Economics
Multi-faceted approach on energy efficiency methods
The hydrocarbon processing industry (HPI) is a high-energy-consuming business. After cost for feedstocks, energy is the next largest operating expense for an HPI facility. Since the first oil embargo ..
Shale gas drives new opportunities for US downstream
This shift to lighter feeds for the SC will reduce the future availability of other petrochemical feedstocks—in particular, propylene.
DCS migration: Lessons learned
In 2005, TOTAL’s Port Arthur refinery (PAR), like many present-day refining and petrochemical facilities, found itself with an obsolete, at-capacity distributed control system (DCS). As shown in ..
Avoid counterproductive project management practices
For many years, reliability-focused engineers have observed flawed procurement processes for mechanical equipment. Many requirements are supposedly aimed at the lowest possible lifecycle cost; however..
Consider technology to reduce compressor vibration and noise problems
Industrial centrifugal compressors installed in hydrocarbon processing industry (HPI) complexes absorb significant amounts of mechanical power when compressing gases. A small part of the mechanical en..
HP Editorial Comment: Alternative energy?
Alternative energy is a point-of-reference term. Natural gas is an alternative energy resource for transportation fuels. As more natural gas resources are developed, natural gas is displacing coal as ..
HP Reliability: Plan now to deal with stressed equipment later
The US Energy Information Administration’s (EIA’s) “Today in Energy” brief evaluated how US refineries are processing record amounts of crude oil (Fig. 1), with Midwest and Gulf Co..
HP Automation Strategies: Control on the wire(less)
Since the industrial revolution, process/industrial control had relied on tightly coupled systems to transmit control signals. Industrial plants have used “modern” control via wired electron..
HP Project Management: German refinery successfully modernizes safety system
In September 2014, the Heide refinery in Germany used two weeks of planned downtime at its pyrolysis plant to migrate to new safety systems. The new system emphasized high plant/equipment availability..
HP Global: State of the US petrochemical/chemical industry
After a promising start, the global economy faltered in 2014 with heightened geopolitical uncertainty; recessions in Brazil, Japan and many European nations; and slowdowns in China, the Euro Area and ..
- European Commission unveils plan to drop ICE ban in the EU 12/18
- U.S. EPA expects to finalize biofuel rules in first quarter of 2026 12/18
- German cabinet approves draft biofuels law, food-based ingredient use to continue 12/18
- NextChem opens new plastic upcycling plant in Italy 12/18
- Ineos' Sir Jim Ratcliffe calls on Europe's politicians to take immediate action to protect the European chemical industry 12/18
- MB Energy expands aviation fuel supply to airlines at Copenhagen Airport 12/18
