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AUGUST 2010

HPIMPACT SPECIALREPORT SPECIALSUPPLEMENT

FLUID FLOW AND FLUID FLOW AND ROTATING EQUIPMENTROTATING EQUIPMENT

Pumps, valves, drives Pumps, valves, drives and compressorsand compressors

MIT studies natural MIT studies natural gas futuregas future

PLC market to PLC market to reboundrebound

PROCESS CONTROL AND PROCESS CONTROL AND INSTRUMENTATIONINSTRUMENTATION

Report includes 2010 Report includes 2010 trends trends and spending forecastsand spending forecasts

Select 83 at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/RS


AUGUST 2010 VOL. 89 NO. 8

SPECIAL REPORT: FLUID FLOW AND ROTATING EQUIPMENT 29 Prevent electric erosion in variable-frequency drive bearings Here are the reasons and remedial actions H. P. Bloch

37 Valve design reduces costs and increases safety for US refineries The goals were achieved by using alloys with superior corrosion resistance R. D. Johnson and B. Lee

41 Pump aftermarket offers solutions for abrasive services Upgrades substantially increased MTBR S. McPherson

45 How the inertia number points to compressor system design challengesIt facilitates predicting compressor system performance

M. Kapadia, R. Tellez-Schmill and I. Ajdari

C o v e r L . A . Tu r b i n e p r o v i d e s Turboexpander service for clients worldwide. Here on location at Totals LPG NKossa Offshore Processing Plant in the Republic of Congo, L.A. Turbine remanufactured two Turboexpanders with Active Magnetic Bearings which are being re-installed supervised by experienced field service personnel. Photo courtesy of L.A. Turbine

HPIMPACT 15 MIT studies the

future of natural gas

15 PLC and PLC-based PAC market poised to rebound

COLUMNS 9 HPIN RELIABILITY

Consider bearing protection for small steam turbines

11 HPIN ASSOCIATIONSInternational Refining Conference debuts in Rome

13 HPIN CONTROLProcess control practice renewal 2010purpose

86 HPIN AUTOMATION SAFETYCyber security certification for automation products and suppliers

ENVIRONMENT/LOSS PREVENTION 51 Gas refineries can benefit from installing a flare gas recovery system Take a look at these environmental and economic paybacks O. Zadakbar, A. Vatani and S. Mokhatab

STORAGE/LOSS PREVENTION 55 Estimating tank calibration uncertainty Use these calculations for a specific tank calibration S. Sivaraman, A. Bertotto and D. Comstock

GAS PROCESSING DEVELOPMENTS 63 Optimize operating parameters of absorbers/strippers in gas plants

Better recovery definition of C3s and C4s from gas absorber/stripper can lower costs J. Nava

PROCESS CONTROL AND INSTRUMENTATION 2010SUPPLEMENT 67 Process Control and Instrumentation 2010 Report includes trends and spending forecastsHEAT TRANSFER 79 Increase crude unit capacity through better integrationIn revamp projects, better energy integration provides more benefits with less capital

investment and lower operating costs A. S. Aseeri, M. S. Amin and M. S. Ibrahim

DEPARTMENTS7 HPIN BRIEF 17 HPINNOVATIONS 21 HPIN CONSTRUCTION

25 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR 26 HPI CONSTRUCTION BOXSCORE UPDATE82 HPI MARKETPLACE 85 ADVERTISER INDEX

HP ONLINE EXCLUSIVES

Petrochemical Processes 2010Just released, HPs Petrochemical Processes 2010 handbook is an inclusive catalog of established and leading-edge licensed technologies for existing and grassroots facilities. Over 191 petrochemical technologies from 40 licensing companies are presented in this handbook. Features include flow diagrams, process descriptions, economic data and more. A free PDF copy is available to subscribers for a limited time at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com.

4EDITORIAL Editor Les A. KaneSenior Process Editor Stephany RomanowProcess Editor Tricia CrosseyReliability/Equipment Editor Heinz P. BlochNews Editor Billy Thinnes

European Editor Tim Lloyd WrightContributing Editor Loraine A. HuchlerContributing Editor William M. GobleContributing Editor Y. Zak FriedmanContributing Editor ARC Advisory Group (various)

MAGAZINE PRODUCTIONDirectorEditorial Production Sheryl StoneManager Editorial Production Angela BatheArtist/Illustrator David WeeksManagerAdvertising Production Cheryl Willis

ADVERTISING SALESSee Sales Offices page 84.

CIRCULATION +1 (713) 520-4440DirectorCirculation Suzanne McGeheeE-mail: [email protected]

SUBSCRIPTIONSSubscription price (includes both print and digital versions): United States and Canada, one year $199, two years $349, three years $469. Outside USA and Canada, one year $239, two years $407, three years $530, digi-tal format one year $140. Airmail rate outside North America $175 additional a year. Single copies $25, prepaid.

Because Hydrocarbon Processing is edited spe-cifically to be of greatest value to people work-ing in this specialized business, subscriptions are restricted to those engaged in the hydro-carbon processing industry, or service and sup-ply company personnel connected thereto.

Hydrocarbon Processing is indexed by Applied Science & Tech nology Index, by Chemical Abstracts and by Engineering Index Inc. Microfilm copies available through University Microfilms, International, Ann Arbor, Mich. The full text of Hydrocarbon Processing is also available in electronic versions of the Business Periodicals Index.

ARTICLE REPRINTSIf you would like to have a recent article reprint-ed for an upcoming conference or for use as a marketing tool, contact Foster Printing Company for a price quote. Articles are reprinted on qual-ity stock with advertisements removed; options are available for covers and turnaround times. Our minimum order is a quantity of 100.

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HYDROCARBON PROCESSING (ISSN 0018-8190) is published monthly by Gulf Publishing Co., 2 Greenway Plaza, Suite 1020, Houston, Texas 77046. Periodicals postage paid at Houston, Texas, and at additional mailing office. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Hydrocarbon Processing, P.O. Box 2608, Houston, Texas 77252.

Copyright 2010 by Gulf Publishing Co. All rights reserved.

Permission is granted by the copyright owner to libraries and others regis-tered with the Copyright Clearance Center (CCC) to photocopy any articles herein for the base fee of $3 per copy per page. Payment should be sent directly to the CCC, 21 Congress St., Salem, Mass. 01970. Copying for other than personal or internal reference use without express permission is prohib-ited. Requests for special permission or bulk orders should be addressed to the Editor. ISSN 0018-8190/01.


GULF PUBLISHING COMPANYJohn Royall, President/CEORon Higgins, Vice President

Pamela Harvey, Business Finance ManagerPart of Euromoney Institutional Investor PLC.

Other energy group titles include:World Oil

Petroleum EconomistPublication Agreement Number 40034765

Printed in U.S.A

Houston Office: 2 Greenway Plaza, Suite 1020, Houston, Texas, 77046 USAMailing Address: P. O. Box 2608, Houston, Texas 77252-2608, USAPhone: +1 (713) 529-4301, Fax: +1 (713) 520-4433E-mail: [email protected] www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com

Publisher Bill Wageneck [email protected]


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HYDROCARBON PROCESSING AUGUST 2010 I 7

[email protected]

BILLY THINNES, NEWS EDITOR

HPIN BRIEF

A diamond in the rough

Although problem-free pump oper-ation is the primary goal of all pump operators, achieving that goal is not a simple matter. The key components of a pumpmechanical seals, impellers, couplings, roller bearings and hous-ingsare all subject to wear. Keeping a pump in good working condition is essential for cost-effective and reli-able operation of plants and systems. Unplanned downtime can ruin pro-duction schedules and adversely affect a facilitys bottom line.

Mechanical seals are recognized to be responsible for most pump failures and consequently represent the highest cost for pump repairs. Therefore, reducing the mean time between failure (MTBF) or the mean time between repair (MTBR) can sig-nificantly improve pump operations and save money.

Industry surveys have shown that dry running and inadequate lubrica-tion are responsible for more than 50% of all mechanical seal damages; consequently, it is safe to state that approximately 20% of all pump fail-ures are due to poor lubrication or dry running of the mechanical seal faces.

To combat the problem of dry run-ning, EagleBurgmann has developed a seal face coating based in diamond. Diamond is the hardest natural miner-al known and offers excellent chemi-cal and thermal resistance. The new technology is a synthetically manufac-tured, ultra-pure diamond with the same characteristics as the natural stone. It has a microcrystalline coating of 8-m thickness on a silicon carbide seal face extends the life of the seal, reducing maintenance costs and mini-mizing life-cycle costs for pump users.

In an analysis of the service life of pump components, it was found that mechanical seals, with an aver-age service life of only 1.2 years, are the weakest link in terms of pump components, compared to the next weakest component, bearings, with an average service life of three years. It is thought that by using mechanical seals coated with diamond, the aver-age service life of mechanical seals substantially increases. HP

Curtiss-Wright Corp. has received an order from Petrobras for 12 top and bottom fully-automated coke drum unheading systems. The units are expected to be delivered to the Petrobras Abreu e Lima refinery located in Pernambuco, Brazil. During the opening of a coke drum, known as unheading, extreme temperatures can be present. Curtiss-Wrights system safely opens the top or bottom of a coke drum during the delayed coking process. Unlike traditional unheading systems, this remotely operated device creates a totally enclosed, fully automated coking system, from the top of the coke drum down to the coke pit, minimizing safety risks to personnel.

Total Petrochemicals has successfully demonstrated UOP technology that will enable the use of feedstocks other than petroleum to pro-duce plastics and other petrochemicals. A demonstration unit built by Total Petrochemicals at its complex in Feluy, Belgium, used UOPs methanol-to-olefins (MTO) technology to convert methanol to ethylene and propylene. The propylene was then successfully converted to polypropylene product. This dem-onstration proves that propylene produced from methanol at a semi-commercial scale is suitable for plastics production.

The demonstration unit has run consistently for more than 150 days since its start-up last year and has met product yield expectations. The unit has processed up to 10 metric tpd of methanol to produce the light olefins ethylene and propylene. The demonstration plant integrates MTO process technology with Total Petrochemicals and UOPs olefin cracking process (OCP). Use of the OCP could boost the total yield of usable ethylene and propylene while minimizing hydrocarbon byproducts. The OCP unit is scheduled to start up later this year after initial testing of the MTO unit is completed.

The demonstration plant was designed to assess, on a semi-commercial indus-trial scale, the technical feasibility of the integrated MTO and OCP processes with full product recovery and purification.

ProSep Inc. was awarded a $2 million contract to provide process engineering and specialized internals for crude separation. This contract was awarded through a commercial alliance with the engineering and manufacturing company Thermo Design and will be installed at an oil and gas producers steam-assisted gravity drainage facility located in Albertas oil sands. The crude separation equipment will be built using ProSeps vessel designs and internals, allowing for efficient separation of crude, natural gas, water and solids from the production stream.

Refineria de Cartagena SA (REFICAR) has selected Merichem to provide multiple technologies for treatment of hydrocarbons and spent caustic at its refinery in Cartagena, Colombia. Merichem will license its technologies and supply modular equipment to treat coker LPG and saturated LPG at the facility. Merichem will also license other technologies to supply modular equip-ment, including salt and clay beds for treatment of kerosene/jet fuel. In addition, REFICAR has also selected Merichems technology and equipment for the treat-ment of spent caustic generated by new and existing units.

CPFD Software LLC, which created the Barracuda simulation package for particle-fluid systems, announced the signing of a distribution agree-ment with Hi-Key Technology to distribute and support Barracuda in China. Barracuda is used by oil and gas, chemical, petrochemical and power equipment manufacturers for simulating, understanding and optimizing the operation of fluidized systems. Common applications are fluidized catalytic cracking (FCC) reactors and regenerators, fluidized bed reactors (FBRs) for chemical manufactur-ing and circulating fluidized bed (CFB) boilers in coal-fired power plants. HP

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HEINZ P. BLOCH, RELIABILITY/EQUIPMENT EDITOR

HPIN RELIABILITY

[email protected]


In most small machines there is a need to limit both contami-nant ingress and oil leakage. Inexpensive lip seals are sometimes used for sealing at the bearing housing, but lip seals typically last only about 2,000 operating hoursthree months. When lip seals are too tight, they cause shaft wear and, in some cases, lubricant discolor-ation known as black oil. Once lip seals have worn and no longer seal tightly, oil is lost through leakage. This fact is recognized by the API-610 standard for process pumps, which disallows lip seals and calls for either rotating labyrinth-style or contacting face seals.

Small steam turbines often suffer from steam leakage at both drive- and governor-end sealing glands. Each bearing housing (Fig. 1) is located adjacent to one of these two glands, which contain carbon rings. It is a well-known fact that, as soon as the internally split carbon rings start to wear, high-pressure and high-velocity leakage steam finds its way into the bearing housings. Traditional labyrinth seals have proven ineffective in many such cases and only solidly engineered bearing protector seals now manage to block leakage steam passage.

The bearing housing protector seal in Fig. 2 was designed for steam turbines. It incorporates a small- and a large-diameter dynamic O-ring. This bearing protector seal is highly stable and not likely to wobble on the shaft; it is also field-repairable. With sufficient shaft rotational speed, one of the rotating (dynamic) O-rings is flung outward and away from the larger O-ring. The larger cross-section O-ring is then free to move axially and a micro-gap opens up.

When the turbine is stopped, the outer of the two dynamic O-rings will move back to its stand-still position. At stand-still, the outer O-ring contracts and touches the larger cross-section O-ring. In this highly purposeful design, the larger cross-section O-ring touches a relatively large contoured area. Because Contact Pressure = Force/Area, a good design aims for low pressure. Good designs differ greatly from technologically outdated configurations wherein contact with the sharp edges of an O-ring groove will cause O-ring damage.

Fortunately, concerns as to the time it might take to upgrade to advanced bearing protector seals have been alleviated. In June 2009 Total Raffinaderij Nederland (TRN) asked for the installa-tion of the bearing protector seal shown in Fig. 2 in one of its 350 kW/3,000-rpm steam turbines. No modifications were allowed on the existing equipment and installation of three LabTecta-STAX seals on the first machine had to take place during a scheduled plant shutdown in June 2009.

With no detailed drawings of the bearing housings available, the exact installation geometry could only be finalized after dis-mantling the Turbodyne turbine. One of the main problems was the short outboard length: less than 0.25 in. (6.35 mm) was avail-able due to the presence of steam deflectors and oil flingers. But the manufacturers engineers were able to modify the advanced design in Fig. 2 to fit into the existing OEM labyrinth seal groove. Delivery was made within one week of taking steam turbine and

bearing housing measurements and the turbine has been running flawlessly since June 2009.

Our point is that highly cost-effective equipment upgrades are possible at hundreds of refineries. However, superior bearing protector products for use in steam turbines must be purposefully developed. The type described here has important advantages compared with standard products typically used in pumps:

It is suitable for high temperatures. It incorporates Aflas O-rings as the standard elastomer. Extra axial clearance is provided to accommodate thermal

expansion. High-temperature graphite gaskets are incorporated in this

design. There should no longer be any reason for water intrusion into

the bearing housings of small steam turbines at reliability-focused HPI facilities. HP

Consider bearing protection for small steam turbines

The author is HPs Equipment/Reliability Editor. A practicing consulting engineer with close to 50 years of applicable experience, he advises process plants world-wide on failure analysis, reliability improvement and maintenance cost-avoidance topics. Mr. Bloch has authored or coauthored 17 textbooks on machinery reliability improvement and over 470 papers or articles dealing with related subjects.

Drive-endoutboard

Drive-endinboard

Governor-endinboard

Small steam turbine cross-section view (Source: Worthington-Turbodyne S.A.).

FIG. 1

Cross-sectioned half-view of a bearing housing protector seal for small steam turbines (Source: LabTecta-STAX, AESSEAL Inc., Rotherham, UK and Rockford, TN).

FIG. 2

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Hydrocarbon Processings International Refining Conference (IRC) debuted June 2123 in Rome, Italy. Hosted by eni, the event included a two-day, two-track technical conference as well as an exhibition. Attendance surpassed initial projections and the conference received a good to excellent rating from over 80% of the delegates.

The first IRC in Rome has dem-onstrated that this event gathers highly qualified speakers who provide leading-edge presentations that cover a wide array of technical matters, said Sim-berto Senni Buratti, senior vice president for technical development and projects at eni. Overall, IRC is an outstanding gathering of elite professionals from the global refining industry.

The two track (technology and main-tenance and operations) format proved to be a hit with attendees. One gentleman remarked, A two day, two track confer-ence is the sweet spot. It isnt overloaded, but its not slim on time, either. Those present were also quite receptive to the focus of the presentations, which zeroed in on technology, lessons learned and prognostications about the future.

Speaking of the present and looking to the future, all at the IRC agreed that energy demands will be met by crude oil and natural gas. However, the manner in which the HPI will meet future energy demand growth will evolve from meth-ods and policies under development.

Francois Paul Goarin, senior director for energy with Accenture, presented several key messages that describe how the hydrocarbon processing will take shape in the future. He said to expect a future that combines biochemical and thermochemical processes as new man-dates require refiners to include more renewable/biofuels for transportation fuel supplies. Existing and developing technologies can and will be leveraged across multiple pathways. To be viable, biofuels must find a way to be included inside the battery limit (ISBL) of the

refinery, not blended at terminals before distribution.

Markets will optimize around their own domestic agendas, resources and economic development opportunities, Mr. Goarin said. In other words, use what you have or what you can get in order to make it work.

IRC attendees agreed that, globally speaking, crude oils are becoming heavier. New refinery feedstocks will include a greater share of unconventional oils such as Canadian oil sands. Such feeds will entail revising refinery operations to yield cleaner products with less residuals.

As the global appetite for energy shifts to lighter products, refiners must likewise find opportunities to upgrade residuals into distillates. Such dilemmas look at hydrogen addition or carbon reject. Hydrogen addition is making new advances with proven and develop-ing technologies. In a presentation by KBRs Dr. Anand Subramanian, it was revealed that KBR and BP have developed improvements to the veba combi cracking (VCC) process, which is a slurry-phase resid hydrocracking process. Originally, the VCC was developed to process coal. Advances enable this existing process to yield blendable product streams that do not require further treatment and can compete against coking processes.

eni, too, is developing an advanced slurry-phase hydrocracking process known as the eni slurry technology (EST). This process is based on a nano-dispersed

(slurry) non-aging catalyst, and a homo-geneous and isothermal slurry bubble-column reactor. EST can process residual products, heavy oils and bitumen. With successful results from the 1,200-bpd commercial-demonstration plant at enis Taranto, Italy, refinery, the first full-scale industrial unit using EST will be con-structed at enis Sannazzaro d Burgondi refinery in Pavia.

Better catalyst systems were also a hot topic of conversation at the confer-ence, as refiners plan their strategy to convert more of the barrel into distil-lates, especially ultra-low-sulfur diesel. Albemarle Catalyst BV, Axens, Criterion Catalysts Technologies (Shell) and Grace are making advances in catalyst structure and activity. The goal is producing more diesel while destroying fuel oil, which is experiencing demand decline. In par-ticular, drop-in catalyst solutions that will yield more diesel over gasoline make in fluid catalytic cracking units are of high interest.

IRC was supported by 25 sponsors and exhibitors. The major sponsors were eni, Walter Tosto and Ansaldo. Exhibitors included Shell Global Solutions, Ametek, Grace, Flowserve, United Labs and other global suppliers to the downstream indus-try. The IRC Advisory Board was made up of representatives from eni, Shell, BP, Axens, Technip, Walter Tosto, Hydrocar-bon Processing and Foster Wheeler. HP

International Refining Conference debuts in Rome

Networking was a jovial affair in the Walter Tosto booth.

The IRC Advisory Board was happy to be in Rome for the new two-day conference.

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HPIN CONTROL

The author is a principal consultant in advanced process control and online optimization with Petrocontrol. He specializes in the use of first-principles models for inferential process control and has developed a number of distillation and reactor models. Dr. Friedmans experience spans over 30 years in the hydrocarbon industry, working with Exxon Research and Engineering, KBC Advanced Technology and since 1992 with Petrocontrol. He holds a BS degree from the Israel Institute of Technology (Technion) and a PhD degree from Purdue University.


[email protected]

PIERRE R. LATOUR, GUEST COLUMNIST

HPIN CONTROL

In April 2010, I followed Allan Kerns automation reassessment editorial1 with a call to renew the practice of process control and IT in the HPI. Now I follow his thoughtful July 2010 editorial2 on continuous improvement or core competency. After 50 years, it is time to restart with a reminder of the purpose of instrumentation, control systems, IT and CIM, critique weaknesses and offer ways to strengthen their financial performance.

As I write this, BP is struggling to contain its Deepwater Horizon well and operate its Texas City, Texas, Refinery. Refiners are strug-gling for profitability and survival worldwide. The current HPI operating problem is not instruments, valves, control algorithms, tuning, modeling, alarm management, displays, computers, KPIs, best practices, Six-Sigma, ISO9000, SQC, software, informa-tion, technology, maintenance, training, management, organiza-tion, awareness or culture. These are useful ideas that should be converted to mathematically based actions with the appropriate performance measure.

Its KNOW HOW. Lack thereof. Insufficient competency. The HPI needs the knowhow to identify, capture and sustain maximum expected value profits to always operate right.

Situation. HPI plants are operated by adjusting process oper-ating conditions: setpoints, specs and limits on controlled vari-ables (CVs) and key performance indicators (KPIs). All we can do is specify a CV mean and reduce its variance. While process control does the latter, there is no standard method for the former, so it is done by human experience. Therefore, the pro-cedure for assessing the value of reduced variance or dynamic performance is incomplete and invalid. Process control, IT and CIM continue to suffer from a lack of a rigorous standard finan-cial performance measure. People do not agree on the purpose of systems and how to keep score; like whether a touchdown is worth 6 points or 5.

Purpose. The purpose of tools, products, layers and systems is to operate plants better: safely and efficiently, as measured by long-term profitability. This is done by identifying CV/KPI measurements that affect profitability, specifying setpoints that optimize the risky financial tradeoffs associated with each and controlling them tightly about those optimum setpoints. My assumption is the only thing operators can affect are process operating conditions (mean and variance), encompassed by suf-ficient CVs/KPIs. While the knowhow for step 3 has been com-mercialized since 1960, the failure to adopt a standard method3, 4 for step 2 impedes our ability to relate CVs/KPIs to financial performance. This causes confusion for step 1, inability to specify appropriate models and IT, ad hoc estimates of financial value of step 3 and inability to capture benefits from step 2 with IT.

In April 2010 I blamed flawed logic used to quantify the financial value of all process control and IT since 1970 as a basic

cause of the crippling disconnects between the layers, compo-nents and technologies.

Kern writes about core competencies for operational excel-lence.2 The method for establishing setpoints to optimize risky CV tradeoffs shows what those core competencies should be and pro-vides the information requirements they should provide for operat-ing excellence. The important inputs are near-term forecasts of CV uncertainties (variance from data historians), process and economic sensitivities to CV means and limit violation consequence cliffs (from models and business). This is the framework for IT require-ments and continuous improvement to determine and maintain this information in real time and act upon it faithfully.

New idea. The basic idea is to direct the attention of HPI oper-ations management to the rigorous way3 to determine setpoints to maximize expected value profit from risky tradeoffs for every meaningful CV/KPI. This is essential to deal with disasters plagu-ing the HPI like refinery explosions, drill-hole well leaks and environmental damage, while maximizing real profit potential. Focusing on subcategory objectives like energy, yield, capacity, quality, inventory, safety, manpower and technology, rather than optimizing the risky financial tradeoffs among them is a basic handicap to success because they are all connected. While safety violations can never be eliminated permanently, surprises can be reduced, remedy plans deployed and learning from mistakes strengthened. Taking intelligent calculated risks is preferable to taking unintelligent uncalculated risks.

Adopting the rigorous method3 for setpoints that optimize risky tradeoffs provides the way to evaluate the value of instru-ments, components, layers, models, IT and solutions. This is the proper path to renewal and success. In the end, Kern1, 2 and Latour3, 4 will unite to provide guidelines for renewing the practice of process control engineering during refinery golden ages and downturns. HP

LITERATURE CITED 1 Kern, Allan, Back to the Future: A Process Control Strategy for 2010, Hydrocarbon Processing, February 2010. 2 Kern, Allan, Continuous improvement or core-competency, Hydrocarbon Processing, July 2010. 3 Latour, P. R., Process control: CLIFFTENT shows its more profitable than expected, Hydrocarbon Processing, December 1996, pp. 7580. Republished in Kane, Les, Ed., Advanced Process Control and Information Systems for the Process Industries, Gulf Publishing Co. 1999, pp. 3137. 4 Latour, P. R., Demise and keys to the rise of process control, Hydrocarbon Processing, March 2006, pp. 7180 and Letters to Editor, Process Control, Hydrocarbon Processing, June 2006, p. 42.

Process control practice renewal 2010purpose

The author, president of CLIFFTENT Inc., is an independent consulting chemical engineer specializing in identifying, capturing and sustaining measurable financial value from HPI dynamic process control, IT and CIM solutions (CLIFFTENT) using performance-based shared riskshared reward (SR2) technology licensing.

Reliability has no quitting time.

Think about ITT.

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HPIMPACT

MIT studies the future of natural gas

Natural gas will play a leading role in reducing greenhouse-gas emissions over the next several decades, largely by replacing older, inefficient coal plants with highly effi-cient combined-cycle gas generation. Thats the conclusion reached by a comprehen-sive study of the future of natural gas con-ducted by an MIT study group comprised of 30 MIT faculty members, researchers and graduate students.

The two-year study, managed by the MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI), exam-ined the scale of US natural gas reserves and the potential of this fuel to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions. The report examines the future of natural gas through 2050 from the perspectives of technology, economics, politics, national security and the environment.

The report includes a set of specific pro-posals for legislative and regulatory policies, as well as recommendations for actions that the energy industry can pursue on its own, to maximize the fuels impact on mitigating greenhouse gas. The study also examined ways to control the environmental impacts that could result from a significant expansion in the production and use of natural gasespecially in electric power production.

The study found that there are significant global supplies of conventional gas. How much of this gas gets produced and used, and the extent of its impact on greenhouse gas reductions, depends critically on some key political and regulatory decisions.

Key findings. The US has a significant natural gas resource base, enough to equal about 92 years worth at present domestic consumption rates. Much of this is from unconventional sources, including gas shales. Globally, baseline estimates show that recoverable gas resources probably amount to 16,200 trillion cf, enough to last over 160 years at current global consumption rates. In the US, unconventional gas resources are rapidly overtaking conventional resources as the primary source of gas production. The US currently consumes around 22 trillion cf per year and has a gas resource base now thought to exceed 2,000 trillion cf.

In order to bring about the kind of sig-nificant expansion in the use of natural gas identified in this study, substantial addi-tions to the existing processing, delivery and storage facilities will be required in order to handle greater amounts and the changing patterns of distribution (such as the delivery of gas from newly developed sources in the Midwest and Northeast).

Environmental issues associated with producing unconventional gas resources are manageable but challenging. Risks include: shallow freshwater aquifer contamination with fracture fluids; surface water contami-nation by returned fracture fluids; and sur-face and local community disturbance, due to drilling and fracturing activities.

Natural-gas consumption will increase dramatically and will largely displace coal in the power generation sector by 2050 (the time horizon of the study) under a model-ing scenario where, through carbon emis-sions pricing, industrialized nations reduce CO2 emissions by 50% by 2050, and large emerging economies, e.g. China, India and Brazil reduce CO2 emissions by 50 percent by 2070. This assumes incremental reduc-tions in the current price structures of the alternatives, including renewables, nuclear and carbon capture and sequestration.

The overbuilding of natural gas com-bined cycle (NGCC) plants starting in the mid-1990s presents a significant oppor-tunity for near term reductions in CO2 emissions from the power sector. The cur-rent fleet of NGCC units has an average capacity factor of 41%, relative to a design capacity factor of up to 85%. However, with no carbon constraints, coal generation is generally dispatched to meet demand before NGCC generation because of its lower fuel price.

Modeling of the ERCOT region (largely Texas) suggests that CO2 emissions could be reduced by as much as 22% with no additional capital investment and without impacting system reliability by requiring a dispatch order that favors NGCC genera-tion over inefficient coal generation; pre-liminary modeling suggests that nation-wide CO2 emissions would be reduced by over 10%. At the same time, this would also reduce air pollutants such as oxides of sulfur and nitrogen.

PLC and PLC-based PAC market poised to rebound

The global programmable logic con-troller (PLC) and PLC-based programma-ble automation controller (PAC) market declined significantly across all regions of the world in 2009. The market declined in emerging economies as well, but the decline was much less severe in those regions due to substantial infrastructure stimulus fund-ing, fewer financial institutional issues and a more rapid turnaround in local consumer demand for goods and services. While it is difficult to view any market growth through the lenses of the recent economic environ-ment, there are many dynamics that will drive market growth over the next five-year forecast period.

Industries will continue to invest in auto-mation. As a result, the worldwide market for PLCs and PLC-based PACs is expected to grow over the next five years.

Growing demands for energy savings, higher infrastructure productivity, increased production accuracy, better product qual-ity, greater machine agility, tighter process control and additional safety are some of the crucial factors that will fuel market growth, according to Himanshu Shah, a senior ana-lyst at ARC Advisory Group.

New stimulus packages from various governments added more investments in the infrastructure industries, including new road construction, water and wastewater infrastructure and electric power generating plants. Globalization has also created a large demand for modern infrastructure, especially in emerging economies. Airport facilities and new road construction are driving demand for products from the oil and gas and metals and mining industries. Emerging economies know that their current infrastructure is a huge bottleneck for their continuing high economic growth. PLCs and PLC-based PACs will benefit in this environment as it is a key component for any infrastructure development and operation.

Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), the largest PLC and PLC-based PAC market, was particularly hit the hardest compared to other world regions.

For more information on this study, go to: www.arcweb.com/res/plc. HP


[email protected]

HPINNOVATIONS


SELECTED BY HYDROCARBON PROCESSING EDITORS

[email protected]

Stackable reactor enables superior heat transfer

The stackable structural reactor (SSR) from Catacel Corporation is a direct replacement for the loose ceramic catalyst media traditionally used in the station-ary steam-reforming process by industrial plants to produce hydrogen from natu-ral gas. The heat transfer increase gained from advanced SSR catalyst technology can enable an approximate 25% through-put improvement from most reformers to create significant energy and capital sav-ings in hydrogen production as well as fuel cell, biofuel, alternative energy and solid/gas-to-liquid applications.

Conventional steam reforming. Typically, ceramic catalyst beds must be replaced every three to five years due to mechanical degradation of the media. The ceramic media tends to crush to powder after several startup/shutdown cycles. Accumulating powder in the tube leads to the reactor plugging. This creates material replacement and hazardous waste disposal costs as well as downtime. Initial equip-ment expenses might also be higher due to built-in design provisions for changing out the catalyst.

Catacels SSR solution. The SSR is a honeycomb made from a special grade of high-temperature stainless steel foil coated

with a reforming catalyst. Individual reac-tors are approximately the size and shape of a one-pound coffee can and are stacked vertically to fill the reaction tube. Because it is made from metal foil, the SSR elimi-nates primary problems, such as crushing, plugging and replacing conventional loose ceramic media. Furthermore, its high sur-face area inhibits catalytic deterioration, potentially tripling a continuous opera-tion lifespan over ceramic media.

The corrugation/flow channels in the SSR are unique. They are positioned such that conductive, convective and radiant heat from the reformer tubes is efficiently transferred to all working catalytic sur-faces. This improved surface utilization results in increased capacity and/or lower system cost. By contrast, catalyst surfaces near the center of ceramic systems are dif-ficult to heat, which compromises their effectiveness. Alternatively, the higher heat transfer of the SSR promotes lower furnace temperatures with consequent energy savings and extended tube life (Fig. 1).


New technology analyzesdifficult water samples

New technology from GE will make it easier for the water process industry to analyze difficult industrial water samples. Expanding GEs capabilities for process,

environmental and wastewater analysis, the Sievers InnovOx online total organic carbon (TOC) analyzer will allow users to analyze challenging water samples on a routine basis without requiring excessive preventive maintenance. Monitoring the levels of TOC in the water is an impor-tant step for industrial users to control processes that are critical to their opera-tions and to comply with regulations.

The Sievers InnovOx offers increased uptime and instrument reliability, two important features when it comes to ana-lyzing difficult industrial samples. It has been designed by GE Power & Waters analytical instruments unit, petroleum, pulp and paper, and food and beverage markets, as well as environmental organi-zations and municipalities.

The InnovOx online, like its InnovOx laboratory model predecessor, uses an innovative supercritical water oxidation (SCWO) technique that offers enhanced reliability, greater ease of use and lower maintenance than other TOC analyzers. By utilizing SCWO, the InnovOx is the TOC instrument most capable of cost-effectively analyzing difficult industrial process, environmental and wastewater samples on a routine basis. SCWO has his-torically been used to treat large volumes of aqueous-waste streams, sludges and con-taminated soils. GE is the first company to use this technique in a commercially available TOC analyzer.

The first commercial application for the new InnovOx online TOC analyzer is monitoring seawater in Taiwan. The sea-water, which contains about 3% sodium chloride, is used as industrial-process water, and both incoming and outgoing water streams need to be monitored for environmental protection. A main source of contamination can be hydrocarbons

As HP editors, we hear about new products, patents, software, processes, services, etc., that are true industry innovationsa cut above the typical product offerings. This sec-tion enables us to highlight these significant developments. For more information from these companies, please go to our Website at www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/rs and select the reader service number.

Ceramic pelletscoated with

nickel catalyst

Metal nscoated with

nickel catalyst

Natural gas + steamCH4 + 3H2O

Temperature, C Furnace Tube ReactionNew 1,036 918 8245 years 1,062 939 837Change +26 +21 +13

Temperature, C Furnace Tube ReactionNew 983 877 8245 years 998 885 824Change +15 +8 0

~50% hydrogen + ....H2 + CO + CO2 + CH4 + H2O

Natural gas + steamCH4 + 3H2O

~50% hydrogen + ....H2 + CO + CO2 + CH4 + H2O

A traditional ceramic delivery method vs. a Catacel SSR delivery method. FIG. 1

HPINNOVATIONS

18

coming from a petrochemical refining process. The InnovOxs robust handling of the brine sample was a significant factor in the analyzers selection.

The TOC market demanded technol-ogy with greater reliability and uptime, two critical needs that were not being met, said Stephen Poirier, vice president of business development for the analytical instruments unit of GE Power & Water.


Advanced technology converts CH4 and CO2 into gasoline

Carbon Sciences, Inc., the developer of a breakthrough technology to transform greenhouse gases into gasoline and other portable fuels, announced the filing of the first of a series of patent applications for its highly scalable clean-tech CO2-based gas-to-liquids (GTL) fuel technology for transforming a combination of natural gas and CO2 directly into gasoline.

This first patent application discloses the design and manufacturing of a novel chemical catalyst that converts methane gas and CO2 directly into gasoline. These greenhouse gases can be sourced from natural gas fields or human-made coal-fired power plants, landfill gas, municipal waste and even algae.

This heralds a new era for Carbon Sci-ences and it means that our plan for deliv-ering a market-ready technology could be delivered as soon as next year, said Byron Elton, CEO of Carbon Sciences. The ongoing tragic events involving BPs unchecked flow of oil into the Gulf of Mexico further underscores the urgent need to reduce and eliminate our addic-tion to petroleum, foreign and domestic. Carbon Sciences breakthrough technology takes us closer to a world without petro-leum by essentially transforming pollution into energy.

The announcement is related to the most important module of the companys previously announced end-to-end CO2-to-fuel system that recycles raw CO2 flue emissions from carbon emitters like coal-fired power plants directly into gasoline and other portable fuels. The new mod-ule under development is designed to be a stand-alone system to substantially shorten the timeline to commercialization, and reduce the overall systems and operat-ing costs and produce a fuel that can be used in the existing infrastructure, supply chain and vehicles.

Dr. Naveed Aslam, the companys chief technology officer, commented, We are very excited about the stand-alone com-mercialization of our CO2GTL gaso-line module. This system will provide a sizable part of the energy industry with an immediate clean-tech solution for the energy and climate challenges we face. Unlike other technologies, such as those for algae biofuels, that may require decades for commercial deployment, our plan for delivering a market-ready tech-nology may be available as soon as early next year. Within a short period of time, we believe that the world can stop drilling for oil and start converting natural gas and greenhouse gases to gasoline.

Mr. Elton added, The clear and short path to commercialization with this new CO2-based gas-to-liquids technology makes it our singular focus for the next 12 to 18 months. The companys Website has been updated to reflect this strategy and focus.


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HPINNOVATIONS

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Revolutionary new industrial insulation product

Visionary Industrial Insulation recently announced that it has commenced sales as the master distributor what is claimed to be a revolutionary new insulation product (Fig. 2), high-temperature layered insula-tion (HITLIN), to industrial clients across North America. Typical clients include power plants, refineries, petrochemical plants, geothermal units and concentrat-ing solar power plants. HITLIN is used in process applications up to 1,400F.

HITLIN insulation is being hailed as the new generation of industrial insulation for the many advantages it provides over traditional products offered by competitors. Energy savings, durability, reusability, labor savings and eco-friendliness. Together, these add up to significant cost savings, 50% or more, for HITLIN users and Vision-ary Industrial Insulation customers. Total installed costs and lifecycle costs can be much lower than competing products.

HITLIN is made of continuous fila-ment e-glass fibers that are bound through an enhanced mechanical needle-punching process then mandrel-wound into various pipe cover sizes. When compared to previ-ous industry standards calcium silicate and perlite, HITLIN is proven to offer 49% less heat loss than Calcium Silicate and 57% less than perlite due to its low thermal con-ductivity properties.

The patented manufacturing pro-cess yields a high-density product that is extremely durable and reusable. HITLIN

is manufactured without using hazardous organic chemical binders that are tradi-tionally used with fiberglass and mineral wool products. HITLIN is available in two-piece preformed standard piping sizes from in. to 44 in. in diameter. It is also available preformed to fit the curvature of any tank, vessel, exchanger or other equip-ment. Thicknesses up to 6 in. are available often eliminating the need for multiple layers. With its durability and reusability,

HITLIN can outlast the pipes on which it is installed.

HITLIN insulation sections can be removed and reinstalled; that it can be reused makes the product eco-friendly and the absence of hazardous chemical binders also cuts down on bio-waste. Low chloride content makes HITLIN a preferred prod-uct for reducing the possibility of stress cor-rosion cracking in stainless steel piping.


Visionary Industrial Insulations new product.

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TREND ANALYSIS FORECASTINGHydrocarbon Processing maintains an extensive database of historical HPI proj-ect information. Current project activity is published three times a year in the HPI Construction Boxscore. When a project is completed, it is removed from current listings and retained in a database. The database is a 35-year compilation of proj-ects by type, operating company, licen-sor, engineering/constructor, location, etc. Many companies use the historical data for trending or sales forecasting.

The historical information is available in comma-delimited or Excel and can be cus-tom sorted to suit your needs. The cost of the sort depends on the size and complex-ity of the sort you request and whether a customized program must be written. You can focus on a narrow request such as the history of a particular type of project or you can obtain the entire 35-year Boxscore database, or portions thereof.

Simply send a clear description of the data you need and you will receive a prompt cost quotation. Contact:

Lee NicholsP. O. Box 2608

Houston, Texas, 77252-2608Fax: 713-525-4626

e-mail: [email protected].

HPIN CONSTRUCTIONBILLY THINNES, NEWS EDITOR

[email protected]

North AmericaEnterprise Products Partners refined

products storage facility in Port Arthur, Texas, which was built to support the expan-sion of a nearby refinery, has commenced commercial operations and received its first deliveries. The new tank farm serves as the sole distribution point for output from the refinery as part of a 15-year throughput and volume dedication agreement. Enter-prises storage facility, which represents an investment of approximately $330 million, features 20 storage tanks with 5.4 million barrels of capacity for gasoline, diesel and jet fuel. In addition, five pipelines transport the various products from the refinery to the storage site.

Indorama Ventures Public Co.s 432,000 tpy PET resin plant, known as AlphaPet Inc., recently completed con-struction and opened for operation in Deca-tur, Alabama. The plant, which is co-located on the site of BP Chemicals PTA facility in Decatur, will serve North America with PET resin. AlphaPet employs melt-to-resin (MTR) technology provided under license by Uhde Inventa Fischer of Germany.

South AmericaPERU LNG recently completed con-

struction and has successfully produced its first cargo of LNG. The project is located in the remote Pampa Melchorita area, 170 kilometers south of Lima, Peru. The plant, with capacity of approximately 4.5 million tpy, cools the natural gas to 160C, reduc-ing the volume by approximately 600 times to facilitate storage and transportation. The liquefaction plant utilizes a propane pre-cooled mixed component refrigerant process, four refrigeration compressors, two gas turbines and associated systems. In addition, CB&I constructed a gas treat-ment plant, power generation utilities, two 130,000-cubic meter LNG storage tanks, the topsides of the 1,300-meter trestle and the ship loading facilities.

Petrobras and Refinaria de Petrleos de Manguinhos SA are discussing the pos-sibility of modernizing the Manguinhos, Brazil, refinery to enhance its production of gasoline, diesel and other products,

including biodiesel. The modernization would include upgrading transportation and logistics services.

Mustang has been chosen by Corval Group as a partner in its study to deter-mine the feasibility of increasing oil refin-ing capacity in North Dakota. Mustangs scope of work includes preparation of a site selection basis and plan, refinery emissions estimates, construction schedule, utility balances and process descriptions for all major systems. The genesis of this study was an April 2008 report issued by the US Geological Survey that said North Dakota and Montana have an estimated 3 to 4.3 billion barrels of undiscovered, technically recoverable oil in the Bakken formation. The US Department of Energy, through the National Energy Technology Labora-tory, is funding the study, which is sched-uled to be completed by July 2010, and the North Dakota Association of Rural Electric Cooperatives is the project administrator.

EuropeGazprom JSC and Siemens AG plan

to construct a demo plant for LNG pro-duction based on liquefaction technology. They will also study the possibility of the joint manufacturing of components for Russian LNG plants.

Middle EastFoster Wheeler AGs Global Engineer-

ing and Construction Group has a feasibil-ity study and front-end engineering design (FEED) contract with the Iraqi Ministry of Oil for a new grassroots refinery at Nas-siriya, Iraq. The proposed refinery will have a capacity of 300,000 bpd.

Borouge has awarded several major engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contracts valued at approximately $2.6 billion for its Borouge 3 expansion project in Abu Dhabi, UAE. These signifi-cant investments will expand the produc-tion capacity of the plant to 4.5 million tpy by 2013, making it one of the largest integrated polyolefins sites in the world. A contract worth $1.25 billion was awarded to the joint venture consortium of Tecni-

mont and Samsung Engineering for the construction of two enhanced polyethyl-ene units and two enhanced polypropylene units, as well as a contract worth $400 mil-lion for the construction of a 350,000-tpy low density polyethylene (LDPE) unit.The annual capacity of the polyethylene units is 1 million tpy and the polypropylene units capacity is 960,000 tpy.

Foster Wheeler AGs Global Engineer-ing and Construction Group has contracts with SOCAR & TURCAS Rafineri A.. (STRAS) for its planned grassroots refinery to be built within the Petkim Petrokimya A.. (PETKM) facilities at Aliaa, Tur-key. The contracts cover overall front-end engineering design for the new refinery and the license and basic design package for the delayed coker, which will use Foster Wheelers delayed coking technology. The planned new facility will have a capacity of 214,000 bpd. Naphtha and fuel oil from the hydrocracking unit will be delivered to PETKM for petrochemical use. The refinery will include crude and vacuum distillation units, naphtha hydrotreating, a 40,000-bpd delayed coking unit, a 66,000 bpd hydrocracking unit, kerosine and die-sel hydrotreaters, LPG caustic treatment

TREND ANALYSIS FORECASTINGHydrocarbon Processing maintains an

extensive database of historical HPI proj-ect information. The Boxscore Database is a 35-year compilation of projects by type, oper-ating company, licensor, engineering/construc-tor, location, etc. Many companies use the his-torical data for trending or sales forecasting.

The historical information is available in comma-delimited or Excel and can be cus-tom sorted to suit your needs. The cost of the sort depends on the size and complexity of the sort you request and whether a custom-ized program must be written. You can focus on a narrow request such as the history of a particular type of project or you can obtain the entire 35-year Boxscore database, or por-tions thereof.

Simply send a clear description of the data you need and you will receive a prompt cost quotation. Contact:

Lee NicholsP. O. Box 2608, Houston, Texas, 77252-2608

Fax: 713-525-4626e-mail: [email protected]

HPIN CONSTRUCTION

22

units, a 28,000-bpd continuous catalytic reformer, a saturated gas unit, an amine and sour water stripper, sulfur and tail gas treatment units and a 160,000-Nm3/h hydrogen unit, as well as utilities, auxiliary systems and offsite facilities.

CB&I has a contract valued in excess of $70 million with Daewoo Engineer-ing and Construction Co., Ltd. to pro-vide the propylene storage tanks for the

Ruwais refinery expansion project in Abu Dhabi, UAE. CB&Is scope of the project is expected to be completed in 2013.

AfricaFoster Wheeler AGs Global Engi-

neering and Construction Group has an engineering, procurement, and con-struction management (EPCm) services contract with Socit Nationale de Raffi-nage (SONARA) for Phase 1 of the Limb

refinery upgrade and modernization proj-ect in Cameroon.

KBR has received final change order agreements with its joint venture partners Technip and JGC Corp. for the Yemen LNG plant. The contract for this lump-sum turnkey project, valued at more than $2 billion, was first announced in Septem-ber 2005. Train 2 of the Yemen project was ready for startup status on March 12 and care, custody and control of the project has been turned over to the client.

Foster Wheeler AGs Global Engi-neering and Construction Group has a contract with GDF SUEZ to carry out the pre-front-end engineering design (pre-FEED) for the development of an onshore LNG plant and offshore gas gathering infra-structure. The project seeks to establish a national gas transportation network linking Cameroons offshore gas resources with the state-sanctioned onshore site near Kribi on the southern coastline of Cameroon.

Asia-PacificTechnip has three lump sum turnkey

contracts from Mangalore Refinery & Pet-rochemicals Ltd. (MRPL). The contracts are worth a total value of approximately 25 million. They are for an expansion project at MRPLs refinery located in Mangalore, India. This project will increase the refinerys crude refining capacity to 15 million tpy. The con-tracts cover the design, engineering, supply and installation of fired heaters in four major units of the MRPL refinery: the crude distilla-tion, vacuum distillation, delayed coking and petrochemical fluid catalytic cracking units.

Air Products joint venture company based in Sichuan, China, has signed a long-term agreement to build a hydrogen produc-tion facility for PetroChina Co. Ltd. The steam methane reformer will produce hydro-gen and syngas to support PetroChinas Sich-uan refinery and petrochemical facilities. The facility will produce over 90 million standard cfd of hydrogen and is targeted to be on stream in early 2012.

Enersul has a contract from Hyundai Engineering Co., Ltd. to provide sulfur granulation technology for a new gas plant in Turkmenistan. These granulation units will be a part of the gas plants sulfur facil-ity operated by state-owned Turkmengas which produces, processes and exports all gas reserves. HP

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR


[email protected]

Chemical process safety chatThank you for publishing the process

safety-related article by Mr. Shah about layers of protection (p. 67, April 2010). I am a long-time reader and have seen very few, if any, articles in Hydrocarbon Processing that I would classify as pure process safety. Mr. Shahs article is a very good high-level overview of LOPA and I hope it prompts readers to make the effort to learn more about this valuable risk-management tool. I am a process safety professional and teach several process safety related classes. LOPA is included in most of them as a tool for improved risk management. Reading Mr. Shahs article gives me the incentive to offer process safety-related articles for publication in Hydrocarbon Processing.

There is one minor correction to the arti-cle that should be made. Mr. Shah references CCPS as Center Chemical and Process Safety. That is not the correct title. CCPS is the Center for Chemical Process Safety and was formed in early 1985 by AIChE after the Bhopal tragedy. The mission was (and still is) to eliminate catastrophic pro-cess incidents by advancing state-of-the-art technology and management practices, serv-ing as the premier resource for information on process safety, supporting process safety in engineering, and promoting process safety as a key industry value. Originally, there were 17 members. CCPS now has over 120 member companies in 19 countries. To learn more about CCPS, go to http://www.aiche.org/ccps/.

Adrian L. Sepeda, P.E.A. L. Sepeda Consulting Inc.Plano, Texas

A dual-temperature control challenge

In his March 2010 HPIn Control column (p. 17), Y. Zak Friedman chal-lenged me to write an article showing a real column having stable dual-temperature control. I have written many such articles in the past, so the history of success is well established. For example, see the applica-tion to a styrene-ethylbenzene column (Oil & Gas J., July 14, 1969), to an alkylation deisobutanizer (Oil & Gas J., July 28, 1969) and to a series of columns in an NGL sepa-

ration unit (Chem. Eng. Progr., June 1975). Obviously, this is not news.

Out of respect for client privilege, I am not at liberty to present recent success sto-ries of stable dual-temperature controls. Those who are interested should not draw any conclusions from Friedmans one-page editorial without first reading my entire 10-page article, Multivariable Control of Distillation, appearing in Control in May, June and July 2009.

F. G. ShinskeyProcess Control ConsultantWolfeboro, New Hampshire

Authors responseMr. Shinskeys 1969 and 1975 papers

are not relevant to the current argument. The papers are about mass balance control structure with analyzer feedback, sometimes with a single tray temperature controller. Neither paper contains any process data to support Mr. Shinskeys position, but in any case, the argument that mass balance is sometimes a useful control technique is not controversial. What is controversial is dual composition control implemented on top of unstable dual-temperature control.

I would repeat that the only reasonable way to promote a theory is to show that it works in practice. I am actually surprised to hear that clients have declined to release Mr. Shinskeys technical papers. In my experi-ence, clients who are proud of their APC applications are eager to publish papers and participate as authors.

Y. Zak Friedman

Correcting a misperceptionThere was misinformation in the Janu-

ary 2010 issue. I am referring to the HPIn-novations section (p. 19) which indicates that Curtiss-Wrights pressure-relief software has now been awarded a US patent. How-ever, the title gives an incorrect impression to your readers (Pressure-relief software awarded first US patent). The title implies that Curtiss-Wright has obtained the first-ever US patent that was awarded for pres-sure-relief software. We wish to point out that Siemens Pressure Protection Manager was the first software for which the US

Patent Office granted a patent. This pat-ent was granted in 1995. As such, the title of the article should read, Pressure-relief software awarded a US patent. This change removes the ambiguity for your readers and is grounded in the aforementioned facts.

Eva-Maria BaumannSiemens AG Energy SectorErlangen, Germany

A plastics fanI want to thank you for publishing the

article, Plastics enable better automobile designs in your April 2010 issue (p. 43). As someone who has been involved in the automotive and petrochemical industries for over 20 years, I cant tell you how much advances in polymers have made vehicles safer, lighter, more responsive and pro-portionally less expensive. The fact that automakers can use plastics in fenders and bumpers, instead of more expensive met-als, ups profit margins for producers and lowers sticker prices for consumers. By my reckoning, thats a good deal for everyone. While the world may not know how much it depends on plastics, this community does and we should continue to develop even more advanced polymers.

Peter Sanderson, P.E.Grand Rapids, Michigan

An expression of loveI just love this statement by Heinz P.

Bloch, Dont employ the nonteachable, from his May 2010 HPIn Reliability col-umn. Sorry but it had me and our engineers in stitches. If this rule were applied at the CEO, COO and CFO levels, we might begin to get somewhere!

Harry J. Gatley, Chem.E., P.Eng, P.E.West Jordan, Utah

Hydrocarbon Processing welcomes and encourages feedback from its readers. Send your comments to:

Hydrocarbon ProcessingAttention: Letters to the editorP.O. Box 2608, Houston, Texas [email protected]

26 I AUGUST 2010 HYDROCARBON PROCESSING

HPI CONSTRUCTION BOXSCORE UPDATE Company City Plant Site Project Capacity Unit Cost Status Yr Cmpl Licensor Engineering Constructor

UNITED STATES Illinois Air Products Granite City Granite City Air Separation Unit (1) 500 tpd P 2012 Air Products Illinois Air Products Granite City Granite City Air Separation Unit (2) RE 500 tpd P 2012 Air Products Kentucky Marathon Petroleum Catlettsburg Catlettsburg Hydrocrack, Gasoil 70 Mbpd C 2010 Shaw Michigan FRONTIER RENEWABLE RES Kinross Kinross Bio-ethanol 40 MMgal F 2013 Utah PM Petroleum Green River Green River Refinery 25 Mbpd P 2014

LATIN AMERICA Brazil Petrobras/BG/Repsol/Galp Energia Santos Santos LNG Floating (FLNG) 2.7 MMtpy F 2013 Technip Chiyoda|SBM Offshore|Technip Brazil Petrobras Tres Lagoas Tres Lagoas Ammonia 2.2 Mm-tpd F 2013 KBR Colombia Ecopetrol Barrancabermeja Barrancabermeja Coker, Delayed 54 Mbpd E 2013 FW Colombia Ecopetrol Barrancabermeja Barrancabermeja Coker, Naphtha 30 Mbpd E 2013 FW Colombia Ecopetrol Barrancabermeja Barrancabermeja Crude Unit 100 Mbpd E 2013 FW Colombia Ecopetrol Barrancabermeja Barrancabermeja Hydrocracker 50 Mbpd E 2013 FW Peru PERU LNG Pampa Melchorita Pampa Melchorita LNG Liquefaction Plant 4.5 MMtpy 3800 C 2010 CB&I CB&IPeru PERU LNG Pampa Melchorita Pampa Melchorita Storage Train, LNG (1) 130 Mm3 3800 C 2010 CB&I CB&IPeru PERU LNG Pampa Melchorita Pampa Melchorita Utilities None 3800 C 2010 CB&I CB&IVenezuela Petronas/PDVSA/ONGC/Repsol/IOCL Jv Anzoategui Anzoategui Upgrader, Heavy Oil 200 Mbpd P 2014

ASIA/PACIFIC China Ningbo Heyuan Chemical Ningbo Ningbo Methanol-to-Olefins (MTO) 600 Mm-tpy F 2012 CB&I China Ningbo Heyuan Chemical Ningbo Ningbo Olefins Conversion 90 Mm-tpy F 2012 CB&I China Xinwen Mining Group Xinjiang Yili Coal to SNG Plant 6 MMNm3/d P 2012 Davy Process India Mangalore Rfg & Petrochemicals Mangalore Mangalore Heater, Coker None F 2011 Technip India Mangalore Rfg & Petrochemicals Mangalore Mangalore Heater, Crude None F 2011 Technip India Mangalore Rfg & Petrochemicals Mangalore Mangalore Heater, FCC None F 2011 Technip India Mangalore Rfg & Petrochemicals Mangalore Mangalore Heater, Vacuum None F 2011 Technip

AFRICA Cameroon GDF SUEZ Kribi Kribi LNG 3.5 MMtpy F 2012 FW Egypt Carbon Holdings Ain Sokhna Ain Sokhna Polyethylene (1) 450 Mtpy F 2012 Univation Egypt Carbon Holdings Ain Sokhna Ain Sokhna Polyethylene (2) 450 Mtpy F 2012 Univation Egypt Carbon Holdings Ain Sokhna Ain Sokhna Polyethylene (3) 450 Mtpy F 2012 Univation Nigeria Nigerian Natl Petr Corp Lekki Lekki Free Trade Zone Refinery 500 Mm-tpy S 2014

MIDDLE EAST Iraq Iraq Ministry of Oil Basra Al Basrah Cracker, FCC 55 Mbpsd 17.9 F 2011 APS Eng Co Roma Turkey Petkim/SOCAR/Turcas JV Aliaga Aliaga CCR 28 Mbpsd F 2014 FW Turkey Petkim/SOCAR/Turcas JV Aliaga Aliaga Coker, Delayed 40 Mbpsd F 2014 FW Turkey Petkim Petrokimya Hldg Aliaga Aliaga Hydrocracker 66 Mbpsd F 2014 FW Turkey Petkim/SOCAR/Turcas JV Aliaga Aliaga Hydrogen 160 MNm3/h F 2014 FW Turkey Petkim/SOCAR/Turcas JV Aliaga Aliaga Offsites None F 2014 FW Turkey Petkim/SOCAR/Turcas JV Aliaga Aliaga Refinery 214 Mbpsd F 2014 FW FW UAE Borouge III Ruwais Ruwais Polyethylene, LD 350 Mtpy 400 U 2013 Tecnimont Samsung Eng

See http://www.HydrocarbonProcessing.com/bxsymbols for licensor, engineering and construction companies abbreviations,along with the complete update of the HPI Construction Boxscore.

THE GLOBAL SOURCEFOR TRACKING HPICONSTRUCTION ACTIVITY

BOXSCORE DATABASE ONLINE

For more than 50 years, Hydrocarbon Processing magazine remains the only source that collects and maintains data specifi cally for the HPI community, publishing up-to-the-minute construction projects from around the globe with our online product, Boxscore Database. Updated weekly, our database helps engineers, contractors and marketing personnel identify active HPI construction projects around the world to: Generate leads Market research Track trend analysis And, decide future budget planning.

Now, weve made our best product even better! Enhancements include: Exporting your search results to Excel so you can compile your research Delivering the latest updated projects directly to your inbox each week Designing customized construction reports for your company using our 50 years of archived projects.

For a Free 2 -Week Trial, contact Lee Nichols at +1 (713) 525-4626, [email protected],or visit www.ConstructionBoxscore.com


Nitrogen is critical to a safe and successful ethylene cracker turnaround. Why risk using your operational resources or a gas supply company when BJ Services provides a dedicated, engineered nitrogen capability that can save you time and money while reducing your risk?

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FLUID FLOW AND ROTATING EQUIPMENT SPECIALREPORT


Prevent electric erosion in variable-frequency drive bearingsHere are the reasons and remedial actions

H. P. BLOCH, HP Reliability/Equipment Editor

T he problem of electric current pass-ing through electrical machine roll-ing bearings and causing damage in the inner and outer ring ball or roller and raceway contact areas has been known for decades. In addition to the bearing element damage, it was also understood that the lubricant structure might change under the influence of a passing current. Both AC and DC motors potentially suffer from the electric-current passage phenomenon. However, since the 1990s, increasing use of variable-frequency drives (VFDs) has had a measurable effect on the number of motor bearing failures. This article examines the reasons and recommends remedial action to be considered.

Modern induction machines are con-trolled via fast-switching voltage-source frequency converters that, in motors, provide the possibility for precise con-trol and adjusting rotational speed and torque as well as energy regeneration at braking operations. The power-switching semiconductor devices used in frequency converters have changed from thyristors to gate turn-off transistors (GTOs) and further to the insulated-gate bi-polar tran-sistors (IGBTs) that dominate the VFD market today. While IGBTs are used to create the pulse-width-modulated (PWM) output voltage waveform and thereby improve drive efficiency and dynamic performance, these advantages are not achieved without certain drawbacks. New effects have been observed when power is supplied from a PWM converter. Depending on the power range, switching frequencies of several kHz are employed and associated voltages and currents are encountered apart from the classic volt-ages and currents generated by the motor itself. Bearing damage is now caused by a high-frequency (spanning a relatively wide

kHz to MHz range) current flow that is induced by these fast-switching (100 ns) IGBT semiconductor devices.1

The basic causes and sources for bearing currents are:

Electrostatic charging Magnetic flux asymmetries in the

motor Frequency converters and their com-

mon-mode voltage in combination with high-slew-rate voltage pulses.

The first two phenomena are well known and considered classical reasons for bearing currents. All electric motors and generators, whether they are main- or converter-fed, are at risk with respect to the first two phe-nomena. This would explain that insulated bearings were used by risk-averse reliabil-ity professionals decades ago. However, common-mode voltages in combination with high-slew-ra

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