Environment & Safety Gas Processing/LNG Maintenance & Reliability Petrochemicals Process Control Process Optimization Project Management Refining

Americas

Business Trends: Human reliability—a disruptive innovation

Small Hammer Inc.: Snider, B.

Annual bottom-line losses due to equipment failures total more than $100 MM at major refineries and petrochemical complexes. Corporate executives charge plant personnel with improving the reliability of the facility.

Editorial Comment: Maintenance—a value-added expense

Hydrocarbon Processing Staff: Nichols, Lee

This issue of <i>Hydrocarbon Processing</i> tackles one of the most integral aspects of the downstream industry (or any industry, for that matter): maintenance and reliability. These two terms go hand-in-hand and help to ensure efficient and safe operations.

Installation of liquid sulfur degassing processes in existing SRUs

Jacobs Comprimo Sulfur Solutions: Van Grinsven, R.  |  Van Son, M.

Over the last 35 yr, more companies worldwide have installed liquid sulfur degassing processes in their sulfur recovery units (SRUs) to minimize the dangers of the release of hydrogen sulfide from the produced elemental sulfur.

Shell completes sale of Motiva assets to Saudi Aramco

HOUSTON -- Royal Dutch Shell plc announced the completion of the transaction for the separation of assets, liabilities and businesses of Motiva Enterprises LLC. As announced when the definitive agreements were signed, the separation is as follows:

Canadian refinery reusing 100% of water with GE wastewater treatment technology

TREVOSE, PA. — Federated Co-Operatives Limited’s Co-op Refinery Complex in Regina, Saskatchewan, was named Industrial Water Project of the Year at the annual Global Water Awards. The award recognizes the project, commissioned in 2016, that represents the most impressive technical or environmental achievement in the field of industrial water.

A deeper examination of thermal expansion issues in process equipment and piping

Suncor Energy Inc.: Tharakan, J.

Piping and process equipment that operate at high temperatures experience thermal expansion. If free thermal expansion is restrained, mechanical stresses are created within the component.

Continuous corrosion monitoring of crude overhead systems

Permasense: Davies, J.

The growing availability of light tight oils (LTOs) is resulting in a choice for refiners between upgrading metallurgy or chemical inhibition and corrosion monitoring to manage the increased corrosion risk. With tight budgetary constraints in place, many oil companies are opting for chemical inhibition and online corrosion monitoring.

API: New safety standards enhance industry equipment, operations

WASHINGTON – The American Petroleum Institute’s Global Industry Services department (API Global) released two new safety standards: API Standard 16AR—Standard for Repair and Remanufacture of Drill-through Equipment and API Standard 18LCM—Product Life Cycle Management System Requirements for the Petroleum and Natural Gas Industries.

US pipeline regulator raises penalties for safety violations

HOUSTON (Reuters) -- The US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) on Friday said it increased the maximum civil penalties that may be imposed for violations of federal pipeline safety laws.

Phillips 66 says refineries to run at mid-90% in 2Q 2017

HOUSTON (Reuters) -- Phillips 66 expects its refineries to run in the mid-90% range of their combined capacity in the second quarter, according to a document prepared for a Friday morning conference call with Wall Street analysts to discuss first quarter earnings.