relational database technology.

The m:pro explorer (m:exp) is our feature rich, fully web-enabled common graphical user interface including build and administration tools. The m:exp can run as the portal or can seamlessly be embedded in popular web portal environments.

Flexware, Inc. Chemstations, Inc. 2901 Wilcrest, Suite 305 Houston, TX 77042 Toll Free: 800-243-6223 Phone: 713-978-7700 Fax: 713-978-7727 E-mail: sales@chemstations.net www.Chemstations.net Steve Brown, V.P. Sales/Marketing

Company Bio: With offices worldwide, Chemstations is a leading global supplier of process simulation software for the following process industries; Oil & Gas, Petrochemicals, Chemicals, and Fine Chemicals, including Pharmaceuticals. We currently offer several individually licensed, and tightly integrated, technologies to address the needs of the chemical engineer, whether doing new process design or working in the plant.

Products: CC-STEADY STATE Chemical Process Simulation Software - Includes database of chemical components, thermodynamic methods, and unit operations to allow steady state simulation of continuous chemical processes from lab scale to full scale.

m:pro provides standard applications/interfaces for: • Production planning, scheduling and blending • Performance monitoring and dashboards • Data and process quality • Information analysis, visualization, flowsheeting, trending and reporting

CC-DYNAMICS Dynamic Process Simulation Software - Takes your steady state simulations to the next level of fidelity to allow dynamic analysis of your flowsheet. The combination of two pieces of software, CC-ReACS and CCDCOLUMN make CC-DYNAMICS the dynamic simulator of choice.

Featured applications/interfaces are: • Analyzer Monitoring • Blend Monitoring and Reporting • Crude Composition Tracking • Crude Scheduling • GRTMPS Planning Interface • Heat Exchanger Monitoring • KPIs, Operating Envelops, Plan vs Actual • Lab Interface and Reporting • LP Data Collector • Oil Movement Logging • ORION Scheduling Interface • PIMS Planning Interface • Quality Tracking • Tank Calculation System

CC-BATCH Batch Distillation Simulation Software - As an add-on or stand alone program, CC-BATCH makes batch distillation simulation and design easy with intuitive, operation step based input.

www.info.hotims.com/30874-402

CC-THERM Heat Exchanger Design & Rating Software - As an add-on or stand alone program, CC-THERM makes use of multiple international standards for design and materials to make sizing your next heat exchanger faster and more accurate.

CC-SAFETY NET Piping & safety relief Network Simulation Software - A subset of CCSTEADY STATE, this program allows rigorous analysis of any piping network.

CC-FLASH Physical Propertieis & Phase Equilibria Calculation Software - A subset of the CHEMCAD Suite (all of the CHEMCAD Suite products include CC-FLASH capabilities), this program allows rigorous calculation of pure component and mixture physical properties and phase equilibria (VLE, LLE, VLLE). www.info.hotims.com/30874-408

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PO Box 110 Grapeville, PA 15634-0110 Phone: 724-527-3911 Fax: 724-527-5701 E-mail: sales@flexwareinc.com www.flexwareinc.com

Company Bio: Flexware® is focused on servicing companies interested in monitoring and improving turbomachinery performance for energy conservation and capacity improvements. Central to this is software development to assist the rotating equipment engineer in assessing the operating equipment along with training programs and supporting consulting services.

Products: Gas Flex®, first developed as a DOS program in 1990, does gas compressor performance calculations using BWR (Benedict, Webb & Rubin) equations of state. In it’s present form, Gas Flex® “Live Analysis” will automatically process compressor data. Gas Flex® will read raw data, process it and store results for trending purposes while you watch the results displayed on the OEM performance curve. The trending, including transients like hard startups aid troubleshooting efforts. www.info.hotims.com/30874-416

PLANNING, SCHEDULING AND BLENDING

AMI Consultants, Inc. 4102 Tremont Ct. Sugar Land, TX 77479 Phone: 281-565-4745 Fax: 281-565-1196 Email: Info@AmiConsultants.com www.AmiConsultants.com

Company Bio: AMI Consultant develops and markets software for Petroleum refinery planning and economics.

Since the introduction of the PetroPlanSM software in 1996, AMI’s customer base has grown with installations now at over 50 sites worldwide. Licensees include operating and E&C companies as well as educational institutions.

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UPS TR EAM / D OW N S T R E A M S OF T WA RE REFEREN CE

Products: PetroPlanSM is a software to simulate the whole refinery using a truly user-friendly graphic interface. Applications include: evaluation of revamp/expansion options, planning of grassroots facilities, evaluation of alternative feedstocks, changed product specifications and optimization of plant operations.

In the simulation each refinery unit is represented by a block (e.g. FCC). For each block, the prediction of product yields and properties is based on feed characteristics and user specified parameters (e.g. conversion). The equations for predicting a blockâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s performance are visible to the user and are editable. Crude oil cutting and specification product blending are integrated into the main simulation. www.info.hotims.com/30874-412

Haverly Systems, Inc. 12 Hinchman Avenue Denville, NJ 07834 Phone: 973-627-1424 Fax: 973-625-2296 E-mail: newjersey@haverly.com www.haverly.com

Other Haverly Office Locations Ventura, CA: Houston, TX: St. Albans, U.K.: Singapore:

805-653-5355 713-776-3161 +44 1727 826321 +65 9630 6364

Company Bio: Haverly Systems Inc. is an independent software company that has specialized in the development and use of optimization-related products and services for over four decades. Their systems are used in more than 50 countries worldwide by international and independent oil companies, chemical companies, and many other industrial and government entities. The effectivenss of their products has long been recognized in the continued patronage and goodwill of their clients. The ownership has been unchanged since the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s founding, and most senior management and technical staff has been with the company for more than 15 years. This continuity in ownership, management, and business specializaiton is reflected in the corporate stability, continued profitability, and very personal pride found in satisfying each clientâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s need for technically excellent products and services.

easily entered and results displayed through vivid graphs. These can be readily smoothed, augmented, and contraasted against other properties and known references to provide the very best representation of crude behavior to applications that depend on good assay data. Correlations and calculations-based sound engineering principles provide users additional intelligence in determining data quality and best data interpretation. H/ CAMS features several useful utilities that allow easy updating of existing assays with refinery laboratory or current operating data and assure accurate representations. H/CAMS may be supplied with one or more high quality, industry developed crude assay libraries to supplement a userâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s local library and extend the application of the system.

H/COMET: the on-line version of H/CAMS which allows for the quick access and evaluation of crude oils from a large, on-line crude assay database. Crudes may be easily cut, blended, compared, and analyzed using advanced graphical and computational techniques. LP optimization technology is used to calculate netback value for selected crude or blends of crude. Crude netback values may readily be determined for a user customized set of refinery configurations.

GRTMPS: Haverlyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s premier economic optimization planning system. GRTMPS is used to model individual refinery and petrochemical plant operations, as well as entire business enterprises, of any size and complexity, and over any

time horizon. It employs both advanced linear and non-linear modeling techniques. Its non-linear modeling abilities extend to cut-point optimization, reformulated gasoline modeling, rigorous process simulation interfacing, and investment opportunity studies. Haverly also offers an advance refinery modeling platform in GRTMPS structure and developed by the industry consulting firm: Turner, Mason & Company -- to assist in the development and execution of models.

H/Sched: advanced operations scheduling tools.

Each H/Sched system couples superior schedule simulation and generation technology with stateof-the-art graphics to provide tools with unsurpassed scheduling optimization abilities. Schedules are automatically generated and optimized, using Haverlyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s own Progressional LP technology. After reviewing informative Gantt charts, flow diagrams, inventory profiles and detail windows - schedulers may directly modify these mediums to alter their schedules and obtain more desirable results.

H/Gal-XE: an expert H/Sched application specifically designed for the optimization of gasoline blend scheduling. Allow for fast construction and execution of models constrained by operational parameters typically found in gasoline blending and distribution operations. www.info.hotims.com/30874-413

(AVERLY 3YSTEMS )NC

( #/-%4

Crude Oil Management Evaluation Tool Revolutionary Web-Based Application With H/COMET you can: â&#x20AC;˘ Quickly access & evaluate crudes from a large assay database â&#x20AC;˘ Select crudes based on user-defined criteria â&#x20AC;˘ Compare crudes side-by-side for any desired qualities â&#x20AC;˘ Re-cut and blend crudes using HaverlyĘźs H/CAMS technology â&#x20AC;˘ Determine netback values of crudes or blends for a variety of refinery configurations.

Products: H/CAMS: a software system for the management, development, analysis, and application of crude assay data. H/CAMS determines and relates the effects associated with mixing and distilling crude oils, as well as other virgin hydrocarbons.

Hundreds of varying whole crude, distillate, and residue properties are accepted, reported, correlated, or otherwise calculated. Raw assay data is

Visit www.haverly.com to learn more or call us at (973) 627-1424 Select 413 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS 13

Downstream PLANNING, SCHEDULING AND BLENDING, CONT.

m:pro IT Consult GmbH Kirchgasse 47 65183 Wiesbaden Germany Phone: +49 611 39843 0 Fax: +49 611 39843 12 E-mail: info@mpro-it.com www.mpro-it.com

Company Bio m:pro IT Consult is a project services and software products company which enables petroleum refining, petrochemical and other industries to achieve total integration of information sources and applications, from business systems, ERP and supply chain management through to plant information, production planning, scheduling and operations decision support.

Products: m:pro delivers enterprise wide or point solutions easy and fast to implement - which truly integrate the production and business applications required to manage the overall assets.

U PSTREA M / D OWN STREA M SOFTWARE REFERENCE m:pro enables, consult and assists business process improvements, especially for refining supply chain management (SCM).

The m:pro Integration Platform (m:ip) provides the total integration of information sources and applications including ERP, planning, scheduling, functional databases, plant information systems, forecasting in a phased justified approach. The m:ip enables and improves the use of best-in-class software, plant and business applications = asset maximization.

The m:pro object warehouse (m:owh) is our integration, data storage/management, and business intelligence back-end. The m:owh is based on standard and open relational database technology.

The m:pro explorer (m:exp) is our feature rich, fully web-enabled common graphical user interface including build and administration tools. The m:exp can run as the portal or can seamlessly be embedded in popular web portal environments. m:pro provides standard applications/interfaces for: • Production planning, scheduling and blending • Performance monitoring and dashboards • Data and process quality • Information analysis, visualization, flowsheeting, trending and reporting Featured applications/interfaces are: • Analyzer Monitoring • Blend Monitoring and Reporting • Crude Composition Tracking

• Crude Scheduling • GRTMPS Planning Interface • Heat Exchanger Monitoring • KPIs, Operating Envelops, Plan vs Actual • Lab Interface and Reporting • LP Data Collector • Oil Movement Logging • ORION Scheduling Interface • PIMS Planning Interface • Quality Tracking • Tank Calculation System www.info.hotims.com/30874-402

M3 Technology, Inc 10375 Richmond Ave., Suite 380 Houston, TX 77042 Phone: +1-713-784-8285 Fax: +1-832-553-1893 E-mail: m3.sales@m3tch.com www.m3tch.com

Company Bio M3 Technology is the premier supplier of supply chain management solutions focused on enterprise planning, advanced asset scheduling and optimization solutions for the petroleum, petrochemical & LNG industries. M3’s solutions capture economic oppor-tunities and reduce the cost of managing complex facilities at the plant level, regional operating level and global enterprise level. M3 has a global network of implementation partners to provide local consulting expertise and customer support.

Products:

SIMTO™ Scheduling SIMTO™ Scheduling is the next generation plant scheduling technology Powerful comprehensive flowsheet modeling • Models facility connections • Easy to create multiple modes of unit operation • Models pipeline and jetty operations • Handles imperfect tank mixing Flexible Plant Simulator • Predicts plant inventories, compositions, properties, and unit yields • Runs multi-month simulations in seconds Friendly and easy to use interfaces • Interactive, dynamic process flowsheet • User configurable Gantt charts, trends and tabular view, all are fully synchronized • Custom scheduling logic without programming Quick and low cost implementation Select 414 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS 14

UPS TR EAM / D OW N S T R E A M S OF T WA RE REFEREN CE • Many customers self implement • Easy to maintain; saves manpower Scalable Enterprise Workflow/Collaboration • Users are notified of data changes detailing who changed what, when • Easy to integrate with plant and enterprise systems using standard web services.

• Standardized reports

Profitable: Today it is not enough to drive cost out of your supply chain. SIMTO Scheduling pro-vides you the agility to take full advantage of profit opportunities.

• Blend Knowledge Base contains data about product specifications, property bonuses and interactions, and blending methods used in blending optimization.

• Easy to update blend methods to assure compliance with government regulations.

Profitable, high ROI, fast time-to-cash Reduces quality giveaway, maximizes profit across the planning horizon, able to capture profit opportunities, assures timely comple-tion of blends to minimize demurrage, effi-cient use of human resources, empowers per-sonnel to quickly troubleshoot profit stealing problems.

Downstream • Provides customizable presentations of the supply and distribution environment • Provides optimized solution for decision support • Empowers the planner/scheduler/trader to make fast, accurate and profitable decisions • Easy to maintain; saves manpower Profitable: low cost, very short payback Bottom-line reduction in distribution cost, right sizing terminal inventory and safety stock, maximizes profit across the planning horizon, able to assure timely completion of transactions and transfers; empowers people to seize profit opportunities. www.info.hotims.com/30874-414

SIMTO™ Blending SIMTO™ M-Blend is a multi-period, multiblend optimization technology for blending crude oil, gasoline, distillate, fuel oil, asphalt, petrochemical feedstock and more.

M-Blend is part of the native construct of SIMTO Scheduling and inherits the rich capability and robustness of the parent.

Powerful blend modeling • Models rundown streams, component tanks and group blending • Respects logistic and running gage constraints • Models multiple blenders operating separately or in parallel • Supports non-linear blend correlations such as CARBOB Flexible blend recipe optimization • Predicts non-linear, linear and index based properties • Optimizes single blend and multiple blends • Allows priority for near term blends • Issues component buy/sell signals Intuitive and easy to use interfaces • Provides blend performance analysis for comparing schedule vs. actual, and adjusting blend correlations • Blend operators can customize and configure Gantt charts, trends and tabular view, to fully meet individual needs • Visualization of inventories and specification violations improves understanding of blending effects Fast and low cost implementation • Outputs standard blend recipes or transfers to an advanced blend control system • Easy to maintain; saves manpower Leverageable blend knowledge base builds competitive advantage

SIMTO™ Distribution SIMTO™ Distribution is a supply and distribution optimizer designed specifically for the petroleum downstream industry. It is built with the latest software systems such as .NET and SQL Server along with integration via industry standard web services. SIMTO Distribution delivers sustainable benefits today and in the future. It is part of M3’s ongoing commitment to our customers to develop best-in-class solutions.

Powerful supply chain modeling system Inventory and location modeling • Buy – supply locations and materials • Sell – demand locations and materials • Trade/exchange – locations and materials • Locations – inventory/material constraints • Point-to-point network • Logistics for point-to-point movements Material blend modeling • Recipes for material blending • Quality specification for blending • Components used for blending • Material qualities used in blending Route modeling • pipeline and vessel routes Commercial modeling • All cost and contract matters including tiered pricing Versatile supply and distribution optimization • Trade Management – make/buy/exchange • Cost Management – Transportation pricing, availability and routing • Inventory Management – safety stock, seasonal changeover, turnarounds • Terminal Management – right product, place, price and time • Product Mix – material blending

PREDICTIVE MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR Codeware, Inc. Codeware, Inc. 5224 Station Way Sarasota, FL 34233 United States Phone: (941) 927-2670 Fax: (941) 927-2459 E-mail: inquiries@codeware.com www.codeware.com

Company Bio: Since 1985, Codeware has focused exclusively on providing the most comprehensive software for the design and analysis of ASME vessels and exchangers. Codeware’s Austin, Texas based development team has the expertise needed to understand the complexities of the Code rules and the practical experience required to implement an effective solution.

Products: Let COMPRESS be your expert assistant.

From individual components to complex multiple diameter towers, COMPRESS can model virtually any geometry.

The standard functionality of COMPRESS includes everything needed to perform ASME Section VIII, Division 1 pressure vessel calculations. This includes the U.S. Customary and Metric Editions of Section II, Part D as well as a selection of Building Codes and related Engineering Standards.

To tailor COMPRESS to your needs, the following optional modules are available: • ASME Section VIII, Division 2 • Heat Exchangers (includes TEMA Standard, ASME UHX rules, tube field layout capabil-

Flexible, user advantage

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PREDICTIVE MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR, CONT.

users to review and/or analyze existing and new equipment for structural integrity, code compliance, re-rating and remaining life evaluations.

ity and bi-directional interface with HTRI’s Xchanger Suite)

VCEDamage Mechanisms™ is a quick reference guide to identify the potential damage mechanisms that can cause equipment failure.

It guides users through the damage mechanism identification process, helps in selecting the best inspection method for each damage type, and provides simplified Process Flow Diagrams showing where damage will likely occur.

• Drafter (converts COMPRESS files into AutoCAD drawings) • Coster (creates Excel compatible vessel cost estimates) COMPRESS generates both detailed and abbreviated reports, the former suitable for use as a calculation audit trail. COMPRESS also generates ASME U forms and NBIC R forms.

Once finalized, forms can be saved in PDF or EDT compliant format. EDT compliant files can be directly submitted to the National Board electronically. To simplify document management, a new “Project” feature allows users to organize, view and backup files of any type from within COMPRESS. Visit www.codeware.com to download your complimentary COMPRESS trial software today. www.info.hotims.com/30874-405

VCEIntelliJoint™ offers a total solution to bolted joint leakage with the latest advanced bolted joint technology, including assembly procedures and gasket test results. The program provides industry best practice gasket specifications and incorporates knowledge in areas required to effectively identify the root cause of a leakage problem.

Training: Equity Engineering offers software training for the API RBI and VCESage™ programs, as well as training in other engineering disciplines. The software courses, designed to help both the novice and experienced user make more effective use of the software, emphasize both hands-on training and in-class example problems. Public courses are held at E2G offices in Cleveland and Houston, or private courses can be held at your site. To find out more about E2G training courses, go to www.equityeng.com. www.info.hotims.com/30874-406

The Equity Engineering Group, Inc. 20600 Chagrin Blvd., Suite 1200 Shaker Heights, OH 44122 Phone: 216-283-9519 Fax: 216-283-6022 E-mail: gcalvarado@eng.com www.equityeng.com Greg Alvarado, VP Sales and Client Service

Company Bio: The Equity Engineering Group, Inc. is a recognized leader on aging infrastructure fixed equipment service and support for the oil and gas industry. Equity helps plants manage risk and improve profitability with cutting-edge software and consulting strategies that maximize equipment operational availability, control inspection costs and avoid costly shutdowns.

Products: API RBI Software is the industry standard for plant risk management, developed through the API consensus standards process and documented in API 581. It provides risk values and metrics for equipment, enabling plants to identify areas of potential failure and prioritize inspection dollars based on measured risk. Modules include fixed equipment, heat exchanger bundles, atmospheric storage tanks, and pressure relief systems.

VCESage™ is a collection of modules providing an easy-to-use computerized design/analysis resource consistent with the new API 579-1/ ASME FFS-1 standard. The modules enable 16

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SPRING 2010

PROCESS CONTROL AND INFORMATION SYSTEMS Yokogawa Electric Corporation World Headquarters 9-32, Nakacho 2-chrome, Musashino-shi, Tokyo 180-8750, Japan www.yokogawa.com

Yokogawa Corp. of America 12530 West Airport Blvd, Sugar Land, TX 77478 www.yokogawa.com/us

Yokogawa Europe B.V. Databankweg 20 3821 AL Amersfoort, The Netherlands www.yokogawa.com/eu

Yokogawa Engineering Asia PTE. LTD. 5 Bedok South Road, Singapore 469270, Singapore www.yokogawa.com/sg

Yokogawa Electric China Co., LTD. 22nd Floor Shanghai Oriental Centre 31 Wujiang Road (699 Nanjing West Road)

Jing’an District, Shanghai 200041, China Phone: 86-21-5211-0877 Fax: 86-21-5211-0299 Company Bio: Yokogawa Corporation of America is the North American unit of US $4 billion Yokogawa Electric Corporation, a global leader in the manufacture and supply of instrumentation, process control, and automation solutions. Headquartered in Newnan, GA., Yokogawa Corporation of America serves a diverse customer base with market-leading products including analyzers, flow meters, transmitters, controllers, recorders, data acquisition products, meters, instruments, safety instrumented systems, distributed control systems and more.

Products: CENTUM VP™ - CENTUM VP is an integrated production control system used to manage and control the operation of plants. The highly acclaimed, extremely reliable integrated production control system combines rugged control station and remote I/O hardware with a scalable Windows XP/VISTA-based operation. Designed to handle information and control from small-scale facilities to the very largest of plants, the CENTUM VP provides a highly scalable, easy to operate, engineer, and maintain, high performance automation platform.

The system architecture includes a 1 GB control and information highway utilizing Yokogawa’s deterministic VNet protocol over Ethernet that provides built-in security for critical communications. CENTUM VP is an open platform for control and information providing high performance with low cost of ownership and a seamless technology migration to its installed base.

ExaQuantum™ - Exaquantum is an intelligent and scaleable Plant Information Management System that provides a platform for collecting, storing and displaying current and historical data from production equipment. It’s historian software processes and stores process data, alarms and events acquired from the production control system through a standard OPC interface. Plant operational performance can be monitored and analyzed using this data as it is an enabling platform for production management applications like data reconciliation, production accounting, performance monitoring, environmental monitoring, and operations electronic logbook.

Exaquantum also enables supervisory enterprise applications to be able to share this data. www.info.hotims.com/30874-407

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PROCESS ENGINEERING AND SIMULATION

Chemstations, Inc. 2901 Wilcrest, Suite 305 Houston, TX 77042 Toll Free: 800-243-6223 Phone: 713-978-7700 Fax: 713-978-7727 E-mail: sales@chemstations.net www.Chemstations.net Steve Brown, V.P. Sales/Marketing

Company Bio: With offices worldwide, Chemstations is a leading global supplier of process simulation software for the following process industries; Oil & Gas, Petrochemicals, Chemicals, and Fine Chemicals, including Pharmaceuticals. We currently offer several individually licensed, and tightly integrated, technologies to address the needs of the chemical engineer, whether doing new process design or working in the plant.

Products: CC-STEADY STATE Chemical Process Simulation Software - Includes database of chemical components, thermodynamic methods, and unit operations to allow steady state simulation of continuous chemical processes from lab scale to full scale.

CC-DYNAMICS Dynamic Process Simulation Software - Takes your steady state simulations to the next level of fidelity to allow dynamic analysis of your flowsheet. The combination of two pieces of software, CC-ReACS and CCDCOLUMN make CC-DYNAMICS the dynamic simulator of choice.

CC-BATCH Batch Distillation Simulation Software - As an add-on or stand alone program, CC-BATCH makes batch distillation simulation and design easy with intuitive, operation step based input.

CC-THERM Heat Exchanger Design & Rating Software - As an add-on or stand alone program, CC-THERM makes use of multiple international standards for design and materials to make sizing your next heat exchanger faster and more accurate.

CC-SAFETY NET Piping & safety relief Network Simulation Software - A subset of CCSTEADY STATE, this program allows rigorous analysis of any piping network.

CC-FLASH Physical Propertieis & Phase Equilibria Calculation Software - A subset of the CHEMCAD Suite (all of the CHEMCAD Suite products include CC-FLASH capabilities), this program allows rigorous calculation of pure component and mixture physical properties and phase equilibria (VLE, LLE, VLLE).

Metric Editions of Section II, Part D as well as a selection of Building Codes and related Engineering Standards.

Codeware, Inc.

To tailor COMPRESS to your needs, the following optional modules are available:

Codeware, Inc. 5224 Station Way Sarasota, FL 34233 United States Phone: (941) 927-2670 Fax: (941) 927-2459 E-mail: inquiries@codeware.com www.codeware.com

• ASME Section VIII, Division 2 • Heat Exchangers (includes TEMA Standard, ASME UHX rules, tube field layout capability and bi-directional interface with HTRI’s Xchanger Suite)

Company Bio: Since 1985, Codeware has focused exclusively on providing the most comprehensive software for the design and analysis of ASME vessels and exchangers. Codeware’s Austin, Texas based development team has the expertise needed to understand the complexities of the Code rules and the practical experience required to implement an effective solution.

Products: Let COMPRESS be your expert assistant.

From individual components to complex multiple diameter towers, COMPRESS can model virtually any geometry.

The standard functionality of COMPRESS includes everything needed to perform ASME Section VIII, Division 1 pressure vessel calculations. This includes the U.S. Customary and

• Drafter (converts COMPRESS files into AutoCAD drawings) • Coster (creates Excel compatible vessel cost estimates) COMPRESS generates both detailed and abbreviated reports, the former suitable for use as a calculation audit trail. COMPRESS also generates ASME U forms and NBIC R forms.

Once finalized, forms can be saved in PDF or EDT compliant format. EDT compliant files can be directly submitted to the National Board electronically. To simplify document management, a new “Project” feature allows users to organize, view and backup files of any type from within COMPRESS. Visit www.codeware.com to download your complimentary COMPRESS trial software today. www.info.hotims.com/30874-405

COMPRESS ™ Simplify ASME VIII Code Calculations We have the expertise needed to understand the complexities of the Code rules and the practical experience required to implement an effective solution. Let COMPRESS be your expert assistant. x

Intuitive interface

x

Code rule reminders during input

x

ASME U and NBIC R form generation

x

New “Project” view

DOWNLOAD YOUR TRIAL SOFTWARE TODAY www.codeware.com

www.info.hotims.com/30874-408 Select 405 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS 17

Downstream PROCESS ENGINEERING AND SIMULATION, CONT.

U PSTREA M / D OWN STREA M SOFTWARE REFERENCE Phone: 979-690-5050 Fax: 979-690-3250 E-mail: HTRI@HTRI.net www.HTRI.net Claudette D. Beyer, President and CEO Fernando J. Aguirre, VP, Sales and Business Development

Asia - Pacific

Heat Transfer Research, Inc. Worldwide

150 Venture Drive College Station, TX 77845 USA

Heat Transfer Research, Inc. World Business Garden Marive East 14F Nakase 2-6, Mihamaku Chiba 261-7114 Japan Phone: 81-43-297-0353

Fax: 81-43-297-0354 E-mail: HTRI.Asia@HTRI.net Hirohisa Uozu, Regional Mgr.

EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa) The Surrey Technology Centre 40 Occam Road Guildford, Surrey GU2 7YG U.K. Phone: 44-(0)1483-685100 Fax: 44-(0)1483-685101 HTRI.Europe@HTRI.net Hans U. Zettler, Regional Manager

India C-1, First Floor, Tower-B “Indraprasth Complex” Near Inox Multiplex, Race Course (North) Vadodara 390007, Gujarat, India Phone: +91 (982) 514-7775 HTRI.India@HTRI.net Rajan Desai, International Coordinator

Company Bio: HTRI operates an international consortium founded in 1962 that conducts industrially relevant research and provides software tools for design, rating, and simulation of process heat transfer equipment. HTRI also produces a wide range of technical publications and provides other services including contract research, software development, consulting, and training.

Products: HTRI Xchanger Suite—Integrated graphical user environment for the design, rating, and simulation of heat transfer equipment.

Xace—Designs, rates, and simulates the performance of air-cooled heat exchangers, heat recovery units, and air preheaters.

Xfh—Simulates the behavior of fired heaters.

Calculates the radiant section of cylindrical and box heaters and the convection section of fired heaters. It also designs process heater tubes and performs combustion calculations.

Xhpe—Designs, rates, and simulates the performance of hairpin heat exchangers.

Xist—Designs, rates, and simulates single- and two-phase shell-and-tube heat exchangers, including kettle and thermosiphon reboilers, falling film evaporators, and reflux condensers.

Xjpe—Designs, rates, and simulates jacketedpipe (double-pipe) heat exchangers.

Xphe—Designs, rates, and simulates plate-andframe heat exchangers. A fully incremental program, each plate channel is calculated individually using local physical properties and process conditions.

Xspe—Rates and simulates single-phase spiral plate heat exchangers.

Xtlo—Graphical standalone rigorous tube layout software; also integrated with Xist.

Xvib—Performs flow-induced vibration analysis of a single tube in a heat exchanger bundle.

It uses a rigorous structural analysis approach to calculate the tube natural frequencies for various modes and offers flexibility in the geometries it can handle.

18

Select 406 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS

UPS TR EAM / D OW N S T R E A M S OF T WA RE REFEREN CE Xchanger Suite Educational—Customized version of Xchanger Suite with the capability to design, rate, and simulate shell-and-tube heat exchangers, air-coolers, economizers, and plateand-frame heat exchangers. Available to educational institutions only.

R-trend—Calculates and trends fouling resistances for shell-and-tube heat exchangers in single-phase service. Uses Microsoft Excel as working environment with optional link to Xist. www.info.hotims.com/30874-411

best inspection method for each damage type, and provides simplified Process Flow Diagrams showing where damage will likely occur.

VCEIntelliJoint™ offers a total solution to bolted joint leakage with the latest advanced bolted joint technology, including assembly procedures and gasket test results. The program provides industry best practice gasket specifications and incorporates knowledge in areas required to effectively identify the root cause of a leakage problem.

Training:

REFINING, PETROCHEMICAL AND GAS PROCESSING

The Equity Engineering Group, Inc. 20600 Chagrin Blvd., Suite 1200 Shaker Heights, OH 44122 Phone: 216-283-9519 Fax: 216-283-6022 E-mail: gcalvarado@eng.com www.equityeng.com Greg Alvarado, VP Sales and Client Service

Equity Engineering offers software training for the API RBI and VCESage™ programs, as well as training in other engineering disciplines. The software courses, designed to help both the novice and experienced user make more effective use of the software, emphasize both hands-on training and in-class example problems. Public courses are held at E2G offices in Cleveland and Houston, or private courses can be held at your site. To find out more about E2G training courses, go to www.equityeng.com. www.info.hotims.com/30874-406

Heat Transfer Research, Inc.

The Equity Engineering Group, Inc. is a recognized leader on aging infrastructure fixed equipment service and support for the oil and gas industry. Equity helps plants manage risk and improve profitability with cutting-edge software and consulting strategies that maximize equipment operational availability, control inspection costs and avoid costly shutdowns.

Worldwide

API RBI Software is the industry standard for plant risk management, developed through the API consensus standards process and documented in API 581. It provides risk values and metrics for equipment, enabling plants to identify areas of potential failure and prioritize inspection dollars based on measured risk. Modules include fixed equipment, heat exchanger bundles, atmospheric storage tanks, and pressure relief systems.

VCESage™ is a collection of modules providing an easy-to-use computerized design/analysis resource consistent with the new API 579-1/ ASME FFS-1 standard. The modules enable users to review and/or analyze existing and new equipment for structural integrity, code compliance, re-rating and remaining life evaluations.

VCEDamage Mechanisms™ is a quick reference guide to identify the potential damage mechanisms that can cause equipment failure.

It guides users through the damage mechanism identification process, helps in selecting the

Vadodara 390007, Gujarat, India Phone: +91 (982) 514-7775 HTRI.India@HTRI.net Rajan Desai, International Coordinator

Company Bio: HTRI operates an international consortium founded in 1962 that conducts industrially relevant research and provides software tools for design, rating, and simulation of process heat transfer equipment. HTRI also produces a wide range of technical publications and provides other services including contract research, software development, consulting, and training.

Products: HTRI Xchanger Suite—Integrated graphical user environment for the design, rating, and simulation of heat transfer equipment.

Xace—Designs, rates, and simulates the performance of air-cooled heat exchangers, heat recovery units, and air preheaters.

Xfh—Simulates the behavior of fired heaters.

Calculates the radiant section of cylindrical and box heaters and the convection section of fired heaters. It also designs process heater tubes and performs combustion calculations.

Xhpe—Designs, rates, and simulates the performance of hairpin heat exchangers.

Company Bio:

Products:

Downstream

150 Venture Drive College Station, TX 77845 USA Phone: 979-690-5050 Fax: 979-690-3250 E-mail: HTRI@HTRI.net www.HTRI.net Claudette D. Beyer, President and CEO Fernando J. Aguirre, VP, Sales and Business Development

Asia - Pacific Heat Transfer Research, Inc. World Business Garden Marive East 14F Nakase 2-6, Mihamaku Chiba 261-7114 Japan Phone: 81-43-297-0353 Fax: 81-43-297-0354 E-mail: HTRI.Asia@HTRI.net Hirohisa Uozu, Regional Mgr.

EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa) The Surrey Technology Centre 40 Occam Road Guildford, Surrey GU2 7YG U.K. Phone: 44-(0)1483-685100 Fax: 44-(0)1483-685101 HTRI.Europe@HTRI.net Hans U. Zettler, Regional Manager

India C-1, First Floor, Tower-B “Indraprasth Complex” Near Inox Multiplex, Race Course (North)

Xist—Designs, rates, and simulates single- and two-phase shell-and-tube heat exchangers, including kettle and thermosiphon reboilers, falling film evaporators, and reflux condensers.

Xjpe—Designs, rates, and simulates jacketedpipe (double-pipe) heat exchangers.

Xphe—Designs, rates, and simulates plate-andframe heat exchangers. A fully incremental program, each plate channel is calculated individually using local physical properties and process conditions.

Xspe—Rates and simulates single-phase spiral plate heat exchangers.

Xtlo—Graphical standalone rigorous tube layout software; also integrated with Xist.

Xvib—Performs flow-induced vibration analysis of a single tube in a heat exchanger bundle.

It uses a rigorous structural analysis approach to calculate the tube natural frequencies for various modes and offers flexibility in the geometries it can handle.

Xchanger Suite Educational—Customized version of Xchanger Suite with the capability to design, rate, and simulate shell-and-tube heat exchangers, air-coolers, economizers, and plateand-frame heat exchangers. Available to educational institutions only.

R-trend—Calculates and trends fouling resistances for shell-and-tube heat exchangers in single-phase service. Uses Microsoft Excel as working environment with optional link to Xist. www.info.hotims.com/30874-411 S P R I N G 2010

SOFTWARE REFERENCE

19

Downstream

U PSTREA M / D OWN STREA M SOFTWARE REFERENCE SIMTO user said, “Thanks for this GREAT tool. We are in preparation for a turnaround and without this amazing software I would be totally lost.”

M3 Technology, Inc 10375 Richmond Ave., Suite 380 Houston, TX 77042 Phone: +1-713-784-8285 Fax: +1-832-553-1893 E-mail: m3.sales@m3tch.com www.m3tch.com

Benefits:

Company Bio

SIS / SAFETY SYSTEMS

M3 Technology is the premier supplier of supply chain management solutions focused on enterprise planning, advanced asset scheduling and optimization solutions for the petroleum, petrochemical & LNG industries. M3’s solutions capture economic oppor-tunities and reduce the cost of managing complex facilities at the plant level, regional operating level and global enterprise level. M3 has a global network of implementation partners to provide local consulting expertise and customer support.

Products:

SIMTO™ Refining

SIMTO Refining is a comprehensive solution for refinery planning, scheduling and blending that includes: SIMTO Scheduling schedules all pipeline and tank transfers, crude oil receipts, process unit operation, product run downs, product single blend optimization and shipment SIMTO M-Blend™ provides multi-period blend optimization including rundown blending for gasoline, distillates, fuel oil, other refining products, crude oil that blends from vessels, pipelines & tanks with or without a separate crude feed tank SIMTO Dock Manager calculates and visualizes demurrage, automatically schedules vessels and berths/jetties SIMTO Global manages distributed refining assets and inventories, inherits and synchronizes with multi-plant scheduling models SIMTO Integration Depot provides integration with the plant information system, LIMS, oil movements, plant LP planning, advanced optimization process models, crude assay system, and ERP for crude nominations, and is made easy and robust through the use of web services standards and a multitier architecture.

User Experience: SIMTO Refining is used by planning, scheduing and operating personnel. The soft-ware’s Service Oriented Architecture enables collaboration across the entire enterprise. Recently a 20

SOFTWARE REFERENCE

SPRING 2010

SIMTO Refining produces benefits of over $11–18 million for a 200,000 bpd high-conversion refinery or about 15–25¢/bbl. www.info.hotims.com/30874-414

an IEC 61508-approved calculation engine based on the Markov Modeling technique. Finally exSILentia includes a built-in reliability database from the best-selling Safety Equipment Reliability Handbook (SERH), speeding up the process of SIL verification by allowing users to select equipment items directly from the database without having to manually enter reliability data. For more information, please visit www.exSILentia.com. www.info.hotims.com/30874-415

Yokogawa Electric Corporation

exida 64 North Main Street Sellersville, PA 18960 Phone: 215-453-1720 Fax: 215-257-1657 E-mail: Info@exida.com www.exida.com Iwan van Beurden, Senior Safety Engineer, Iwan.vanbeurden@exida.com

Company Bio: exida is an engineering consulting firm specializing in safety critical / high availability automation systems, control system security, and alarm management. Core competencies in design, analysis, implementation, operation, and maintenance of critical automation systems, along with expertise in the application of the IEC 61508 and IEC 61511 / ISA 84 functional safety standards, has allowed exida to develop an extensive suite of software tools that assist in the implementation of the Safety Lifecycle.

Products: exSILentia® Integrated Safety Lifecycle Suite: The exSILentia® integrated toolset helps tackle three of the most important steps in the safety lifecycle: Safety Integrity Level (SIL) selection, Safety Requirements Specification, and SIL verification. exSILentia lets the user define a project consisting of one or more Safety Instrumented Functions. It helps you manage project documentation through easy report generation and viewing of reports in Microsoft Word. Sharing data for multi-person projects, for independent review, or for input into other lifecycle tools (e.g. PHA), is easy with the builtin exSILentia import/ export functionality. exSILentia provides fully customizable SIL selection options like risk graph, hazard matrix, and frequency based targets. In addition, a complete SIF SRS template ensures completeness in requirements definition. exSILentia contains the most comprehensive SIL verification program on the market, SILver, allowing extensive Safety Instrumented Function definition, and

World Headquarters 9-32, Nakacho 2-chrome, Musashino-shi, Tokyo 180-8750, Japan www.yokogawa.com

Yokogawa Corp. of America 12530 West Airport Blvd, Sugar Land, TX 77478 www.yokogawa.com/us

Yokogawa Europe B.V. Databankweg 20 3821 AL Amersfoort, The Netherlands www.yokogawa.com/eu

Yokogawa Engineering Asia PTE. LTD. 5 Bedok South Road, Singapore 469270, Singapore www.yokogawa.com/sg

Yokogawa Electric China Co., LTD. 22nd Floor Shanghai Oriental Centre 31 Wujiang Road (699 Nanjing West Road) Jing’an District, Shanghai 200041, China Phone: 86-21-5211-0877 Fax: 86-21-5211-0299

Company Bio: Yokogawa Corporation of America is the North American unit of US $4 billion Yokogawa Electric Corporation, a global leader in the manufacture and supply of instrumentation, process control, and automation solutions. Headquartered in Newnan, GA., Yokogawa Corporation of America serves a diverse customer base with market-leading products including analyzers, flow meters, transmitters, controllers, recorders, data acquisition products, meters, instruments, safety instrumented systems, distributed control systems and more.

Products: ProSafe-RS™ - ProSafe-RS is an integrated safety instrumented system (SIS) designed for such applications as emergency shutdown (ESD), Fire and Gas (F&G), Boiler management (BMS). It provides safe, reliable and available control without compromise and is certified by the German certification

UPS TR EAM / D OW N S T R E A M S OF T WA RE REFEREN CE organization, Technische ÜeberwachungsVerein (TÜV) to meet Safety Integrity Level (SIL) 3 as specified in IEC 61508. An integral feature is that it can be combined with Yokogawa’s CENTUM VP DCS system that allows all information to be combined into one screen integrating alarms and events, tag data onto graphics and trends. With ProSafeRS, the safety-instrumented system uses the common DCS network for safety communications – with absolute integrity.

Company Bio: The Equity Engineering Group, Inc. is a recognized leader on aging infrastructure fixed equipment service and support for the oil and gas industry. Equity helps plants manage risk and improve profitability with cutting-edge software and consulting strategies that maximize equipment operational availability, control inspection costs and avoid costly shutdowns.

Products:

TRAINING

API RBI Software is the industry standard for plant risk management, developed through the API consensus standards process and documented in API 581. It provides risk values and metrics for equipment, enabling plants to identify areas of potential failure and prioritize inspection dollars based on measured risk. Modules include fixed equipment, heat exchanger bundles, atmospheric storage tanks, and pressure relief systems.

The Equity Engineering Group, Inc.

VCESage™ is a collection of modules providing an easy-to-use computerized design/analysis resource consistent with the new API 579-1/ ASME FFS-1 standard. The modules enable users to review and/or analyze existing and new equipment for structural integrity, code compliance, re-rating and remaining life evaluations.

www.info.hotims.com/30874-407

20600 Chagrin Blvd., Suite 1200 Shaker Heights, OH 44122 Phone: 216-283-9519 Fax: 216-283-6022 E-mail: gcalvarado@eng.com www.equityeng.com Greg Alvarado, VP Sales and Client Service

Downstream best inspection method for each damage type, and provides simplified Process Flow Diagrams showing where damage will likely occur.

VCEIntelliJoint™ offers a total solution to bolted joint leakage with the latest advanced bolted joint technology, including assembly procedures and gasket test results. The program provides industry best practice gasket specifications and incorporates knowledge in areas required to effectively identify the root cause of a leakage problem.

Training: Equity Engineering offers software training for the API RBI and VCESage™ programs, as well as training in other engineering disciplines. The software courses, designed to help both the novice and experienced user make more effective use of the software, emphasize both hands-on training and in-class example problems. Public courses are held at E2G offices in Cleveland and Houston, or private courses can be held at your site. To find out more about E2G training courses, go to www.equityeng.com. www.info.hotims.com/30874-406

VCEDamage Mechanisms™ is a quick reference guide to identify the potential damage mechanisms that can cause equipment failure.

It guides users through the damage mechanism identification process, helps in selecting the

Midstream

UPS TR EAM / D OW N S T R E A M S OF T WA RE REFEREN CE

ESTIMATING

Gulf Publishing Company PO Box 2608 Houston, Texas 77252-2608 Phone: 800-231-6275 E-mail: software@gulfpub.com www.gulfpub.com/soft

Company Bio: Gulf Publishing Company’s Software Division publishes and distributes more than 40 desktop applications designed specifically for the needs of the engineering community involved in the petroleum industry.

Additional information on the titles offered

by Gulf Publishing Software can be found at www.gulfpub.com/soft.

Products: EST$PRO was designed for estimators, plant engineers and process engineers who need to produce estimates quickly. This desktop application provides the tools necessary for calculating estimates for plant design. Estimating-software features include: • Curve-fitting utility • Risk analysis routine • Capacity cost estimating—can be tailored with your own historical data • Ability to create overall average craft wage rates for limited data • Compute the effect of extended workweeks on productivity • Field craft manpower projections and more • New upgrade allows storing and recall of user input data

IF YOU ARE AN ESTIMATOR, A PLANT ENGINEER, OR PROCESS ENGINEER, THIS IS THE CONCEPTUAL COST ESTIMATING PACKAGE FOR YOU! QUICK,

ACCURATE ESTIMATES

AT THE CLICK OF A BUTTON.

$oftware for Dealmakers +1 (713) 520-4426 +1 (800) 231-6275 Software@GulfPub.com www.GPCSoftware.com

S P R I N G 2010

SOFTWARE REFERENCE

21

Midstream Upstream ALARM MANAGEMENT Yokogawa Electric Corporation World Headquarters 9-32, Nakacho 2-chrome, Musashino-shi, Tokyo 180-8750, Japan www.yokogawa.com

Yokogawa Corp. of America 12530 West Airport Blvd, Sugar Land, TX 77478 www.yokogawa.com/us

U PSTREA M / D OWN STREA M SOFTWARE REFERENCE AAASuite - AAASuite is a comprehensive alarm management system that optimizes and enhances process alarms issued by control systems. AAASuite improves operator performance by minimizing nuisance alarms and providing timely notification of only necessary alarms, thereby preventing alarm flooding and enabling safe, stable and cost effective plant operations. www.info.hotims.com/30874-407

ASSET MANAGEMENT

Yokogawa Europe B.V. Databankweg 20 3821 AL Amersfoort, The Netherlands www.yokogawa.com/eu

Yokogawa Engineering Asia PTE. LTD. 5 Bedok South Road, Singapore 469270, Singapore www.yokogawa.com/sg

Yokogawa Electric China Co., LTD. 22nd Floor Shanghai Oriental Centre 31 Wujiang Road (699 Nanjing West Road) Jing’an District, Shanghai 200041, China Phone: 86-21-5211-0877 Fax: 86-21-5211-0299

Company Bio: Yokogawa Corporation of America is the North American unit of US $4 billion Yokogawa Electric Corporation, a global leader in the manufacture and supply of instrumentation, process control, and automation solutions. Headquartered in Newnan, GA., Yokogawa Corporation of America serves a diverse customer base with market-leading products including analyzers, flow meters, transmitters, controllers, recorders, data acquisition products, meters, instruments, safety instrumented systems, distributed control systems and more.

Products: CAMS - Yokogawa’s Consolidated Alarm Management System (CAMS) is an alarm management software designed on the innovative concept of acquiring real-time alarms and events from a variety of various automation systems - not only from Distributed Control Systems (DCS) but also Safety Instrumented Systems (SIS), Supervisory and Data Acquisition Systems (SCADA and DAQ) and Plant Asset Management Systems (PAM); then to sort and deliver only essential alarms to the right person at the right time. Important information such as the root cause of alarm occurrence and role-based guidance are also added to the displayed message.

22

SOFTWARE REFERENCE

SPRING 2010

Merrick Systems, Inc. 4801 Woodway, Suite 200E Houston, TX 77056 Toll Free: 800-842-8389 Phone: 713-579-3400 Fax: 713-579-3499 E-mail: sales@MerrickSystems.com www.MerrickSystems.com Faisal Kidwai, V.P. Sales, Faisal.Kidwai@MerrickSystems.com

Company Bio: Merrick Systems provides the industry’s most robust software and hardware solutions addressing production operations, engineering and asset tracking. Recognized for its industry expertise and innovative technologies, Merrick is committed to delivering best of breed solutions to improve production operations, helping companies extend oil and gas producing asset life, lower lifting costs, increase production and optimize operations. Merrick’s integrated applications, installed or hosted, include real-time surveillance and optimization; field operations management; field data capture; hydrocarbon production accounting; mobile computing for field and drilling operations and ruggedized RFID for drilling and asset management.

Products: RFID Diamond Tags: Merrick’s ruggedized RFID asset tracking system, including RFID Diamond Tags, software and hardware, was developed to meet the unique needs of oil & gas operations and track downhole, sub-sea and surface equipment . It allows to uniquely identify, track, trace and document high-value assets for location, measurements, maintenance, use, inspection history and certifications. Access to this information in near real-time allows companies to make informed decisions on asset use and re-use, manage assets efficiently, reduce cost and reduce the risk of catastrophic failure, improving the safety of their operations and people. Merrick’s RFID tags can survive the harsh conditions of drilling and subsea operations, including corrosion, abrasives, vibrations, extreme temperatures up to 4000F and

pressures of up to 22,500 psi and are readable through thick layers of drilling mud.

RFID features include: • Various durable and rugged tags and mounting methods for different components including drill pipe, HWDP, subs, drill collars, bits, risers, flow irons, casing, production tubing, safety equipment and any other downhole, sub-sea and surface equipment components that requires tracking • Tags are rated for sustained temperatures and pressures expected under harsh drilling and operating conditions • Tags can be installed during the component manufacturing process or retrofitted in the field • RFID data is linked to corporate-wide asset management, maintenance management and ERP systems including Merrick’s Rig-Hand and CATS software or any in-house asset tracking system Rig-Hand: Rig-Hand is a drilling operations data-collection software using patented RFID technology to automate the identification of surface or down-hole equipment. Rig-Hand has a mobile component, used on a mobile device with an integrated RFID reader for rig and yard operations (such as scanning pipe upon arrival or tripping in or out of the hole) and a desktop component that is used for drilling engineering, technical and logistics workflows.

A typical Rig-Hand workflow includes design of a drill string schematic, comparison of the planned drill string with the inventory of equipment on the rig and tracking drilling operations as the well is drilled and completed.

The drill string information can be viewed in real-time at the rig as well as remotely, at a drilling operations center.

CATS (Corporate Asset Tracking System): CATS provides all necessary asset tracking and management via RFID tags or a combination of tags and bar codes. CATS is a user configurable system utilizing .NET architecture along with a Microsoft SQL database. The application communicates with industrial hardened mobile handheld devices via a wireless link or in a disconnected state (data batching) process.

As data objects and associated attributes are transferred to mobile handhelds, data replication is used to transfer the required information for business processes by users. The respective asset tag is associated with the corresponding asset attributes that are either entered into the CATS database directly or via a file transfer from the host ERP system. CATS is an open system which allows IT power users the ability to independently configure the product to meet current and future business processes. www.info.hotims.com/30874-417

UPS TR EAM / D OW N S T R E A M S OF T WA RE REFEREN CE

Yokogawa Electric Corporation World Headquarters 9-32, Nakacho 2-chrome, Musashino-shi, Tokyo 180-8750, Japan www.yokogawa.com

Yokogawa Corp. of America 12530 West Airport Blvd, Sugar Land, TX 77478 www.yokogawa.com/us

Yokogawa Europe B.V. Databankweg 20 3821 AL Amersfoort, The Netherlands www.yokogawa.com/eu

Yokogawa Engineering Asia PTE. LTD. 5 Bedok South Road, Singapore 469270, Singapore www.yokogawa.com/sg

Yokogawa Electric China Co., LTD. 22nd Floor Shanghai Oriental Centre 31 Wujiang Road (699 Nanjing West Road) Jing’an District, Shanghai 200041, China Phone: 86-21-5211-0877 Fax: 86-21-5211-0299

Business Management Upstream Midstream

documentation such as device drawings, parts list and manuals in a client server architecture that provides information to multiple users within a plant facility. It provides the ability to adjust the parameters of intelligent devices online and allows comparison of the current data to historical data of a device.

Fieldmate™ - FieldMate™ is an asset management software developed for portable laptop computers that provides configuration and maintenance of intelligent field devices.

Fieldmate™ supports the use of open interface Field Device Tool (FDT) technology to facilitate the configuration and adjustment of field devices such as sensors and valves at production sites, regardless of the manufacturer or the communication protocols. Fieldmate™ also supports Electronic Device Description Language (EDDL) interface technology.

With its device navigation and device maintenance information management features, this software relieves users of the difficulties with dealing with a variety of communication protocols and configuration methods from multiple manufacturers which used different configurators and/or multiple configuration procedures. www.info.hotims.com/30874-407

searching, viewing, mapping, reporting, graphing, analysis and managing information.

The gDCTM (geoLOGIC Data Center) is an online exploration information system that gives users instant access, through their choice of software, to high quality data in the open Public Petroleum Data Model. Extremely fast and reliable, the gDC gives access to general well data, including geoLOGIC Tops, Original Operator data, DST and other well test data, directional well data, land data, and LAS and Raster log data. petroCUBETM is an innovative suite of products that provide unbiased, consistent statistical insights that can help you make more profitable decisions about petroleum plays. From reserve and production data through to full-cycle economics, petroCUBE gives you immediate access to a full spectrum of current geostatistical, technical and financial information and comprehensive analytical tools. petroCUBE instantly delivers the data engineers and geologists need to accurately assess risk and justify exploration and development proposals before wells are drilled. www.info.hotims.com/30874-404

DATA VISUALIZATION

DATA MANAGEMENT

Company Bio: Yokogawa Corporation of America is the North American unit of US $4 billion Yokogawa Electric Corporation, a global leader in the manufacture and supply of instrumentation, process control, and automation solutions. Headquartered in Newnan, GA., Yokogawa Corporation of America serves a diverse customer base with market-leading products including analyzers, flow meters, transmitters, controllers, recorders, data acquisition products, meters, instruments, safety instrumented systems, distributed control systems and more.

Products: PRM - Plant Resource Manager (PRM) is a real-time instrument device maintenance and management software package that provides a platform for advanced instrument diagnostics.

PRM is an integrated software solution that unifies the monitored data from intelligent and non-intelligent field devices running within Yokogawa’s CENTUM VP and STARDOM control systems or as a stand-alone solution. The key feature of PRM is that it provides easy access to automatically collected data from field networks such as Foundation Fieldbus, and HART allowing integration, management and maintenance these devices using a common database.

PRM provides integrated plant and device performance data, maintenance records, audit trails, device configuration with autodevice detection, historic data management, parameter comparison, advanced device diagnostics information, and access to on-line

geoLOGIC systems ltd. geoLOGIC systems ltd.

900, 703 6 Avenue SW Calgary, AB Canada T2P 0T9 Phone: 403 262-1992 Fax: 403-262-1987 E-mail: sales@geologic.com www.geologic.com Andrea Hood, VP Business Development & Sales

Company Bio: geoLOGIC systems ltd. provides well data and integrated software solutions to the energy and production industry. The company is an innovator in supplying data in more accessible and usable forms so clients can make better decisions - from the well head to senior levels of accounting and administration.

Products: geoSCOUTTM is a fully integrated, Windowsbased exploratory system that combines presentation-quality mapping and cross-section tools with data handling and analysis software. It integrates public and proprietary data on wells, well logs (Raster and LAS), land, pipelines and facilities, fields and pools, and seismic studies. It includes powerful, easy-to-use tools for

900, 703 6 Avenue SW Calgary, AB Canada T2P 0T9 Phone: 403 262-1992 Fax: 403-262-1987 E-mail: sales@geologic.com www.geologic.com Andrea Hood, VP Business Development & Sales

Company Bio: geoLOGIC systems ltd. provides well data and integrated software solutions to the energy and production industry. The company is an innovator in supplying data in more accessible and usable forms so clients can make better decisions - from the well head to senior levels of accounting and administration.

Products: geoSCOUTTM is a fully integrated, Windowsbased exploratory system that combines presentation-quality mapping and cross-section tools with data handling and analysis software. It integrates public and proprietary data on wells, well logs (Raster and LAS), land, pipelines and facilities, fields and pools, and seismic studies. It includes powerful, easy-to-use tools for searching, viewing, mapping, reporting, graphing, analysis and managing information.

S P R I N G 2010

SOFTWARE REFERENCE

23

Midstream Upstream The gDCTM (geoLOGIC Data Center) is an online exploration information system that gives users instant access, through their choice of software, to high quality data in the open Public Petroleum Data Model. Extremely fast and reliable, the gDC gives access to general well data, including geoLOGIC Tops, Original Operator data, DST and other well test data, directional well data, land data, and LAS and Raster log data. petroCUBETM is an innovative suite of products that provide unbiased, consistent statistical insights that can help you make more profitable decisions about petroleum plays. From reserve and production data through to full-cycle economics, petroCUBE gives you immediate access to a full spectrum of current geostatistical, technical and financial information and comprehensive analytical tools. petroCUBE instantly delivers the data engineers and geologists need to accurately assess risk and justify exploration and development proposals before wells are drilled.

U PSTREA M / D OWN STREA M SOFTWARE REFERENCE

generate animation sequences featuring continuous rotation, moving slices, blocks, parametric variation (time animation), oblique slice rotation, and varying transparency. Use the new 3VOTM viewer to easily rotate, zoom, control lighting and light reflection, and change the center of rotation of your data image.

Pricing for Slicer Dicer starts at only $495. Go to our web site, SlicerDicer.com, to download a full-featured demo that is limited only by a 15-day trial period. Low-cost upgrades from previous versions of Slicer Dicer are also available from the SlicerDicer.com web site. www.info.hotims.com/30874-418

DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION AND ENGINEERING

www.info.hotims.com/30874-404

Heat Transfer Research, Inc. Worldwide

PIXOTEC, LLC 15917 SE Fairwood Blvd.

Renton, WA 98058 US Phone: 425-255-0789 Fax: 425-917-0104 E-mail: info@slicerdicer.com www.slicerdicer.com Skip Echert, Director of Marketing

Company Bio: PIXOTEC, LLC specializes in the development of software for the analysis of complex data in three or more dimensions. Dr. David Lucas, the originator of Slicer Dicer, heads the software development efforts and is co-owner of PIXOTEC. Slicer Dicer® and its precursors have been under development since the late 80s.

Products: Slicer Dicer - Volumetric Data Visualization Software for Windows, is designed for geoscientists and engineers involved with complex data defined in three or more dimensions. This easyto-use tool is employed for the analysis of seismic data and geological model outputs. It has users in over 50 countries. The latest version of Slicer Dicer, v5, includes 3VOTM Slicer Dicer’s powerful new 3D viewer. It simplifies rotating, zooming, and other manipulations of your data scene, all by simply moving your mouse.

With Slicer Dicer, you can explore your multidimensional volume data visually by “slicing and dicing” to create arbitrary orthogonal and oblique slices, rectilinear blocks and cutouts, isosurfaces, and projected volumes. You can 24

SOFTWARE REFERENCE

SPRING 2010

150 Venture Drive College Station, TX 77845 USA Phone: 979-690-5050 Fax: 979-690-3250 E-mail: HTRI@HTRI.net www.HTRI.net Claudette D. Beyer, President and CEO Fernando J. Aguirre, VP, Sales and Business Development

Asia - Pacific Heat Transfer Research, Inc. World Business Garden Marive East 14F Nakase 2-6, Mihamaku Chiba 261-7114 Japan Phone: 81-43-297-0353 Fax: 81-43-297-0354 E-mail: HTRI.Asia@HTRI.net Hirohisa Uozu, Regional Mgr.

EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa) The Surrey Technology Centre 40 Occam Road Guildford, Surrey GU2 7YG U.K. Phone: 44-(0)1483-685100 Fax: 44-(0)1483-685101 HTRI.Europe@HTRI.net Hans U. Zettler, Regional Manager

India C-1, First Floor, Tower-B “Indraprasth Complex” Near Inox Multiplex, Race Course (North) Vadodara 390007, Gujarat, India Phone: +91 (982) 514-7775 HTRI.India@HTRI.net Rajan Desai, International Coordinator

Company Bio: HTRI operates an international consortium founded in 1962 that conducts industrially relevant research and provides software tools for design, rating, and simulation of process heat transfer equipment. HTRI also produces a wide range of technical publications and provides other services including contract research, software development, consulting, and training.

Products: HTRI Xchanger Suite—Integrated graphical user environment for the design, rating, and simulation of heat transfer equipment.

Xace—Designs, rates, and simulates the performance of air-cooled heat exchangers, heat recovery units, and air preheaters.

Xfh—Simulates the behavior of fired heaters.

Calculates the radiant section of cylindrical and box heaters and the convection section of fired heaters. It also designs process heater tubes and performs combustion calculations.

Xhpe—Designs, rates, and simulates the performance of hairpin heat exchangers.

Xist—Designs, rates, and simulates single- and two-phase shell-and-tube heat exchangers, including kettle and thermosiphon reboilers, falling film evaporators, and reflux condensers.

Xjpe—Designs, rates, and simulates jacketedpipe (double-pipe) heat exchangers.

Xphe—Designs, rates, and simulates plate-andframe heat exchangers. A fully incremental program, each plate channel is calculated individually using local physical properties and process conditions.

Xspe—Rates and simulates single-phase spiral plate heat exchangers.

Xtlo—Graphical standalone rigorous tube layout software; also integrated with Xist.

Xvib—Performs flow-induced vibration analysis of a single tube in a heat exchanger bundle.

It uses a rigorous structural analysis approach to calculate the tube natural frequencies for various modes and offers flexibility in the geometries it can handle.

Xchanger Suite Educational—Customized version of Xchanger Suite with the capability to design, rate, and simulate shell-and-tube heat exchangers, air-coolers, economizers, and plateand-frame heat exchangers. Available to educational institutions only.

R-trend—Calculates and trends fouling resistances for shell-and-tube heat exchangers in single-phase service. Uses Microsoft Excel as working environment with optional link to Xist. www.info.hotims.com/30874-411

UPS TR EAM / D OW N S T R E A M S OF T WA RE REFEREN CE

EXPLORATION

Business Management Upstream Midstream

ware. It integrates public and proprietary data on wells, well logs (Raster and LAS), land, pipelines and facilities, fields and pools, and seismic studies. It includes powerful, easyto-use tools for searching, viewing, mapping, reporting, graphing, analysis and managing information.

geoLOGIC systems ltd.

900, 703 6 Avenue SW Calgary, AB Canada T2P 0T9 Phone: 403 262-1992 Fax: 403-262-1987 E-mail: sales@geologic.com www.geologic.com Andrea Hood, VP Business Development & Sales

Company Bio: geoLOGIC systems ltd. provides well data and integrated software solutions to the energy and production industry. The company is an innovator in supplying data in more accessible and usable forms so clients can make better decisions - from the well head to senior levels of accounting and administration.

Products: geoSCOUTTM is a fully integrated, Windowsbased exploratory system that combines presentation-quality mapping and cross-section tools with data handling and analysis soft-

The gDCTM (geoLOGIC Data Center) is an online exploration information system that gives users instant access, through their choice of software, to high quality data in the open Public Petroleum Data Model. Extremely fast and reliable, the gDC gives access to general well data, including geoLOGIC Tops, Original Operator data, DST and other well test data, directional well data, land data, and LAS and Raster log data. petroCUBETM is an innovative suite of products that provide unbiased, consistent statistical insights that can help you make more profitable decisions about petroleum plays. From reserve and production data through to full-cycle economics, petroCUBE gives you immediate access to a full spectrum of current geostatistical, technical and financial information and comprehensive analytical tools. petroCUBE instantly delivers the data engineers and geologists need to accurately assess risk and justify exploration and development proposals before wells are drilled. www.info.hotims.com/30874-404

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FIELD DATA CAPTURE

Merrick Systems, Inc. 4801 Woodway, Suite 200E Houston, TX 77056 Toll Free: 800-842-8389 Phone: 713-579-3400 Fax: 713-579-3499 E-mail: sales@MerrickSystems.com www.MerrickSystems.com Faisal Kidwai, V.P. Sales, Faisal.Kidwai@MerrickSystems.com

Company Bio: Merrick Systems provides the industryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most robust software and hardware solutions addressing production operations, engineering and asset tracking. Recognized for its industry expertise and innovative technologies, Merrick is committed to delivering best of breed solutions to improve production operations, helping companies extend oil and gas producing asset life, lower lifting costs, increase production and optimize operations. Merrickâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s integrated applications, installed or hosted, include real-time surveillance and optimization; field operations management; field data capture; hydrocarbon

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Select 404 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS 25

Midstream Upstream FIELD DATA CAPTURE, CONT. production accounting; mobile computing for field and drilling operations and ruggedized RFID for drilling and asset management.

U PSTREA M / D OWN STREA M SOFTWARE REFERENCE

OPERATIONS •

Products: eVIN: Used in 20% of all oil & gas wells in the US and multiple global locations, eVIN enables data capture from oil and gas fields using handhelds and PCs. Designed to meet field operation needs anywhere in the world, including the unique complexities of difficult environments and products such as coal bed methane, water floods and CO2, eVIN handls mixed units of measure and multiple languages.

Field operators use eVIN to easily enter data from the field with automated field calculations of different gas metering devices and oil tickets. eVIN provides error validation and reliable transfer of the data to the company’s central offices 24/7 where production supervisors, accounting personnel and engineers can access it in near real time. It also allows SCADA and other automated readings and information to be transmitted to field personnel for review and action. eVIN’s configurability enables capturing any desired data, allowing it to be used for asset tracking, environmental and safety compliance and much more.

Designed for use in remote locations, eVIN can be deployed in areas of low bandwidth and manages interruptions in connectivity without disruption to the data capture process. Easy to deploy, eVIN can manage updates via a simple set-up, a single point of deployment and standard TCP/IP protocol. The software can be used on multiple devices including desktop, Pocket PC or TabletPC. RFID-Based Asset Tracking System: rugged, handheld system for asset tracking at a rig-site and for yard operations. The system includes both intrinsically safe and non-intrinsic hardware. For rig operations, the system automatically creates a drill string schematic as tagged drill pipe components are scanned. The schematic provides the toolpusher an accurate tally of the components going in and out of the hole and in what sequence. If the system identifies any potential out of order sequencing, it will alert the toolpusher of the thread mismatch as the drill string is being built via a graphic display on the handheld device. The ease of scanning tags with a single button click on the handheld device, even with gloved use, makes it possible to facilitate normal drilling operations speed while maintaining accuracy.

Merrick Systems, Inc. 4801 Woodway, Suite 200E Houston, TX 77056 Toll Free: 800-842-8389 Phone: 713-579-3400 Fax: 713-579-3499 E-mail: sales@MerrickSystems.com www.MerrickSystems.com Faisal Kidwai, V.P. Sales, Faisal.Kidwai@MerrickSystems.com

Company Bio: Merrick Systems provides the industry’s most robust software and hardware solutions addressing production operations, engineering and asset tracking. Recognized for its industry expertise and innovative technologies, Merrick is committed to delivering best of breed solutions to improve production operations, helping companies extend oil and gas producing asset life, lower lifting costs, increase production and optimize operations.

Merrick’s integrated applications, installed or hosted, include real-time surveillance and optimization; field operations management; field data capture; hydrocarbon production accounting; mobile computing for field and drilling operations and ruggedized RFID for drilling and asset management.

Products: Merrick’s suite of products provides a complete production and drilling management solution.

From the field to the back office, all of your data is integrated into a single system: •

SOFTWARE REFERENCE

SPRING 2010

eVIN – Mobile and PC-based field data capture system designed for simple, fast and efficient entry of daily readings with field validation and AGA calculations built in.

•

ProCount – Comprehensive hydrocarbon accounting solution to manage simple and complex daily and monthly production allocations, including full component allocations with over 100 standard reports included.

•

Carte – Web based production monitoring and reporting tool for viewing, graphing, analyzing and exporting daily and monthly oil & gas production trends.

Catch potential production areas before they become problems.

•

PetroRegs – Complete regulatory compliance modules for state and MMS reporting.

•

RIO – Petro technical data store for exploitation, exploration, property evaluation, reservoir analysis, and field operations.

www.info.hotims.com/30874-417

26

Used to manage and analyze production, reservoir, geological, and petrophysical data, allowing multiple applications to utilize and benefit from the same data.

RFID-Based Asset Tracking System for tracking down-hole, subsea and surface equipment onshore and offshore. The system includes a portfolio of fit-for-purpose Diamond RFID tags, Rig-Hand and CATS software for drill-site and corporate-wide asset tracking. www.info.hotims.com/30874-417

PROCESS CONTROL AND INFORMATION SYSTEMS Yokogawa Electric Corporation World Headquarters 9-32, Nakacho 2-chrome, Musashino-shi, Tokyo 180-8750, Japan www.yokogawa.com

Yokogawa Corp. of America 12530 West Airport Blvd, Sugar Land, TX 77478 www.yokogawa.com/us

Yokogawa Europe B.V. Databankweg 20 3821 AL Amersfoort, The Netherlands www.yokogawa.com/eu

Yokogawa Engineering Asia PTE. LTD. 5 Bedok South Road, Singapore 469270, Singapore www.yokogawa.com/sg

Yokogawa Electric China Co., LTD. 22nd Floor Shanghai Oriental Centre 31 Wujiang Road (699 Nanjing West Road) Jing’an District, Shanghai 200041, China Phone: 86-21-5211-0877 Fax: 86-21-5211-0299

Company Bio: Yokogawa Corporation of America is the North American unit of US $4 billion Yokogawa Electric Corporation, a global leader in the manufacture and supply of instrumentation, process control, and automation solutions. Headquartered in Newnan, GA., Yokogawa Corporation of America serves a diverse customer base with market-leading products including analyzers, flow meters, transmitters, controllers, recorders, data acquisition products, meters, instruments, safety instrumented systems, distributed control systems and more.

UPS TR EAM / D OW N S T R E A M S OF T WA RE REFEREN CE

Products: FAST/TOOLSTM (Advance Process Control Management software) is a powerful, stateof-the-art, flexible, distributed Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system. It is a client/server based open architecture that provides support for standards such as XML, HTML, Java, ODBC and OPC ensures uniform and standard interfaces to other packages and applications.. It has been developed and evolved over a period of three decades to span a wide range of operating platforms such that it offers stability and scalability during the lifetime of the process. It has a proven track-record, guaranteed ‘best-of-class’ availability, data integrity, high levels of performance and on-line configuration capabilities. FAST/TOOLS is scalable from less than a hundred to more than a million I/O points, and supports multiple architectures from single node solutions to multi-node client/server systems and is used in many application areas, such as: • Oil & Gas exploration, production and distribution supervision • Pipeline Management • Ship monitoring and control • Production control supervision • Utilities like water, waste-water treatment, gas and electricity distribution and management • Embedded applications in advanced production equipment.

STARDOMTM, network based control system, is coupled with FAST/TOOLS to provide the remote terminal units (RTU). STARDOM consists of a family of highly functional autonomous controller RTUs and application portfolios. It features small, scalable architecture which is capable of being highly distributed, both within a facility and also geographically.

STARDOM family of controllers include a Field control node (FCN)– a modular controller with a wide range of I/O modules and two expansion units suitable for mid-size applications, a Field Control Junction – an all-in-one compact controller with built-in I/O suitable for direct installation on equipment or utilities and a FCN-RTU suitable for low power applications. STARDOM enables operation and monitoring of the process anywhere, anytime using commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) components. STARDOM autonomous controllers are FOUNDATION fieldbus certified and can be adapted to any infrastructure to integrate all process information. STARDOM autonomous controllers have great remote management and stand-alone capability, and reduce running costs by making flexible use of e-mail, the Web, and SCADA technology. www.info.hotims.com/30874-407

Business Management Upstream Midstream

PROCESS ENGINEERING AND SIMULATION

EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa) The Surrey Technology Centre 40 Occam Road Guildford, Surrey GU2 7YG U.K. Phone: 44-(0)1483-685100 Fax: 44-(0)1483-685101 HTRI.Europe@HTRI.net Hans U. Zettler, Regional Manager

India

Heat Transfer Research, Inc. Worldwide 150 Venture Drive College Station, TX 77845 USA Phone: 979-690-5050 Fax: 979-690-3250 E-mail: HTRI@HTRI.net www.HTRI.net Claudette D. Beyer, President and CEO Fernando J. Aguirre, VP, Sales and Business Development

Asia - Pacific Heat Transfer Research, Inc. World Business Garden Marive East 14F Nakase 2-6, Mihamaku Chiba 261-7114 Japan Phone: 81-43-297-0353 Fax: 81-43-297-0354 E-mail: HTRI.Asia@HTRI.net Hirohisa Uozu, Regional Mgr.

C-1, First Floor, Tower-B “Indraprasth Complex” Near Inox Multiplex, Race Course (North) Vadodara 390007, Gujarat, India Phone: +91 (982) 514-7775 HTRI.India@HTRI.net Rajan Desai, International Coordinator

Company Bio: HTRI operates an international consortium founded in 1962 that conducts industrially relevant research and provides software tools for design, rating, and simulation of process heat transfer equipment. HTRI also produces a wide range of technical publications and provides other services including contract research, software development, consulting, and training.

Products: HTRI Xchanger Suite—Integrated graphical user environment for the design, rating, and simulation of heat transfer equipment.

Xace—Designs, rates, and simulates the per-

The industry-standard software for instrumentation design Featuring more than 70 routines associated with control valves, rupture disks, flow elements, relief valves and process data calculations, InstruCalcTM is one of the industry’s most popular desktop applications for instrumentation calculations and analyses.

Features: Version 7.1 • Graphs for Control Valves and Flow Elements • Restriction devices • Material yield strengths file • ISO orifice pplate calculations have been updated to ISO 5167, 2003 ms,, ssudden uddde d entrance and exit to the calculations.

• Relieff Valve program programs,

+1 (713) 520-4426 l +1 (800) 231-6275 l Software@GulfPub.com l ww www.Gulf www.GulfPub.com/Soft fPub.com/Softt

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S P R I N G 2010

SOFTWARE REFERENCE

27

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Midstream Upstream n RF O ffs h arbo hip s r ce e n n a l w l i of O cess s u r ve C o st vo i r ta A c r a e D s e r na l fi e l d and & ma al Oi We l l t g i g n i i D ck t t ra ng asse oun r n ng o f ccou ID hydrocarbon production F a R n o nt re s c a r baccounting geme ll and yd ro e H W lance ro v ent r ve i l s Imp agem s n e a c P ro &m ng cking r ance t ramobility o solutions forl ifield p Re omp y C r o t t la ship m e n operations Re g u and drilling wner O nage a f o M a C o st r vo i r We l l vity Re s e c u e d c o n r lia ed P field m poperations arbo p ro v ry Co d ro c o y t H a l management and fieldO Re g u ells t Wdata r ent Field a capture m ons s S n u o l a e ra ty so Oper al Op obili b o M l G cess ent bility ofor ta A c M ruggedized RFID agem n a g un n g & m drilling re s e a c c o andl l asset ackin and n o b e r a W c management e nt yd ro P ro c eme e H g g a n n a epor g&m pari ory R t ackin a l Com u g a t e a R D real and o n stime surveillance un ime acco e a l Toptimization p e ra R n o b 2 r a O c C s yd ro nt wner e H O eme c f n o a i pl C o st Com plia vity ent c Com u d y r o r o t ve d P egula art m p ro t R n s Sm e n m o e g ana o p e ra s M o re O g&m h s cces ff A O a t Da m nce ve i l l a ing & l fi e l d i k c O a l r a t o Digit sset H ydr fo r a ng D I ce F n R a l l i t g& men s u r ve ackin nage r vo i r t r e t s se re or as and ons FID f We l l R e ra p e O c bsea plian pari Com 2 Su O Com C a e t c a n D la a ime r ve i l rbon eal T ir su a R c o r CO2 H yd of O nt ance i l p eme C o st om y t C c vi ent to r y ro d u P age m d e egula v R o r t Imp o men p e ra ons nage O a e m r g& ffs h o A ackin e O c D ata n et tr a l d l l i e e fi v l r al Oi ir su et tr Digit s e r vo r ass g o 4801 Woodway f n D I n ccou illa t R F Suite 200E on a men ur ve s e g r i a an e r v oTX 77056s s Houston, ons M d re s n or a a l e ra l +1.713.579.3400 FID f We R s e n c ea a o p l i a n 800.842.8389 Subs Oper Com 2 O s C n Da lu o lance r ve i l t y s owww.MerrickSystems.com Time l u s a e r R vo i CO2 H yd re s e r t and n nce e a i l m p e Com p ro v vit ss Im ent duc

Industrial IT for the Digital Oil Field

U PSTREA M / D OWN STREA M SOFTWARE REFERENCE

PROCESS ENGINEERING AND SIMULATION, CONT. formance of air-cooled heat exchangers, heat recovery units, and air preheaters.

Xfh—Simulates the behavior of fired heaters.

Calculates the radiant section of cylindrical and box heaters and the convection section of fired heaters. It also designs process heater tubes and performs combustion calculations.

Xhpe—Designs, rates, and simulates the performance of hairpin heat exchangers.

Xist—Designs, rates, and simulates single- and two-phase shell-and-tube heat exchangers, including kettle and thermosiphon reboilers, falling film evaporators, and reflux condensers.

Xjpe—Designs, rates, and simulates jacketedpipe (double-pipe) heat exchangers.

Xphe—Designs, rates, and simulates plate-andframe heat exchangers. A fully incremental program, each plate channel is calculated individually using local physical properties and process conditions.

Xspe—Rates and simulates single-phase spiral plate heat exchangers.

Xtlo—Graphical standalone rigorous tube layout software; also integrated with Xist.

Xvib—Performs flow-induced vibration analysis of a single tube in a heat exchanger bundle.

It uses a rigorous structural analysis approach to calculate the tube natural frequencies for various modes and offers flexibility in the geometries it can handle.

Xchanger Suite Educational—Customized version of Xchanger Suite with the capability to design, rate, and simulate shell-and-tube heat exchangers, air-coolers, economizers, and plateand-frame heat exchangers. Available to educational institutions only.

R-trend—Calculates and trends fouling resistances for shell-and-tube heat exchangers in single-phase service. Uses Microsoft Excel as working environment with optional link to Xist. www.info.hotims.com/30874-411

We Understand PRODUCTION ACCOUNTING

Merrick Systems, Inc. 4801 Woodway, Suite 200E Houston, TX 77056 Toll Free: 800-842-8389 Phone: 713-579-3400 Fax: 713-579-3499 E-mail: sales@MerrickSystems.com www.MerrickSystems.com Faisal Kidwai, V.P. Sales, Faisal.Kidwai@MerrickSystems.com

Company Bio: Merrick Systems provides the industry’s most robust software and hardware solutions ad-

Select 417 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS

dressing production operations, engineering and asset tracking. Recognized for its industry expertise and innovative technologies, Merrick is committed to delivering best of breed solutions to improve production operations, helping companies extend oil and gas producing asset life, lower lifting costs, increase production and optimize operations. Merrick’s integrated applications, installed or hosted, include real-time surveillance and optimization; field operations management; field data capture; hydrocarbon production accounting; mobile computing for field and drilling operations and ruggedized RFID for drilling and asset management.

Products: ProCount - ProCount is a comprehensive hydrocarbon accounting solution for daily and monthly volumetric allocations, management and partner reporting. Used onshore, offshore, domestically and globally, ProCount helps meet allocation needs in both operated and non-operated properties and handles simple to complex allocations by mass, energy and volume, with plant and pipeline, meter, tank and fuel wellhead allocations.

Providing daily and monthly volume reconciliations that are used to minimize month-end operational surprises and operational discrepancies, ProCount also supports allocations for production sharing agreements and other contractual needs. Handling multiple units of measure, ProCount has built-in integration with several standard ERP accounting and financial systems as well as third-party engineering and economic analysis software packages.

With over a hundred standard reports and adhoc reporting capabilities, ProCount is highly scalable, configurable and built to integrate well with other software packages. In addition, It has a built-in auditability and traceability which are required for financial regulatory compliance.

ProCount features include: • Simple drag and drop tool that allows users to create simple to complex multi-tiered connections for allocation networks • Quick setup of daily and monthly allocations using templates for multiple objects (meters, tanks, equipment and completions) • Allocate by volume, energy based – BTU and analysis, including component allocation of plant products and liquids/NGL • User defined error checking and validation, custom formulas for allocation requirements and user configurable data fields and screens • Handles requirements for mixed units of measurement (Imperial and Metric) within one data store • Scalable to handle daily allocations for 20,000+ wells (with related equipment in a network) • Integrates with revenue/financial systems like Artesia, Excalibur, SAP as well as Aries for Petroleum Economics

UPS TR EAM / D OW N S T R E A M S OF T WA RE REFEREN CE • Regulatory filing of production for all key states and MMS either in electronic format or printed • 100+ reports included for daily operations, daily and monthly accounting/allocations and management/partner reporting.

Business Management Upstream Midstream

Fax: 281 531 4177 E-mail: sales@OVSGroup.com www.OVSGroup.com Norman Kroon, VP Business Development Norman.Kroon@OVSGroup.com

Company Bio:

Carte – Carte is a web-based production management dashboard and monthly oil & gas production reporting system that allows access to information by a single well, field or entire asset, viewed graphically or in tabular form. Carte reads data from Merrick’s ProCount software or other standard third-party production databases and provides KPI and variance reports. It allows operations staff and executives to easily access production data at varying levels, including corporate division and asset summaries, or drill down to completion levels. As a web –based solution it offers simple deployment from a central location to field and office personnel at multiple locations. It can also be used to share information with partners.

OVS© is a highly configurable platform created for Engineering Asset Management. It is used to configure fit-for-purpose solutions combining: • Data Integration & Visualization • Surveillance-by-Exception • Engineering Workflow Guidance and Automation with Application Integration

Carte features include: • View allocated production data to spot early trends and potential problem areas • Drill down to the completion level and access critical information for decision making • Activate Excel from within Carte to generate user spreadsheets • Annotate with ‘sticky notes’ on well production graphs • Print one or all production graphs with a single mouse click • Graph the forecasted economic model versus actual production on a daily basis PetroRegs – From production form filings with state and federal agencies to gas allowable computations and well test calculations, these modules help ensure regulatory compliance.

Regulatory features include: • Flexible filing options with hard copy reports, electronic filing and PDF format • Automatic handling of prior period adjustments (PPA) • Each module generates state-approved digital filings • Generate error reports for identifying potential problems before filing with the state

Our software solution includes: • Data integration and visualization to utilize all your existing information, no need to change databases or applications, no duplication of data • Production operations surveillance allows automated and unattended surveillance of production operations using your own business rules and logic • Engineering workflow automation accommodates your unique work processes in the drilling, production, and reservoir domains

www.info.hotims.com/30874-417

PRODUCTION OPTIMIZATION

OVS Group, LLC 580 Westlake Park Blvd.

Suite 100 Houston, TX USA 77079 Phone: 281 531 4333

WELL LOG DATA ACCESS AND MANAGEMENT

In addition to our products, we provide a full suite of professional, training, and support services to assist you in the implementation of solutions based on the OVS© framework.

Product and Service Descriptions: OVS™is proven software commercialized in 2006, written in .Net and in use on a global basis.

Our application and strategic deployment services enable our clients to benefit by: • Improving operational efficiency by delivering client designed and approved workflows • Advancing technology to the industry desired “Digital Oil Field” vision • Adding value to existing applications and data for engineering and operational use, ultimately to make better decisions OVS in practice: Our clients are using OVS™ to deliver solutions for: Production Operations • Gas Lift Optimization & Virtual Metering using Models • Production Surveillance & Optimization • Surveillance-by-Exception • Electronic Wellbook • Reservoir Management • Fluid Contact Surveillance • Pressure Maintenance Program Monitoring & Online Simulation Field Development Planning • Inter-departmental coordination of prospect evaluation process using workflows for standardized analysis from drilling, completions, production, reservoir, and pipeline technology groups.

geoLOGIC systems ltd.

900, 703 6 Avenue SW Calgary, AB Canada T2P 0T9 Phone: 403 262-1992 Fax: 403-262-1987 E-mail: sales@geologic.com www.geologic.com Andrea Hood, VP Business Development & Sales

Company Bio: geoLOGIC systems ltd. provides well data and integrated software solutions to the energy and production industry. The company is an innovator in supplying data in more accessible and usable forms so clients can make better decisions - from the well head to senior levels of accounting and administration.

Products: geoSCOUTTM is a fully integrated, Windowsbased exploratory system that combines presentation-quality mapping and cross-section tools with data handling and analysis software. It integrates public and proprietary data on wells, well logs (Raster and LAS), land, pipelines and facilities, fields and pools, and seismic studies. It includes powerful, easy-to-use tools for searching, viewing, mapping, reporting, graphing, analysis and managing information.

The gDCTM (geoLOGIC Data Center) is an online exploration information system that gives users instant access, through their choice of software, to high quality data in the open Public Petroleum Data Model. Extremely fast and reliable, the gDC gives access to general well data, including geoLOGIC Tops, Original Operator data, DST and other well test data, directional well data, land data, and LAS and Raster log data. petroCUBETM is an innovative suite of products that provide unbiased, consistent statistical insights that can help you make more profitable decisions about petroleum plays. From reserve and production data through to full-cycle economics, petroCUBE gives you immediate access to a full spectrum of current geostatistical, technical and financial information and comprehensive analytical tools. petroCUBE instantly delivers the data engineers and geologists need to accurately assess risk and justify exploration and development proposals before wells are drilled. www.info.hotims.com/30874-404

www.info.hotims.com/30874-419 S P R I N G 2010

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Software Reference Index UPSTREAM / DOWNSTREAM SOFTWARE REF ERENCE

How to use this index:

DISPLAY ADVERTISERS Chemstations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 www.info.hotims.com/30874-408

Codeware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 www.info.hotims.com/30874-405

1.Learn more about the display advertisers by visiting the pages provided in the first column under “Display Advertisers.” For more information, go to www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS and follow the instructions.

2.The companies shown in bold-faced type have product listings on the page numbers provided.

BUSINESS MANAGEMENT BUDGETING, CAPITAL ALLOCATION & PLANNING 3esi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 Schlumberger Information Solutions

Equity Engineering Group . . . . . . . 18 www.info.hotims.com/30874-406

BUSINESS INTEGRATION Baker & O’Brien Ensyte Energy Software IBM Solutions

m:pro IT Consult . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 geoLOGIC systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 www.info.hotims.com/30874-404

ENTERPRISE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT Oildex . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

Haverly Systems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 www.info.hotims.com/30874-413

OSIsoft P2 Energy Solutions

LAND AND LEASING geoLOGIC systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5

Heat Transfer Research Inc. . . . . . . . 2 www.info.hotims.com/30874-411

PLANT LIFECYCLE & PERFORMANCE MONITORING ABB Emerson Process Management

m:pro IT Consult . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 M3 Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 www.info.hotims.com/30874-414

Merrick Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 www.info.hotims.com/30874-417

PRODUCTION YIELD/ACCOUNTING Bolo Systems CGI Solutions and Technologies Data Scavenger

REGULATORY COMPLIANCE Codeware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

RISK MANAGEMENT m:pro IT Consult. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 www.info.hotims.com/30874-402

Equity Engineering Group . . . . . . . . . . . .6 Decisioneering Dyadem

ASSET MANAGEMENT Aspen Technology Asset Performance Networks

Equity Engineering Group . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Lloyd’s Register Expertune ICONICS INOVx Intergraph

KBC Advanced Technologies . . . . . . . . . .7 Yokogawa. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

COLLABORATION AND KNOWLEDGE CAPTURE Yokogawa. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION & ENGINEERING AVEVA

Chemstations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9 Codeware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9 Heat Transfer Research, Inc. (HTRI). . . .10 KRC Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 McLaren Software Peng Engineering

DYNAMIC SIMULATION & OPTIMIZATION Chemstations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11 Invensys SimSci-Esscor Kinesix Software RSI Simcon

ECONOMIC EVALUATION Axxis Spiral Software

ENERGY MANAGEMENT Heat Transfer Research, Inc. (HTRI). . . .11

ENTERPRISE PORTAL SYSTEMS m:pro IT Consult . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

Yokogawa. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 www.info.hotims.com/30874-407

DOWNSTREAM ALARM MANAGEMENT Yokogawa. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

FLUID FLOW ANALYSIS ABZ CPFD-Software Engineered Software

Your company can be listed under a single category in this index at no charge.

For information, please contact Laura Kane at 1-713-520-4449 or laura.kane@gulfpub.com 30

SOFTWARE REFERENCE

SPRING 2010

Software Reference Index U PS TR EA M / D OWN ST RE A M SOFT WA RE REFERENCE

ONLINE MONITORING & OPTIMIZATION Chemstations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 Flexware. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

PLANNING, SCHEDULING & BLENDING AMI Consultants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 Haverly Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 m:pro IT Consult . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14 M3 Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14

PLANT LIFECYCLE & PERFORMANCE MONITORING

SIS / SAFETY SYSTEMS ACM Facility Safety

exida . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 Yokogawa. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20

TRAINING Equity Engineering Group . . . . . . . . . . .21

MIDSTREAM ESTIMATING GPC Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

PIPELINE ENGINEERING & FLUID FLOW CD-adapco C-FER Technologies Multiphase Solutions

Dassault Systemes innotec Ventyx

geoLOGIC systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25 Knowledge Systems

FIELD DATA CAPTURE Merrick Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

OPERATIONS Merrick Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26 Peloton

PROCESS CONTROL AND INFORMATION SYSTEMS Yokogawa. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26

PROCESS ENGINEERING & SIMULATION Heat Transfer Research, Inc. (HTRI). . . .27 Softbits Sun Microsystems

PRODUCTION ACCOUNTING PREDICTIVE MAINTENANCE & REPAIR Codeware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 Equity Engineering Group . . . . . . . . . . .16 Metegrity Siemens Energy & Automation

PROCESS CONTROL & INFORMATION SYSTEMS Yokogawa. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16

PROCESS ENGINEERING & SIMULATION

UPSTREAM

PRODUCTION ENGINEERING ALARM MANAGEMENT Yokogawa. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22

ASSET MANAGEMENT IHS Energy Group Landmark (Halliburton)

Merrick Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22 Yokogawa. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

DATA MANAGEMENT Decision Dynamics Technology Enertia Software

Ansys

geoLOGIC systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

Bryan Research & Engineering

Open Spirit Paradigm

Chemstations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17 Codeware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17 Farris Engineering Services

Heat Transfer Research, Inc. (HTRI). . . .18

DATA VISUALIZATION geoLOGIC systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23 Slicer/Dicer (PIXOTEC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24

Total Systems Resources

PRODUCTION/YIELD ACCOUNTING

DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION & ENGINEERING BlueCielo ECM Solutions COADE

Soteica

REFINING, PETROCHEMICAL & GAS PROCESSING Equity Engineering Group . . . . . . . . . . .19 Heat Transfer Research, Inc. (HTRI). . . .19 M3 Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20

Merrick Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28

Heat Transfer Research, Inc. (HTRI). . . .24

DRILLING ENGINEERING Knowledge Systems Pegasus Vertex

EXPLORATION Digital Formation

Well Flow Dynamics

PRODUCTION OPTIMIZATION Fekete Associates Joshi Technologies

OVS Group, Inc.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 Pavilion Technologies

RESERVES MANAGEMENT Geomechanics International Petro-Soft Systems Roxar Sitelark TRC Consultants

RESERVOIR MODELING CMG Geomodeling

SEISMIC DATA INTERPRETATION & ANALYSIS Earth Decision Fugro-Jason I/O

SEISMIC PROCESSING CGGVeritas TGS

WELL LOG DATA ACCESS & MANAGEMENT geoLOGIC systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29

Your company can be listed under a single category in this index at no charge.

For information, please contact Laura Kane at 1-713-520-4449 or laura.kane@gulfpub.com S P R I N G 2010

SOFTWARE REFERENCE

31

Select 407 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS

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SOFTWARE REFERENCE

SPRING 2010