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Construction

North American olefin producers riding the shale gas wave

With the prospect of abundant low-cost ethane, several producers have announced intentions to build new ethylene capacity.

High-pressure polyethylene: Reemergence as a specialty chemical or not?

Nexant: Farrell, L.  |  Virosco, J.

The analysis results indicate that, while investment capital for new plants favors LLDPE, plant profitability—which is a function of product slate (revenue) and cost—is, in many cases, higher for LDPE plants.

HPI Focus: New vs. debottlenecking projects

Fluor: Turner, J.
SNC-Lavalin, Hydrocarbons & Chemicals: Luck, G.
MVS Consulting LLC: Van Sickels, M. J.

As most owners do not have adequately skilled engineering teams to study these scenarios, engaging an experienced, qualified engineering contractor to support the conceptual study is often warranted.

Evaluate challenges in meeting clean-fuel specifications with heavier crude

Saudi Aramco: Al-Zahrani, S.  |  Bright, E.  |  Roy, S.

At a Saudi Aramco refinery, a revamp was planned for processing a different crude oil blend to meet Euro 5 diesel and gasoline specifications. The refinery, which processes semi-light crude oil, is sc..

Improve coker efficiency with reliable valve automation

Calabrian Corp.: Deters, B.
Emerson Process Management: Wolkart, R.

The case history discusses conditions occurring in delayed coker operations at two refineries in Louisiana, the impacts on valve performance, and a solution that offers extended life, better reliability and other benefits.

Take a quicker approach to staggered blowdown

WorleyParsons: Khan, M. S.

The design of a reliable blowdown system for a large sour gas-processing facility is one of the most important aspects of plant design. Safe design is vital for facility operation. With the developmen..

HP Reliability: Fact-checking list from recent reliability conferences

Hydrocarbon Processing Staff: Bloch, Heinz P.

Whenever HP editors attend technical conferences, their primary goals include observing industry practices, finding facts and spotting trends. Fact or fictionUnfortunately, presenters sometimes relate..

HP Boxscore Construction Analysis: Ethylene in evolution: 50 years of changing markets and economics

Hydrocarbon Processing Staff: Nichols, Lee

Ethylene is the key building block for the petrochemical industry. This olefin supports 70% of petrochemical industry production and is used to manufacture a wide variety of products for industrial an..

HP Industry Perspectives: Are Arctic projects safe?

Hydrocarbon Processing Staff: DuBose, Ben

Key industry officials answer a poll question from HydrocarbonProcessing.com

HP Innovations: Innovations

Hydrocarbon Processing Staff: Blume, Adrienne

Flowmeter uses Coriolis force in measurementThe Sitrans FC430 flowmeter from Siemens AG is capable of measuring liquids and gases using the Coriolis principle. Flows can be measured with a precision o..