Loss Prevention
Update temperature control for a Claus unit with neural networks
The Natref oil refinery in Sasolburg, South Africa, had experienced refractory problems in the sulfur recovery unit’s (SRU’s) combustion chamber since startup (Fig. 1). Even though the SRU w..
HP Reliability: Maintain proficiency in root-cause-failure analysis
Earlier in the year, the author attended a series of client and organizers’ presentations at the 2013 TapRooT Summit in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. TapRooT is a structured failure analysis and trouble..
HP Integration Strategies: Operational integrity management at Statoil
Asset-intensive industries continue to suffer from unplanned downtime, failure to meet planned production rates, and too many safety and environmental incidents. Until companies can manage and mitigat..
HP Automation Safety: MTTR: Reality vs. calculation
Many reliability engineers trained before IEC 61508 know the acronym MTTR as “mean time to repair.” I certainly learned that definition. Naturally, I think of the time it takes to repair som..
HP Viewpoint: IT/OT integration—Is it safe?
Information technology (IT) includes conventional computers, operating systems, networking components and software platforms. All IT developments continue to increase in importance for industrial cont..
HP Impact: Statoil issues report on In Amenas terrorist attack
Statoil’s board has concluded an investigation into the terrorist attack at the BP gas plant in In Amenas, Algeria. The investigation team visited the In Amenas plant on April 16 and issued its f..
Mitigate fouling in crude unit overhead—Part 1
In a refinery crude distillation column, up to 40% of the total heat removal may be found in the tower overhead condenser. The quantity of duty available makes heat integration (HI) between the column..
Improved oxidation process increases sulfur recovery with Claus unit
Since its development in 1936, the “modified Claus” technology has been the preferred process used by refineries and gas processing plants for the recovery of sulfur from acid-gas streams. M..
Update: Russia’s capacity and modernization program
Since 2008, Russian regulations regarding the crude oil and refining industry have changed substantially. At present, Russia has 22 large refineries, each with an individual throughput capacity exceed..
Novel use of sulfiding agent prevents refinery shutdown
When an insufficient supply of acid gas threatened to shut down operations at a US refinery, quick thinking, along with the novel use of a sulfiding agent and a strong supply chain made all the difference.
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- Digital Exclusive: SPECIAL FOCUS: Digital Technologies—Utilize process simulation digital twin to optimize condensate yield
- Digital Exclusive-Flare system design: Liquid pockets in flare headers
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- Alarm rationalization at Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC) refineries
