Refiners are continually challenged to maximize economic gain in the face of cost pressures and plant operating constraints. The fluidized catalytic cracking unit (FCCU) plays an integral role in the optimization of the facility. FCC catalyst is often one of the largest budget items in the refinery. Therefore, the balance between FCCU performance and catalyst costs has a significant impact on refinery profitability.
The negative impact of fossil fuels on the environment has become widely accepted, and our global society has begun to focus on alternative fuels. The pollution of the local, regional and global environment has become a primary concern.
No doubt exists that COVID-19 is disrupting the oil and gas industry. Oil prices are falling, demand is down, supply is up, and storage capacity is limited. In these difficult times, the industry must swiftly act to keep business viable to come back strong when conditions improve.
Refinery margins in the U.S. Atlantic basin rebounded. Deeper refinery intake cuts, as well as the low feedstock price environment, helped offset unappealing demand-side signals.
Base layer control is one of the most important stages of a process control system hierarchy for refinery applications.
The consistent global trend toward improvements in air quality and tighter regulations on emissions, as well as the International Maritime Organization’s shipping regulations, continue to mitigate sulfur levels—not only in conventional transport fuels (petrol and diesel), but also in jet fuels, fuel oils and other heavier distillates.
Refinery margins came under added pressure, affected by the downturn in product consumption inflicted by COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns.
Rovuma LNG, a JV comprised of ExxonMobil, Eni and China National Petroleum Corp., will likely delay its final investment decision (FID) on the group’s $30-B Mozambique LNG project.
Rapid crude yield (RCY) combines a detailed hydrocarbon analysis of the front end (DHAFE) with high-temperature simulated distillation (HTSD), creating a true boiling point (TBP) curve for a crude oil sample.
Given increasingly stringent automotive specifications and the advent of the International Maritime Organization’s 2020 sulfur regulations, the continued decrease in Group I base stocks demand should come as no surprise for anyone in the industry.