April 2020
Special Focus: Clean Fuels
Market and regulatory factors are pressuring refiners to adopt safe and sustainable processes for the production of clean-burning and environmentally friendly fuels.
India, which is the third-largest economy in the world, is home to nearly 18% of the world’s population (nearly 1.4 B).
An innovative refinery process arrangementa converts butane-rich, light paraffinic streams—preferably containing a high proportion of isobutane—into butylene by dehydrogenation.
With 2020 here, fuel blenders, shipowners, and fuel oil producers and users are concerned about what will happen this year, with the sulfur content in bunker fuel reduced from 3.5 wt% to 0.5 wt%, as per International Maritime Organization 2020 (IMO 2020) rules.
Process Optimization
This article highlights the simulation work and performance advantages for swapping the MEA solvent with a formulated MDEA solvent. The examination compares the performance of three commercial solvents selected for the study.
At Tüpraş’ Kırıkkale refinery, adsorbents in pressure-swing adsorption (PSA) units must be reloaded due to the low hydrogen (H2) recovery and low capacity factor of such units.
Maintenance and Reliability
Reliance Industries Ltd. (RIL) manufactures para-diethylbenzene (PDEB) at one of its plants by alkylation of ethylbenzene (EB) with ethylene, using RIL's own technology and super-selective catalyst.
Bonus Report: Workforce
Workforce experts and employers often suggest that the millennial generation is responsible for sparking the job-hopping trend.
Technology has dramatically transformed communication methods and, more importantly, the ways that engineers share information with colleagues and clients.
Process Engineering
Process plants require numerous types of equipment to produce the required products from the feed or raw material.
Engineers often uncover problems or inadequacies with pressure relief valve (PRV) and relief system piping capacities that need creative and cost-effective solutions.
Water Management
Demineralized water treatment systems play an important role in the petrochemical industry.
China’s recent three Five-Year Plans have put clean water in the forefront.
Columns
One of the most significant trends affecting the refining industry over the past 30 yr is the drive toward clean fuels production.
Offshore platforms have had their fair share of successes and failures over the years, and to say that their reliability experiences contain lessons for all of us is an understatement.
A catastrophic failure is defined (for this article) as a failure where lives have been lost and human causes have been a factor.
When you think of your supply chain, what do you consider? For a traditional downstream refiner, you may include pipeline, truck, rail and vessel logistics. Where inventory is stored is another consideration.
According to the International Association of Oil and Gas Producers (IOGP), there were 31 fatal incidents across the industry in 2018.
Trends and Resources
In the February issue of Hydrocarbon Processing, the editors asked our global readership what topics they would like to hear on the publication’s new podcast series: The Main Column.
The oil industry’s interest in the downstream segment of the business has known ups and downs. This article reviews the past, present and projected future of the downstream sector and its companies.
In the US and Europe, weaker fundamentals at the middle of the barrel and in the jet fuel segment led to heavy pressure, caused by aviation service disruptions as the Covid-19 outbreak spread.
Porvair Filtration Group has further expanded its range of microfiltration products by launching seven new metallic Compfil™ filters (FIG. 1) for use within process air and gas applications.
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- India's BPCL buys first Argentinian crude oil cargo for Feb. delivery 12/20
- Sinopec's Zhenhai oil refinery expands capacity to 40 MMtpy 12/20
- Oil via Russia's Druzhba pipeline halted by technical problems 12/20