Americas
Which margin levers impact Group I and Group II base stock competitiveness? Part 1
As much as the lubricants industry might wish it otherwise, base stocks production is becoming more commoditized, and it is intertwined inextricably with mainstream refining operations. The vast major..
HP Reliability: Normalization of deviance can kill
On January 28, 1986, the space shuttle Challenger (mission STS-51-L) broke apart just 73 seconds after launch. The seven-member crew of the shuttle lived until 3 minutes and 58 seconds after launch, w..
HP Automation Strategies: Working toward a more profitable model-based control technology
Last November, the European Union (EU) Autoprofit project held a workshop near Amsterdam for academia, users, and suppliers. The workshop organizers presented the results of the soon-to-be-completed m..
HP Project Management: Better strategies avoid project delays—Part 3
The first two parts of this series analyzed the root causes of project delays and proposed strategies to avoid schedule overruns. This final part reviews construction planning.Construction planningOne..
HP Petrochemicals: Future vehicle design will need collaboration among HPI and auto manufacturers
The US automotive market is under stress to meet new corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) targets of 50 mpg for 2025 model vehicles. The tighter fuel specifications will bring together automobile man..
HP Water Management: What should cooling tower owners do about legionella?
The first awareness of the risks of legionella bacteria in cooling water was the outbreak of Legionellosis at the hotel hosting the Legionnaires’ Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1976..
HP Engineering Case Histories: Case 79: Integral compressor failures
Recently, the author received information regarding the failure of a large reciprocating compressor. In this example, the pistons for power and compressor cylinders are powered by the same crankshaft...
HP Viewpoint: Transformation of downstream automation and information systems
One of the more interesting aspects about working in the energy sector, as I have done for the last 36 years, is that this industry is always changing—technically, economically and even political..
HP Industry Perspectives: Is the glass half full or half empty?
This year is nearly half over; however, the energy industry is more optimistic about the market and economy according to Ernst & Young’s (EY’s) recent 10th biannual Oil and Gas Capital Confi..
HP Industry Metrics
The total liquid supply growth by non-OPEC countries continues to rise and is estimated to reach 54 million bpd (MMbpd) in 2014. Increasing crude oil supplies from North America are contributing to sh..
- Lummus and Sumitomo Chemical announce commercial availability of PMMA chemical recycling technology 2/4
- ExxonMobil ceases production at Fife ethylene plant 2/4
- Vietnam's Binh Son refinery signs energy MoUs with U.S. partners 2/4
- European oil refinery maintenance to rise in March 2/4
- Poland's Gdansk refinery plans cyclical maintenance from month-end 2/4
- China's Nanshan Group plans 100,000-bpd refinery in Indonesia 2/4
